WaKeeney, Kansas

In 1877, James Keeney, a land speculator in Chicago, bought land at the place of modern-day WaKeeney from the Kansas Pacific Railway. He, and business partner Albert Warren, created Warren, Keeney, & Co., surveyed and plotted the site in 1878. They created a colony there in 1879.[8] They named the colony WaKeeney, a portmanteau of their last names.

They said it was "The Queen City of the High Plains", advertising and holding celebrations to attract settlers.[9] The colony grew quickly, but crop failures made settlers leave in 1880 as quickly as they had come. By 1882, all that was left were "five poorly patronized retail stores".[10] Years later, Volga Germans began settling the area.[8]

WaKeeney became the county seat in June 1879. It was incorporated as a city in 1880.[8][9]

WaKeeney is at 39°01′28″N 99°52′55″W (39.024467, -99.881972)[11] at an elevation of 2,447 feet (746 m).[5] It is in northwestern Kansas at the intersection of Interstate 70 and U.S. Route 283. It is 162 miles (261 km) northwest of Wichita, 281 miles (452 km) east-southeast of Denver, and 284 miles (457 km) west of Kansas City.[12]

WaKeeney is in the High Plains region of the Great Plains. It is about 2 miles (3.2 km) north of Big Creek, a tributary of the Smoky Hill River.[13][14] A small tributary of Big Creek goes south from near the center of the city.[14]

The United States Census Bureau says that the city has a total area of 1.71 square miles (4.43 km²). All of it is land.[1]

WaKeeney has a humid continental climate (Köppen Dfa). It has hot, humid summers and cold, dry winters. The average temperature is 52.8 °F (11 °C), and the average yearly precipitation is 23.6 inches (600 mm).[15] Snowfall averages 25.2 inches (640 mm) per year.[16] On average, January is the coldest month, and July is both the hottest month and the wettest month. The hottest temperature ever in WaKeeney was 110 °F (43 °C) in 1980; the coldest temperature ever was -25 °F (-32 °C) in 1989.[17]

Interstate 70 and U.S. Route 40 run concurrently southeast-northwest just south of WaKeeney. They intersect U.S. Route 283, which goes north-south through WaKeeney. U.S. 283 goes east-west for one mile in downtown WaKeeney. It is concurrent with U.S. Route 40 Business and the old alignment of U.S. 40.[18]

Trego WaKeeney Airport is on the west side of U.S. 283. It is just south of I-70.[19] The airport is publicly owned. It has one concrete runway. It is used for general aviation.[20]

Union Pacific Railroad has one freight railroad, the Kansas Pacific (KP) line, through WaKeeney. It goes east-west through the WaKeeney.[18][21]

The Western Kansas World is the local newspaper. It is published once per week.[22]

K231BG is a translator of radio station KJIL in Copeland, Kansas. It broadcasts from WaKeeney on 94.1 FM. It plays a Contemporary Christian format.[23][24]

WaKeeney is in the Wichita-Hutchinson, Kansas television market.[25]

• Charles Harris Garrigues (1903-1974), journalist[26]
• Steve Gotsche (1961- ), former PGA Tour and Nationwide Tour golfer[27]
• Andrew J. Harlan (1815-1907), U.S. Representative from Indiana[28]
• Frank Mechau (1904-1946), painter[29]
• Mike Schreiner (1969- ), Green Party of Ontario leader[30] and Member of Provincial Parliament in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario since 2018 election
• Orrin Upshaw (1874-1937), U.S. Olympic tug of war athlete

Wikimedia Commons has media related to WaKeeney, Kansas.

City

• City of WaKeeney
• WaKeeney - Directory of Public Officials

Schools

• USD 208, local school district

Historical

• History of WaKeeney Archived 2009-01-07 at the Wayback Machine

Maps

• WaKeeney City Map, KDOT