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Junction City and Geary County are located in central Kansas, approximately 130 miles west of Kansas City, Missouri. In driving distance, Junction City is 140 miles north of Wichita, Kansas, 380 miles west of St. Louis, Missouri, 470 miles east of Denver, Colorado, and 580 miles north of Dallas, Texas. Junction City is both the county seat and largest municipality in Geary County. In 2000, the U.S. Census Bureau reported Junction City as having a total population of 18,886 people. The same decennial census reported Geary County with a total population of 27,947 people. Other municipalities in Geary County include Grandview Plaza and Milford.

Geary County is also home to the active army base, Fort Riley. Known as the "Home of the Big Red One," Fort Riley was established in 1853 as a base for westward expansion. It is located along I-70 about 125 miles west of Kansas City, Mo. between Junction City and Manhattan, KS and at the confluence of the Smoky Hill and Republican Rivers as they form the Kansas River. The reservation covers 100,656 acres, of which 70,926 acres are used for training. Fort Riley is currently home to the 1^st Infantry Division and four active Brigades.

Recently, the United States Department of Defense (DoD) has indicated that Fort Riley is a “valuable installation to the Army and the DoD.” This recognition not only means that Fort Riley will remain an integral part of the Army and defense system. Simply put, Fort Riley will begin receiving population and new functions as other out-dated or less strategic installations are closed or reorganized. The primary source of increased population at the Fort is the relocation of the 1 st Infantry Division (Big Red 1) back to Fort Riley from Germany.