{"id":3637,"date":"2023-05-21T08:16:39","date_gmt":"2023-05-21T08:16:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/townsvillages.com\/us\/?p=3637"},"modified":"2026-08-21T16:17:28","modified_gmt":"2026-08-21T16:17:28","slug":"geary-county","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/townsvillages.com\/us\/geary-county\/","title":{"rendered":"Geary County, Kansas"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Geary County is a county in Kansas, United States, home to the Fort Riley Army post on its northern edge. It had a population of 36,739 at the 2020 census and covers 405 square miles (1,049 km2) in total &mdash; 385 square miles (1,000 km2) of land and 20 square miles (52 km2) of water &mdash; centred near 39&deg;00&prime;N 96&deg;40&prime;W.<\/p>\n<p>Junction City is the county seat, and its postal code is 66441. The county has three incorporated cities, one census-designated place, and one unincorporated community. Geary County sits in the Central time zone and carries FIPS code 20061.<\/p>\n<h2>Towns &amp; Villages in Geary County<\/h2>\n<p>Five named places anchor Geary County: three incorporated cities, the Fort Riley census-designated place, and the unincorporated community of Wreford. Junction City, the seat, holds the large majority of the county&#8217;s population; Grandview Plaza sits immediately southeast of it along the Kansas River, and Milford is the small lake-side city near Milford Lake to the west.<\/p>\n<div class=\"tv-table-scroll\">\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>Place<\/th>\n<th>Type<\/th>\n<th>Pop.<\/th>\n<th>ZIP<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>Junction City<\/td>\n<td>City &middot; seat<\/td>\n<td>25,828<\/td>\n<td>66441<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Fort Riley<\/td>\n<td>CDP<\/td>\n<td>&mdash;<\/td>\n<td>66442<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Grandview Plaza<\/td>\n<td>City<\/td>\n<td>&mdash;<\/td>\n<td>66441<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Milford<\/td>\n<td>City<\/td>\n<td>&mdash;<\/td>\n<td>66514<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Wreford<\/td>\n<td>Unincorp.<\/td>\n<td>&mdash;<\/td>\n<td>66441<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<p>Two former settlements, Alida and Pawnee, appear on historical maps of the county but no longer function as populated places; Pawnee was the original territorial capital site, absorbed into the Fort Riley reservation in the 1850s.<\/p>\n<h2>ZIP Codes<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>66441 &mdash; Junction City (also serves Grandview Plaza and Wreford)<\/li>\n<li>66442 &mdash; Fort Riley<\/li>\n<li>66514 &mdash; Milford<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Geary County is covered by just three ZIP codes, reflecting its compact size and the way Junction City&#8217;s post office serves most of the surrounding unincorporated area.<\/p>\n<h2>Geography<\/h2>\n<p>Geary County lies in the Flint Hills transition zone of northeast Kansas, where the Smoky Hill River and Republican River join to form the Kansas River at Junction City. Milford Lake, one of the largest reservoirs in Kansas, backs up the Republican River along the county&#8217;s western edge. The county has the second-smallest land area and the third-smallest overall area of any county in Kansas.<\/p>\n<p>Geary County borders Riley County (<a href=\"https:\/\/townsvillages.com\/us\/riley-county\/\">Riley County<\/a>) to the north, Wabaunsee County (<a href=\"https:\/\/townsvillages.com\/us\/wabaunsee-county\/\">Wabaunsee County<\/a>) to the east, Morris County to the south, Dickinson County (<a href=\"https:\/\/townsvillages.com\/us\/dickinson-county-kansas\/\">Dickinson County<\/a>) to the west, and Clay County (<a href=\"https:\/\/townsvillages.com\/us\/clay-county-kansas\/\">Clay County<\/a>) to the northwest.<\/p>\n<h2>Demographics<\/h2>\n<p>Geary County&#8217;s population stood at 36,739 at the 2020 census, with Junction City (25,828) and Fort Riley&#8217;s on-post population making up the bulk of that total. The county&#8217;s median age of 28.7 reflects the large share of active-duty soldiers and young military families stationed at Fort Riley. Median household income runs below the Kansas median of $70,333 in the parts of the county outside the base, typical of counties anchored by a large military installation. Population density works out to roughly 95 people per square mile of land.<\/p>\n<h2>Economy &amp; Local Life<\/h2>\n<p>Fort Riley dominates the county&#8217;s economy: the post spans 100,656 acres shared with Riley County and draws an estimated daytime population of about 25,000 soldiers, family members, and civilian employees, making the U.S. Army the county&#8217;s largest employer by a wide margin. Off-post, Junction City&#8217;s economy centers on retail, health care, and services supporting military families, plus recreation tourism drawn by Milford Lake&#8217;s fishing, boating, and camping.<\/p>\n<h2>History<\/h2>\n<p>Geary County was organized on August 30, 1855, as one of the first 33 counties created by the Kansas territorial government. It was originally named Davis County, after Jefferson Davis, then U.S. Secretary of War; the Kansas legislature renamed it in 1888 to honor John W. Geary, an early territorial governor. Fort Riley itself predates the county, established in 1853 to protect travelers on the Santa Fe and Oregon Trails, and it has remained an active Army post ever since.<\/p>\n<h2>Getting There<\/h2>\n<p>Interstate 70 crosses the county through Junction City, with U.S. Route 77 and U.S. Route 40 providing additional north-south and east-west access.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Manhattan, Kansas &mdash; 20 miles north<\/li>\n<li>Topeka, Kansas &mdash; 60 miles east<\/li>\n<li>Salina, Kansas &mdash; 45 miles west<\/li>\n<li>Abilene, Kansas &mdash; 25 miles west<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The nearest commercial airport is Manhattan Regional Airport, about 25 miles north; Kansas City International Airport, roughly 130 miles east, offers a wider range of connections.<\/p>\n<h2>Frequently Asked Questions<\/h2>\n<p><strong>Where is Geary County, Kansas?<\/strong><br \/>It sits in the Flint Hills region of northeast Kansas, about 20 miles south of Manhattan, at the confluence of the Smoky Hill and Republican rivers.<\/p>\n<p><strong>What is the population of Geary County?<\/strong><br \/>36,739 people at the 2020 census.<\/p>\n<p><strong>How big is Geary County?<\/strong><br \/>385 square miles of land plus 20 square miles of water, 405 square miles total.<\/p>\n<p><strong>What is the county seat of Geary County?<\/strong><br \/>Junction City is the county seat and largest city.<\/p>\n<p><strong>How many towns are in Geary County?<\/strong><br \/>Three incorporated cities &mdash; Junction City, Grandview Plaza, and Milford &mdash; plus the Fort Riley CDP and the unincorporated community of Wreford.<\/p>\n<p><strong>What ZIP codes are in Geary County?<\/strong><br \/>66441 (Junction City), 66442 (Fort Riley), and 66514 (Milford).<\/p>\n<p><strong>What is Geary County named after?<\/strong><br \/>John W. Geary, an early governor of Kansas Territory; the county was originally named Davis County after Jefferson Davis before its 1888 renaming.<\/p>\n<p>More counties in this state: <a href=\"https:\/\/townsvillages.com\/us\/category\/kansas\/\">Towns and villages in Kansas<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Geary County is a county in Kansas, United States, home to the Fort Riley Army post on its northern edge. It had a population of 36,739 at the 2020 census and covers 405 square miles (1,049 km2) in total &mdash; 385 square miles (1,000 km2) of land and 20 square miles (52 km2) of water [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_titles_title":"Towns & Villages in Geary County, Kansas","_seopress_titles_desc":"Geary County, Kansas: Junction City, Fort Riley, Grandview Plaza, Milford, ZIP codes, geography, demographics, history and getting there.","_seopress_robots_index":"","_seopress_robots_follow":"","_seopress_robots_imageindex":"","_seopress_robots_snippet":"","_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_robots_breadcrumbs":"","_seopress_robots_freeze_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_custom_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_canonical":"","_seopress_social_fb_title":"","_seopress_social_fb_desc":"","_seopress_social_fb_img":"","_seopress_social_fb_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_height":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_title":"","_seopress_social_twitter_desc":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_height":0,"_seopress_redirections_value":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled_regex":"","_seopress_redirections_logged_status":"","_seopress_redirections_param":"","_seopress_redirections_type":0,"_seopress_analysis_target_kw":"","_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[6],"class_list":["post-3637","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-kansas","tag-towns-and-cities","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/townsvillages.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3637","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/townsvillages.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/townsvillages.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/townsvillages.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/townsvillages.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3637"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/townsvillages.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3637\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11117,"href":"https:\/\/townsvillages.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3637\/revisions\/11117"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/townsvillages.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3637"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/townsvillages.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3637"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/townsvillages.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3637"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}