nty is good. A few square miles along the northern boundary northeast of the city of Kingman is flat and has poor surface drainage, and some land bordering the rivers is waterlogged. South Fork of Ninnescah River drains nearly all of the northern half of the county. Its main tributaries are Smoots Creek, which joins near the center of the eastern border of the county, and Painter Creek, which joins the main stream near the town of Calista. North Fork of Ninnescah River crosses the extreme northeast corner of the county but drains only a few sections in the county. Chikaskia River drains the southern half of the county; its major tributary is Sand Creek, which flows along the southern boundary of the county in the southwest corner and joins the main stream near the town of Spivey.
The climate of Kingman County is subhumid and is characterized by moderate precipitation, reasonably mild winters, and fairly hot summers. A large percentage of the winter days are clear, but snow flurries are common. Ordinarily snow remains on the ground only a short time. The weather during spring and fall is mild and very pleasant, but summers are generally hot, and strong southerly winds are common.
The climatic data in this report are compiled from records of the U. S. Weather Bureau. The normal annual precipitation at Norwich, based on a 62-year record, is 29.28 inches. The lowest annual precipitation of record at Norwich was 12.40 inches in 1956 and the highest of record was 48.84 inches in 1915. About 70 percent of the annual precipitation falls as rain during the growing season from April through September. January has the lowest normal monthly precipitation, 0.70 inch, and May has the highest, 4.51 inches. Much of the precipitation in Kingman County falls in relatively short, heavy thunderstorms. The greatest rainfall ever recorded at Norwich in a 24-hour period was 5.77 inches on April 8, 1927.
The normal annual temperature at Norwich is 57.9° F. The normal monthly temperature ranges from 33.3° F in January to 81.5° F in July. The highest temperature recorded was 117° F on August 12, 1936; the lowest temperature recorded was -21° F on February 13, 1905. The average date of the last killing frost in the spring is April 14, and the average date of the first killing frost in the fall is October 25. Killing frosts have occurred as late as May 15 and as early as September 20. The growing season averages 194 days but has been as long as 225 days and as short as 152 days.
Kingman County was organized from parts of Harper and Reno counties on February 27, 1874, and had fewer than 20 settlers. In 1955 the county had a population of 10,857, of which 31 percent was urban [Note: Kingman County population was listed as 8,673 in 2000 U.S. census, with 36.8 urban (KU Institute for Policy & Social Research).]. Kingman, the largest town and the county seat, had a population of 3,741 in 1955 [3,387 in 2000]. Other communities and their 1955 population are Norwich, 413 [551 in 2000]; Spivey, 137 [80 in 2000]; Cunningham, 587 [514 in 2000]; Penalosa, 71 [27 in 2000]; Nashville, 143 [111 in 2000]; and Zenda, 183 [123 in 2000].
Kingman County is served by about 110 miles of surfaced federal and state highways. U. S. Highway 54 crosses the northern half of the county from east to west, and Kansas Highway 42 crosses the southern half of the county from east to west. Kansas Highway 14 crosses the county from north to south near the center, and Kansas Highway 17 enters the county near the northeast corner and terminates at U. S. Highway 54. The southeast corner of the county is crossed by Kansas Highway 2. In addition, the county is served by about 120 miles of surfaced county roads. Most section-line roads in the county are open and are in good condition most of the year.
Transportation facilities provided by branch lines of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway and the Missouri Pacific Railroad are good. These railroads pass through almost all the towns, and few farms in the county are more than 7 miles from the nearest railroad.
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