10 Most Affordable Places
To Live In The Nation

Money magazine recently named Wichita as one of the "Top 10 Best Places to Live." We are also a 3-time All-American City award winner, and have just recently been named #2 by the American City Business Journals in their list of the "10 Most Affordable Places to Live in the Nation"!

In 1900 Wichita reached national fame when Woman's Christian Temperance Union member Carrie Nation smashed up the Carey House Bar downtown in her crusade against alcohol. By 1914, oil was discovered nearby and Wichita became a major oil center. Money from this oil boom allowed local entrepreneurs to invest in the fledgling airplane industry, and by 1917, its first plane, the Cessna Comet, was manufactured in Wichita, followed by 43 Swallows between 1920-1923. This industry, coinciding with its emergence as a test center for new aviation, established Wichita as the "Air Capital".

Wichita experienced a population explosion during World War II when it became a major manufacturing center for airplanes. By 1945, 4.2 bombers were being produced daily in Wichita. Stearman Aircraft (later purchased by Boeing) was founded in Wichita, as were Beech Aircraft (now Hawker Beechcraft), Cessna Aircraft and LearJet (now Bombardier). The city remains a major manufacturing center for the aircraft industry today, with all of these and Airbus still having major centers here.

Among area places to see is Old Town, Wichita's premiere entertainment district. It offers nightclubs, diverse restaurants, live concerts, specialty shops and a Saturday farmer's market.  Botanica boasts some 24 themed gardens that include the popular Butterfly Garden and the award-winning Sally Stone Sensory Garden.  You'll also enjoy the Sedgwick County Extension Arboretum, the Wichita Jazz Festival and the Wichita River Festival. Other major attractions include the Sedgwick County Zoo, the Old Cowtown Museum, McConnell Air Force Base, Exploration Place, the Mid-America All-Indian Center and Museum, the Wichita Art Museum, Music Theatre of Wichita, Crown Uptown Dinner Theatre, Lowell D. Holmes Museum of Anthropology, Kauffman Museum, the Sedgwick County Fair, Ulrich Museum of Art, Museum of World Treasures, the Epic Center (the state's tallest building) and more.

The Wichita area is served by numerous public and private elementary and middle schools. There are also 6 Wichita high schools, Wichita Heights High School and Wichita Northeast Magnet High School. Area and nearby colleges and universities include Wichita State University, Friends University, Newman University, Wichita Technical Institute, the University of Kansas School of Medicine, University of Phoenix, Baker University, Tabor College, Southwestern College and others.

Hospitals and medical centers in Wichita include Galichia Heart Hospital, Kansas Heart Hospital, Kansas Surgery and Recovery Center, Select Specialty Hospital, Via Christi Regional Medical Center, Via Christi Rehabilitation Center, Inc, Via Christi Riverside Medical Center, Wesley Medical Center, Wesley Rehabilitation Hospital and Wichita Specialty Hospital.

You'll find plenty of places here to go on a hike, enjoy a swim or take a bike trip. Wichita provides some 4,347 acres of parks and greenways, 10 recreation centers, 11 swimming pools, 52 athletic fields and numerous adult and youth-based activities and athletic programs. The 11,500-seat Kansas Coliseum offers a wide range of sporting events that includes Wichita Thunder hockey. You can also watch a Wichita Wingnuts baseball game at Lawrence Dumont Stadium or race out to 81 Speedway or the Wichita Greyhound Park. There are also plenty of college and amateur sports to keep you entertained. The Shocker baseball team of Wichita State University is always near the top of the ranks.