Outdoor Advertising Billboards for Rent in Atchison, KS

Atchison is a city situated along the Missouri River in the eastern part of Atchison County, located in northeast Kansas, in the Central United States. The population was 10,232 at the 2000 census, and it was estimated to be 10,154 in the year 2006. It is the county seat and most populous city of Atchison County. The city is named in honor of David Rice Atchison, United States senator from Missouri, and was the original eastern terminus of the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railroad.

Atchison was the birthplace of aviatrix Amelia Earhart: the Amelia Earhart Festival held each July annually attracts an estimated 30,000–50,000 people. Atchison is also the home of Benedictine College, a small Catholic liberal-arts college. Atchison is often called one of the most haunted places in America, due to the city's ghost-story heritage, featured in the 1997 book, "Haunted Kansas," written by Lisa Hefner Heitz, and published by University Press of Kansas.

Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1860	2,616		—
1870	7,054		169.6%
1880	15,105		114.1%
1890	13,963		−7.6%
1900	15,722		12.6%
1910	16,429		4.5%
1920	12,630		−23.1%
1930	13,024		3.1%
1940	12,648		−2.9%
1950	12,792		1.1%
1960	12,529		−2.1%
1970	12,565		0.3%
1980	11,407		−9.2%
1990	10,656		−6.6%
2000	10,232		−4.0%

Atchison's population was estimated to be 10,154 in the year 2006, a decrease of 80, or -0.8%, over the previous six years.

As of the U.S. Census in 2000, there were 10,232 people, 3,863 households, and 2,437 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,498.2 people per square mile (578.4/km²). There were 4,220 housing units at an average density of 617.9/sq mi (238.6/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 88.56% White, 7.80% Black or African American, 0.51% Native American, 0.41% Asian, 0.09% Pacific Islander, 0.65% from other races, and 1.99% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.58% of the population.

There were 3,863 households out of which 30.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.8% were married couples living together, 12.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.9% were non-families. 32.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 3.00.

In the city the population was spread out with 25.7% under the age of 18, 13.8% from 18 to 24, 23.5% from 25 to 44, 19.5% from 45 to 64, and 17.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 88.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $31,109, and the median income for a family was $37,100. Males had a median income of $31,027 versus $20,262 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,441. About 9.5% of families and 17.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.4% of those under age 18 and 22.0% of those age 65 or over.