The Early History of Syracuse
by Frank W. Blackmar (1912)
Syracuse, one of the important cities of western Kansas and the judicial seat of Hamilton county, is an incorporated city of the third class, located on the Arkansas river and the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe R. R. 15 miles from the Colorado line. It is a division point for the railroad and is the principal town in the state west of Garden City. It has 2 banks, a flour mill, machine shops, 2 weekly newspapers (the News and the Republican), 4 churches, a county high school in which 10 teachers are employed, telegraph and express offices, and an international money order postoffice.
The population in 1910 was 1,126. A new steel bridge was built over the Arkansas river in 1909 and a fine rock road runs through the city, leading to the country on either side. Many of the residents own automobiles. Prior to 1873 the town was called Holliday in honor of Cyrus K. Holliday of Topeka. In that year a colony from Syracuse, N. Y., settled here and changed the name. In 1886 Syracuse was victorious in the county seat fight, in which Kendall was the opposing candidate. Although it suffered from the drought and hard times for the next fifteen years Syracuse did not fare as badly as the majority of western towns.
The population in 1890 was 324. During the next decade, which was the worst in the history of that section of the state, it increased to 460. Between the years of 1907 and 1909 the town is said to have doubled in population and there is a steady growth in progress at present. A number of immense pumping plants have been installed in the vicinity in recent years and much of the prosperity now enjoyed is due to irrigation of the farm lands. A fine $75,000 hotel belonging to the Harvey system is one of the features of Syracuse.
Geography
Syracuse is located at 37°58'59N, 101°45'4W (37.982938, -101.751224). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 3.4 km² (1.3 mi²), all land.
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 1,824 people, 742 households, and 483 families residing in the city. The population density was 529.5/km² (1,374.0/mi²). There were 830 housing units at an average density of 241.0/km² (625.2/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 79.22% White, 0.71% African American, 0.27% Native American, 0.82% Asian, 17.65% from other races, and 1.32% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 22.42% of the population.
There were 742 households out of which 33.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.5% were married couples living together, 7.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.9% were non-families. 32.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 3.13.
In the city the population was spread out with 29.2% under the age of 18, 7.6% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 20.4% from 45 to 64, and 17.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 95.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.7 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $31,250, and the median income for a family was $37,976. Males had a median income of $29,000 versus $23,482 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,531. About 10.7% of families and 15.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.0% of those under age 18 and 11.6% of those age 65 or over.
Education
Syracuse HighSchool is the unified HighSchool for Hamilton County. The school's mascot is the bulldog. It is a part of Syracuse USD 494.
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