Welcome to Colby ...
The city of Colby is located in Thomas County<1> and is the County Seat for Thomas County.
The location of Colby has been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (ie- the GNIS).<2>
While we don't have a date for the founding of Colby, you might get a feel for it by knowing that during our research the earliest mention that we found (so far) was in a book dated 1895.
The origin (or the toponymy) of Colby: Named for J.R. Colby, an early settler in this area.
From the Census Estimates for 2019, Colby has a population of 5,316 people<3> (see below for details).
Colby is 3,150 feet [960 m] above sea level.<4> In other words, the altitude of Colby is about ½ mile above sea level.
Time Zone: Colby lies in the Central Time Zone (CST/CDT) and observes daylight saving time
Note: If you travel west from Colby (for example, toward Goodland), you will leave Central Time and cross into the Mountain Time Zone (MST/MDT).
Colby lies within the (785) area code.
The ZIP code for Colby: 67701<5>
Websites for Colby ...
Official Website: www.cityofcolby.com/
Population Details ...
Taken from the 2019 Census Estimates, Colby had an population of 5,316 people. This is a decrease of 1.32% since the 2010 Census (or a decrease of 2.46% since the 2000 Census).
At the time of the 2010 Census, Colby had a population of 5,387 people (or 68.19% of the total population of Thomas County). This makes Colby the county's most populous community.
The population of Colby represents 0.19% of the population of Kansas (which has 2,853,118 people), making it the state's 59th most populous community.
With a 2010 count of 5,387 people, the population of Colby decreased 1.16% from the 2000 Census (which had a count of 5,450 people).
More information can be found on the Census Page for Colby.
Communities Also Named Colby ...
Using our Gazetteer, we found that there are 13 communities that are also named Colby - they are located in Colorado, Idaho, Kentucky, Maine, Manitoba, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, New Hampshire, Ohio, Tennessee, Washington and Wisconsin.
For more information, see our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Colby.
Communities near Colby ...
We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Colby.
- Brewster
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Brewster have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brewster
- Brewster is located in Thomas County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 289 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Brewster <6>
- Rexford
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rexford
- Rexford is located in Thomas County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 223 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rexford <6>
- Gem
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east) - Menlo
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east) - Levant
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west) - Spica
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast) - Monument
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monument
- Monument is located in Logan County
- Oakley
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oakley
- Oakley is located in Logan County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,030 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Oakley <6>
- Page City
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Page City
- Page City is located in Logan County
- Winona
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Winona have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Winona
- Winona is located in Logan County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 155 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Winona <6>
To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.
We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Colby. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Colby.
Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Colby. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around Colby.
We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Colby. Our list includes 19 papers. See our Newspapers Page for Colby.
TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Colby ...
Looking for more information about Colby? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.
In addition to the Tourism page for Colby, there are neighboring communities that also have Tourism pages. More information about those communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for Colby.
Adding Colby to Our Gazetteer ...
We originally found mention of Colby in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.
From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found for Colby was in the book titled Business Atlas and Shippers' Guide (1895).
We also found Colby on a map titled Rand McNally Map of Kansas (1911).
For more details, see References and Mentions for Colby.
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for Colby: www.cityofcolby.com/
The official website for State of Kansas: https://portal.kansas.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | If you're interested in how the shape of Kansas' counties, including Thomas, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. |
| <2> | The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required. |
| <3> | Population counts have been provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. For more detail, please visit our Census Page for Colby. |
| <4> | The elevation is an estimate for the area around Colby - it will be higher in some places and lower in others. |
| <5> | ZIP Codes have been created by the United States Postal Service (USPS) as a way of grouping addresses to make delivery more efficient. The boundaries of the ZIP Code can be changed, re-assigned, eliminated or overlapped with other ZIP Codes. So keep in mind that any given ZIP Code is only 'loosely' associated with a city (such as Colby). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether Colby or elsewhere, it's always best to check the website of the United States Postal Service (USPS). |
| <6> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |