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Introduction to Lawrence, Kansas
The city of Lawrence is located in Douglas County, Kansas, 40 miles west of Kansas City and 25 miles east of Topeka. The city is home to the University of Kansas and also to Haskell Indian Nations University, the premier Native American educational institution in the country.
The origins of Lawrence have a distinctly political component. When the Kansas Territory was opened to settlement in 1854, settlers were allowed to decide whether to admit their territory as a slave or free state. Shortly after the territory was opened, a colonization movement was started by New Englanders opposed to slavery, who quickly immigrated to the new territory, set up roots in the new town, and named it in honor of Boston's Amos A. Lawrence, a principal financier of the expedition. Efforts such as this prevented Kansas from becoming pro-slavery, a choice which in later years would lead to some bloody encounters in Lawrence involving factions from the neighboring slave state of Missouri. During the Civil War, Confederate guerrillas led by William Quantrill burned most of the houses and commercial buildings in Lawrence and killed close to 200 men they found in the city. The notorious incident came to be known as "Quantrill's Raid". A much more positive development occurred a few years later in Lawrence when the University of Kansas was founded in 1865 under a charter granted by the Kansas Legislature. Since that time, the University has had a major influence on the city of Lawrence, an influence which is still felt today. Lawrence is truly a college town.
Places of Interest in Lawrence
As a college town with a rich history, Lawrence offers a wide array of attractions in the cultural, artistic, historical, and recreational categories. Downtown Lawrence always has a lively atmosphere and is filled with restaurants, galleries, shops, and music venues. The University of Kansas campus is home to several museums, including the Spencer Museum of Art and the Kansas University Natural History Museum. The Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics contains artifacts and memorabilia from the life of the former Kansas Senator. The Lawrence Arts Center features a gallery containing artwork of the townspeople, activities, and organized plays. For outdoor recreation, a variety of mountain biking venues exist in the Lawrence area, including trails near the Kansas River and at Clinton Lake (located approximately three miles southwest of the city). Clinton Lake also has areas for boating, swimming, fishing, and camping. These are just a few of the local attractions but there are many more, including the following:
The local sports scene is dominated by the University of Kansas Jayhawks, who consistently field top-rated men's basketball and football teams. The Jayhawks participate in the NCAA's Division I and belong to the Big 12 Conference. Jayhawk teams have won a total of nine NCAA Division I championships, including two in men's basketball, one in men's cross country, three in men's indoor track and field, and three in men's outdoor track and field. Major league professional sports are just 45 minutes away from Lawrence, in Kansas City, Missouri. Teams located there include the Kansas City Chiefs (National Football League), the Kansas City Royals (Major League Baseball), and the Kansas City Wizards (Major League Soccer).
Lawrence is a noted sports town for other reasons too. No other city in the United States can boast a more prominent role in basketball history. Although the game was invented in Springfield, Massachusetts, Lawrence is where basketball developed and grew. Dr. James Naismith, who invented the game of basketball in 1891, brought the sport to the University of Kansas seven years later when he became the school's first basketball coach. When Naismith retired in 1908, Forrest C. "Phog" Allen picked up where he left off, coaching for 39 seasons at the University, and becoming the school's winningest coach of all time and one of the nation's most successful coaches in the history of college basketball. With 13 Hall of Famers, 12 Olympians, 11 Final Four visits and two NCAA National Championship teams, it comes as no surprise that in 1996, USA Today cited the university's basketball program as the best of all time.
Other notable sports-related items about Lawrence: Basketball legend (and Hall-of-Famer) Wilt Chamberlain was a University of Kansas graduate and one of the most famous Jayhawk players of all time. Also, baseball sabermatricians will recognize Lawrence as the home of noted baseball author and analyst Bill James.
Lawrence strengths, compared to Peers (similar size places nationally) or State (other places in Kansas):
| Category | Trophy | |
|---|---|---|
| College Educated Adults (vs. State) | Top 4% |  |
| Public Transportation Use (vs. State) | Top 4% | |
| Walking and Biking to Work (vs. Peers) | Top 5% | |
| Well-Paid Single Women (vs. State) | Top 10% | |
| Racial Diversity (vs. State) | Top 13% | |
| Median Family Income (vs. State) | Top 14% | |
Comparing Lawrence to similar size places nationwide (Peers) and to other places in Kansas (State):
Ratings range from 
(lowest) to 
(highest).
| Characteristic | Compared to Peers | Compared to State |
|---|---|---|
| Male Share of the Population |  | |
| Well-Paid Single Women |  | |
| Well-Paid Single Men | |  |
| Racial Diversity |  | |
| Female Share of the Population |  | |
| Children Under 5 Years Old | | |
| Senior Citizens | | |
| Age of the Population | | |
| Characteristic | Compared to Peers | Compared to State |
|---|---|---|
| Average Household Size | |  |
| Portion of People Married | | |
| Characteristic | Compared to Peers | Compared to State |
|---|---|---|
| College Educated Adults | | |
| Median Family Income | | |
| People in Middle Class or Better | | |
| People Above Poverty | | |
| Characteristic | Compared to Peers | Compared to State |
|---|---|---|
| Walking and Biking to Work | | |
| Short Commute Times | | |
| Working at Home | |  |
| Public Transportation Use | | |
| Characteristic | Compared to Peers | Compared to State |
|---|---|---|
| Studio & One-Bedroom Rentals | | |
| Housing Recently Built | | |
| People Living Alone | | |
| Affordability of Rents | | |
| Affordability of Property Taxes |  | |
| Seasonal and Vacation Housing | | |
Detailed pages on related topics: Lawrence colleges • Lawrence travel • Lawrence mortgages and property.
 | Lawrence Careers Lawrence career and employment information. |
 | Lawrence Colleges Lawrence colleges and trade schools. |
 | Lawrence Hotels & Travel Lawrence hotels, landmarks, tourism, transportation. |
 | Lawrence Mortgage Lawrence property, mortgage, and real estate. |
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