Welcome to Sterling ...
The city of Sterling is located in Rice County<1>.
When the people of Sterling refer to themselves (known as a demonym), they frequently use Sterlingite<2>
From the Census Estimates for 2019, Sterling has a population of 2,205 people<3> (see below for details).
We don't have a date for the establishment of Sterling.
The origin (or the toponymy) of Sterling: Named for Sterling Rosan, an early settler in this area.
The city of Sterling was previously named Peace.
Sterling is 1,640 feet [500 m] above sea level.<4>.
Time Zone: Sterling lies in the Central Time Zone (CST/CDT) and observes daylight saving time
Sterling lies within the (620) area code.
The ZIP code for Sterling: 67579<5>
Websites for Sterling ...
Official Website: www.sterling-kansas.com/
Population Details ...
Taken from the 2019 Census Estimates, Sterling had an population of 2,205 people. This is a decrease of 5.28% since the 2010 Census (or a decrease of 16.54% since the 2000 Census).
At the time of the 2010 Census, Sterling had a population of 2,328 people (which is 23.09% of the total population of Rice County). This makes Sterling the county's 2nd most populous community.
The population of Sterling represents 0.08% of the population of Kansas (which has 2,853,118 people), making it the state's 108th most populous community.
With a 2010 count of 2,328 people, the population of Sterling decreased 11.88% from the 2000 Census (which had a count of 2,642 people).
More information can be found on the Census Page for Sterling.
Communities Also Named Sterling ...
Using our Gazetteer, we have found that there are two Kansas communities named Sterling: This one is located in Rice County and the other is located in Logan County.
Beyond Kansas, there are 41 communities that are also named Sterling - they are located in Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida (2), Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan (2), Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New York, North Carolina (2), North Dakota, Nova Scotia, Ohio (2), Oklahoma (2), Pennsylvania (2), Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia (2) and Wisconsin.
For more information, see our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Sterling.
Communities near Sterling ...
We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Sterling.
- Hutchinson [Reno County]
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hutchinson
- Hutchinson [Reno County] lies 18 miles [29 km]<6> to the southeast of Sterling
- Population from the 2020 Census: 40,209 people
- Jump to Google Maps centered on Hutchinson
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hutchinson<7>
- Lyons [Rice County]
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyons
- Lyons [Rice County] lies 9 miles [14.5 km]<6> to the north of Sterling
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,433 people
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lyons have been provided by the GNIS.<8> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Former name for Lyons:
- Atlanta
- Jump to Google Maps centered on Lyons
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lyons<7>
- South Hutchinson [Reno County]
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for South Hutchinson
- South Hutchinson [Reno County] lies 19 miles [30.6 km]<6> to the southeast of Sterling
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,494 people
- Jump to Google Maps centered on South Hutchinson
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for South Hutchinson<7>
- Nickerson [Reno County]
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nickerson
- Nickerson [Reno County] lies 7 miles [11.3 km]<6> to the southeast of Sterling
- Population from the 2020 Census: 982 people
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Nickerson have been provided by the GNIS.<8> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to Google Maps centered on Nickerson
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Nickerson<7>
- Continue List (6 more) ...
- Little River [Rice County]
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little River
- Little River [Rice County] lies 16 miles [25.7 km]<6> to the northeast of Sterling
- Population from the 2020 Census: 513 people
- Jump to Google Maps centered on Little River
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Little River<7>
- Chase [Rice County]
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chase
- Chase [Rice County] lies 12 miles [19.3 km]<6> to the northwest of Sterling
- Population from the 2020 Census: 429 people
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chase have been provided by the GNIS.<8> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to Google Maps centered on Chase
- Partridge [Reno County]
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Partridge
- Partridge [Reno County] lies 17 miles [27.4 km]<6> to the south of Sterling
- Population from the 2020 Census: 242 people
- Former name for Partridge:
- Reno Center
- Jump to Google Maps centered on Partridge
- Alden [Rice County]
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alden
- Alden [Rice County] lies 6 miles [9.7 km]<6> to the west of Sterling
- Population from the 2020 Census: 139 people
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Alden have been provided by the GNIS.<8> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to Google Maps centered on Alden
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Alden<7>
- Plevna [Reno County]
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plevna
- Plevna [Reno County] lies 17 miles [27.4 km]<6> to the south of Sterling
- Population from the 2020 Census: 98 people
- Jump to Google Maps centered on Plevna
- Abbyville [Reno County]
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abbyville
- Abbyville [Reno County] lies 16 miles [25.7 km]<6> to the south of Sterling
- Population from the 2020 Census: 86 people
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Abbyville have been provided by the GNIS.<8> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to Google Maps centered on Abbyville
- Little River [Rice County]
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 Sterling. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Sterling.
Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Sterling. 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 Sterling.
We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Sterling. Our list includes 16 papers. See our Newspapers Page for Sterling.
TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Sterling ...
Looking for more information about Sterling? 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 Sterling, there are neighboring communities that also have Tourism pages. More information about those communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for Sterling.
Adding Sterling to Our Gazetteer ...
We originally found mention of Sterling in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.
In addition, our notes show that the earliest dated mention that we've found for Sterling was in the Business Atlas and Shippers' Guide (1895).
We also found Sterling on a map titled Rand McNally Map of Kansas (1911).
For more details about the above, see References and Mentions for Sterling on our Genealogy Page.
Other Roadside Stops ...
Cities, Towns and Villages of Kansas
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for Sterling: www.sterling-kansas.com/
The official website for Rice County: www.ricecounty.org/
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 Rice, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. |
| <2> | A demonym is the name for a resident of a community which is usually derived from (or is related to) the name of that community. In other words, it's how the residents of Sterling refer to themselves. It's important to note that there aren't any rules for taking a city's name and turning it into a demonym. A demonym is informal and while the majority of Sterling may use one name, keep in mind that others may use something different. |
| <3> | Population counts have been provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. For more detail, please visit our Census Page for Sterling. |
| <4> | The elevation is an estimate for the area around Sterling - 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 Sterling). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether Sterling or elsewhere, it's always best to check the website of the United States Postal Service (USPS). |
| <6> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Sterling) to Point B.If you need the driving distance, we recommend that you use one of the Mapping Services listed on our Map Page for Sterling. Since we usually use Google Maps, we've provided the following link: Google Map and Driving Directions starting from SterlingOur distance measurements begin at a specific point in Sterling. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 38.2090, Longitude: -98.2056 |
| <7> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <8> | 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 have found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required. |