Lawrence is a larger medium-sized city located in the state of Kansas. With a population of 80,083 people and 11 constituent neighborhoods, Lawrence is the sixth largest community in Kansas.

Unlike some cities where white-collar or blue-collar occupations dominate the local economy, Lawrence is neither predominently one or the other. Instead, it has a mixed workforce of both white- and blue-collar jobs. Overall, Lawrence is a city of professionals, sales and office workers, and service providers. There are especially a lot of people living in Lawrence who work in office and administrative support jobs (15.13%), teaching (11.75%), and sales jobs (10.21%).

Of important note, Lawrence is also a city of artists. Lawrence has more artists, designers and people working in media than 90% of the communities in America. This concentration of artists helps shape Lawrence's character.

Also of interest is that Lawrence has more people living here who work in computers and math than 95% of the places in the US.

Because Lawrence has a very large number of students who are 18 years or older and in college, it is thought of as a college town. This has a major influence on local Lawrence lifestyle, entertainment, and culture in general. Life in Lawrence is very much tied to the academic calendar: when students return from the summer break in the fall, one will notice them out and about, buying groceries, out with friends, and generally getting re-acquainted with each other. In Lawrence, people study hard and play hard, and there is ample opportunity to do both.

Not only is Lawrence a city with many college students, but it also retains many recent graduates who are looking to start new careers, shaping the character of the city into a place that is geared toward, and considered attractive to, many single, educated people. Many singles consider Lawrence a good place to live without being in a really big city, with opportunities for friendships and fun with others like themselves.

One of the benefits of Lawrence is that there is very little traffic. The average commute to work is 18.44 minutes, which is substantially less than the national average. Not only does this mean that the drive to work is less aggravating, but noise and pollution levels are lower as a result.

Lawrence Information and Demographics

If knowledge is power, Lawrence is a pretty powerful place. 47.66% of the adults in Lawrence have earned a 4-year college degree, masters degree, MD, law degree, or even PhD. Compare that to the national average of 14.96% for all cities and towns.

The per capita income in Lawrence in 2000 was $19,378, which is upper middle income relative to Kansas and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $77,512 for a family of four.

Lawrence is a somewhat ethnically-diverse city. The people who call Lawrence home come from a variety of different races and ancestries. The most prevalent race in Lawrence is White, followed by African-American. Important ancestries of people in Lawrence include German, English, Irish, and Italian.

The most common language spoken in Lawrence is English. Some people also speak Spanish.