Lane County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. As of the 2010 census, the county population was 2,150, making it the third-least populous county in Kansas. The county seat is Dighton, the only city in the county. The county was named after James H. Lane who was a leader of the Jayhawkerabolitionist movement and served as one of the first U.S. Senators from Kansas.
As of the census of 2000, there were 2,155 people, 910 households, and 613 families residing in the county. The population density was 3 people per square mile. There were 1,065 housing units at an average density of 2 per square mile. The racial makeup of the county was 97.73% White, 0.05% Native American, 0.09% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.51% from other races, and 1.58% from two or more races. 1.44% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. There were 910 households out of which 29.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.10% were married couplesliving together, 5.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.60% were non-families. 30.30% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.91. In the county, the population was spread out with 25.40% under the age of 18, 5.40% from 18 to 24, 24.60% from 25 to 44, 24.10% from 45 to 64, and 20.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 100.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.70 males. The median income for a household in the county was $36,047, and the median income for a family was $41,892. Males had a median income of $29,429 versus $20,446 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,606. About 5.40% of families and 8.20% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.40% of those under age 18 and 7.60% of those age 65 or over.
Government
Presidential elections
Lane County has been strongly Republican throughout its history, only voting for Democratic candidates five times in presidential elections from 1888 to the present. The most recent of those wins came in 1964 when Lyndon B. Johnson won it amongst his national landslide.
Laws
Although the Kansas Constitution was amended in 1986 to allow the sale of alcoholic liquor by the individual drink with the approval of voters, Lane County has remained a prohibition, or "dry", county.
Lane County is divided into five townships. None of the cities within the county are considered governmentally independent, and all figures for the townships include those of the cities. In the following table, the population center is the largest city included in that township's population total, if it is of a significant size.
