Stevens county boundaries were formed from Indian Lands in 1873. After the 1880 federal census showed there were only a few people actually living within it's borders, the county was merged with Seward county in 1881. Then came the land boom. By 1886 there were some 2,600 people and they petitioned the state to re-establish the county. Hugoton won out over Woodsdale and was made the permanent county seat by the State Legislature in February of 1887. After the late 1880's settlement boom, the population declined and by the 1900 census there were only 620 people left. With the coming of the railroad in 1913 and the discovery of the Hugoton natural gas field about 1918 and its later developlement, the county again began to grow, reaching 4,665 by 1950. The population has remained stable and today is a little over 5,000.