List of counties in Nebraska
# List of counties in Nebraska

The following is a list of the 93 counties in the U.S. state of Nebraska, listed by name, FIPS code and license plate prefix.

Nebraska's postal abbreviation is NE and its FIPS state code is 31.

When many counties were formed, the bills establishing them did not state the honoree's full name; thus the namesakes of several counties, including Brown, Deuel, Dixon, and possibly Harlan, are known only by their surnames.

## County list

| County | FIPS code | County seat | Est. | Origin | Etymology | License plate prefix | Population | Area |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Adams County | 001 | Hastings | 1867 | Unorganized territory | John Adams, second President of the United States | 14 | 30,970 | 563 sq mi (1,458 $km^2)$ |
| Antelope County | 003 | Neligh | 1871 | Unorganized territory | Pronghorn, often called antelope | 26 | 6,293 | 857 sq mi (2,220 $km^2)$ |
| Arthur County | 005 | Arthur | 1913 | Unorganized territory | Chester A. Arthur, twenty-first president of the United States | 91 | 433 | 715 sq mi (1,852 $km^2)$ |
| Banner County | 007 | Harrisburg | 1888 | Formed from Cheyenne County | Early settlers' goal of making it the "banner county" of the state | 85 | 660 | 746 sq mi (1,932 $km^2)$ |
| Blaine County | 009 | Brewster | 1885 | Unorganized territory | James G. Blaine, national politician | 86 | 453 | 711 sq mi (1,841 $km^2)$ |
| Boone County | 011 | Albion | 1871 | Unorganized territory | Daniel Boone, American pioneer and trapper | 23 | 5,385 | 687 sq mi (1,779 $km^2)$ |
| Box Butte County | 013 | Alliance | 1887 | Formed from Dawes County | A box-shaped butte north of Alliance | 65 | 10,672 | 1,075 sq mi (2,784 $km^2)$ |
| Boyd County | 015 | Butte | 1891 | Holt County and unorganized territory (Indian Territory) | James E. Boyd, the eighth governor of Nebraska | 63 | 1,741 | 540 sq mi (1,399 $km^2)$ |
| Brown County | 017 | Ainsworth | 1883 | Unorganized territory | The Brown family of early settlers | 75 | 2,872 | 1,221 sq mi (3,162 $km^2)$ |
| Buffalo County | 019 | Kearney | 1855 | Unorganized territory | The American Bison | 9 | 50,586 | 968 sq mi (2,507 $km^2)$ |
| Burt County | 021 | Tekamah | 1854 | One of nine original counties | Francis Burt, the first territorial governor | 31 | 6,755 | 493 sq mi (1,277 $km^2)$ |
| Butler County | 023 | David City | 1856 | Formed from Greene County | William O. Butler, U.S. Congressman and military leader | 25 | 8,427 | 584 sq mi (1,513 $km^2)$ |
| Cass County | 025 | Plattsmouth | 1854 | One of nine original counties | Lewis Cass, U.S. Senator who supported the Kansas-Nebraska Act | 20 | 27,122 | 559 sq mi (1,448 $km^2)$ |
| Cedar County | 027 | Hartington | 1857 | Formed from Dixon and Pierce Counties | The eastern red cedar | 13 | 8,371 | 740 sq mi (1,917 $km^2)$ |
| Chase County | 029 | Imperial | 1873 | Unorganized territory | Champion S. Chase, Nebraska's first attorney general | 72 | 3,772 | 894 sq mi (2,315 $km^2)$ |
| Cherry County | 031 | Valentine | 1883 | Unorganized territory | Samuel A. Cherry, army lieutenant killed in the Indian Wars | 66 | 5,464 | 5,961 sq mi (15,439 $km^2)$ |
| Cheyenne County | 033 | Sidney | 1867 | Unorganized territory | Named for the Cheyenne Indian tribe | 39 | 9,511 | 1,196 sq mi (3,098 $km^2)$ |
| Clay County | 035 | Clay Center | 1855 | Formed from unorganized territory | Henry Clay, national politician | 30 | 6,049 | 573 sq mi (1,484 $km^2)$ |
| Colfax County | 037 | Schuyler | 1869 | Formed from Platte County | Schuyler Colfax, Vice President of the United States | 43 | 10,444 | 413 sq mi (1,070 $km^2)$ |
| Cuming County | 039 | West Point | 1855 | Formed from Burt County | Thomas B. Cuming, first territorial secretary | 24 | 8,929 | 572 sq mi (1,481 $km^2)$ |
| Custer County | 041 | Broken Bow | 1877 | Unorganized territory | George Armstrong Custer, U.S. Army general | 4 | 10,476 | 2,576 sq mi (6,672 $km^2)$ |
| Dakota County | 043 | Dakota City | 1855 | Formed from Burt County | Dakota branch of the Sioux Indian tribe | 70 | 21,042 | 264 sq mi (684 $km^2)$ |
| Dawes County | 045 | Chadron | 1885 | Formed from Sioux County | James W. Dawes, the sixth governor of Nebraska | 69 | 8,241 | 1,396 sq mi (3,616 $km^2)$ |
| Dawson County | 047 | Lexington | 1860 | Unorganized territory | Jacob Dawson, first postmaster for Lincoln | 18 | 23,884 | 1,013 sq mi (2,624 $km^2)$ |
| Deuel County | 049 | Chappell | 1888 | Formed from Cheyenne County | The Deuel family of early settlers | 78 | 1,902 | 440 sq mi (1,140 $km^2)$ |
| Dixon County | 051 | Ponca | 1856 | Formed from Blackbird County, Izard County, and unorganized territory | The Dixon family of early settlers | 35 | 5,464 | 476 sq mi (1,233 $km^2)$ |
| Dodge County | 053 | Fremont | 1854 | One of nine original counties | Augustus Caesar Dodge, U.S. Senator who supported the Kansas-Nebraska Act | 5 | 36,997 | 534 sq mi (1,383 $km^2)$ |
| Douglas County | 055 | Omaha | 1854 | One of nine original counties | Stephen Arnold Douglas, national politician | 1 | 586,327 | 331 sq mi (857 $km^2)$ |
| Dundy County | 057 | Benkelman | 1873 | Unorganized territory | Elmer Scipio Dundy, U.S. Circuit Court judge | 76 | 1,590 | 920 sq mi (2,383 $km^2)$ |
| Fillmore County | 059 | Geneva | 1856 | Formed from Jackson County and unorganized territory | Millard Fillmore, thirteenth president of the United States | 34 | 5,553 | 576 sq mi (1,492 $km^2)$ |
| Franklin County | 061 | Franklin | 1867 | Formed from Kearney County | Benjamin Franklin, Founding Father | 50 | 2,873 | 576 sq mi (1,492 $km^2)$ |
| Frontier County | 063 | Stockville | 1872 | Unorganized territory | Its location | 60 | 2,633 | 975 sq mi (2,525 $km^2)$ |
| Furnas County | 065 | Beaver City | 1873 | Unorganized territory | Robert Wilkinson Furnas, third governor of Nebraska | 38 | 4,575 | 718 sq mi (1,860 $km^2)$ |
| Gage County | 067 | Beatrice | 1855 | Unorganized territory | William D. Gage, contemporary chaplain of the state legislature | 3 | 21,583 | 855 sq mi (2,214 $km^2)$ |
| Garden County | 069 | Oshkosh | 1910 | Formed from Deuel County | Early settlers' hopes for it to become the "garden spot of the west" | 77 | 1,837 | 1,705 sq mi (4,416 $km^2)$ |
| Garfield County | 071 | Burwell | 1884 | Formed from Wheeler County | James Abram Garfield, twentieth president of the United States | 83 | 1,801 | 570 sq mi (1,476 $km^2)$ |
| Gosper County | 073 | Elwood | 1873 | Unorganized territory | John J. Gosper, contemporary Nebraska secretary of state | 73 | 1,808 | 458 sq mi (1,186 $km^2)$ |
| Grant County | 075 | Hyannis | 1887 | Unorganized territory | Ulysses S. Grant, eighteenth president of the United States | 92 | 576 | 776 sq mi (2,010 $km^2)$ |
| Greeley County | 077 | Greeley | 1871 | Unorganized territory | Horace Greeley, journalist | 62 | 2,227 | 570 sq mi (1,476 $km^2)$ |
| Hall County | 079 | Grand Island | 1858 | Unorganized territory | Augustus Hall, contemporary chief justice of the Territorial Supreme Court | 8 | 62,097 | 546 sq mi (1,414 $km^2)$ |
| Hamilton County | 081 | Aurora | 1867 | Unorganized territory | Alexander Hamilton, first United States Secretary of the Treasury | 28 | 9,429 | 544 sq mi (1,409 $km^2)$ |
| Harlan County | 083 | Alma | 1871 | Formed from Kearney County | Disputed; either James Harlan, national politician, or a local revenue collector | 51 | 3,054 | 553 sq mi (1,432 $km^2)$ |
| Hayes County | 085 | Hayes Center | 1877 | Unorganized territory | Rutherford B. Hayes, nineteenth president of the United States | 79 | 849 | 713 sq mi (1,847 $km^2)$ |
| Hitchcock County | 087 | Trenton | 1873 | Unorganized territory | Phineas Warren Hitchcock, Nebraska U.S. Senator | 67 | 2,598 | 710 sq mi (1,839 $km^2)$ |
| Holt County | 089 | O'Neill | 1860 | Unorganized territory | Joseph Holt, U.S. Postmaster General and Secretary of War | 36 | 10,043 | 2,413 sq mi (6,250 $km^2)$ |
| Hooker County | 091 | Mullen | 1889 | Unorganized territory | Joseph Hooker, U.S. Army general | 93 | 686 | 721 sq mi (1,867 $km^2)$ |
| Howard County | 093 | Saint Paul | 1871 | Formed from Hall County | Oliver O. Howard, U.S. Army general | 49 | 6,515 | 570 sq mi (1,476 $km^2)$ |
| Jefferson County | 095 | Fairbury | 1856 | Unorganized territory | Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the United States | 33 | 7,154 | 573 sq mi (1,484 $km^2)$ |
| Johnson County | 097 | Tecumseh | 1857 | Formed from Nemaha and Otoe Counties | Richard Mentor Johnson, ninth vice president of the United States | 57 | 5,287 | 376 sq mi (974 $km^2)$ |
| Kearney County | 099 | Minden | 1860 | Unorganized territory | Fort Kearny, with a misspelling | 52 | 6,690 | 516 sq mi (1,336 $km^2)$ |
| Keith County | 101 | Ogallala | 1873 | Unorganized territory | M.C. Keith, rancher with wide holdings | 68 | 8,269 | 1,061 sq mi (2,748 $km^2)$ |
| Keya Paha County | 103 | Springview | 1884 | Formed from Brown County and unorganized Indian territory | Dakota words Ké-ya Pa-há Wa-kpá (turtle hill river) | 82 | 787 | 773 sq mi (2,002 $km^2)$ |
| Kimball County | 105 | Kimball | 1888 | Formed from Cheyenne County | Thomas L. Kimball, Union Pacific Railroad official | 71 | 3,315 | 952 sq mi (2,466 $km^2)$ |
| Knox County | 107 | Center | 1857 | Formed from Pierce County and unorganized territory (Former names-L'Eau Qui Court (1857-1867) and Emmet (1867-1873)) | Henry Knox, first U.S. Secretary of War | 12 | 8,336 | 1,108 sq mi (2,870 $km^2)$ |
| Lancaster County | 109 | Lincoln | 1855 | Formed from Cass and Pierce Counties | Lancaster, Pennsylvania and Lancaster, England | 2 | 324,756 | 839 sq mi (2,173 $km^2)$ |
| Lincoln County | 111 | North Platte | 1860 | Unorganized territory | Abraham Lincoln, sixteenth president of the United States | 15 | 33,685 | 2,564 sq mi (6,641 $km^2)$ |
| Logan County | 113 | Stapleton | 1885 | Unorganized territory | John A. Logan, U.S. Army general | 87 | 675 | 571 sq mi (1,479 $km^2)$ |
| Loup County | 115 | Taylor | 1883 | Unorganized territory | Loup River | 88 | 599 | 570 sq mi (1,476 $km^2)$ |
| Madison County | 119 | Madison | 1856 | Formed from Loup County, and McNeale County, and unorganized territory | Either James Madison, fourth president of the United States, or local settlers' native Madison, Wisconsin | 7 | 35,368 | 573 sq mi (1,484 $km^2)$ |
| McPherson County | 117 | Tryon | 1887 | Unorganized territory | James B. McPherson, U.S. Army general | 90 | 372 | 859 sq mi (2,225 $km^2)$ |
| Merrick County | 121 | Central City | 1858 | Formed from Polk County and unorganized territory | Elvira Merrick, wife of legislator Henry W. DePuy | 46 | 7,721 | 485 sq mi (1,256 $km^2)$ |
| Morrill County | 123 | Bridgeport | 1908 | Formed from Cheyenne County | Charles Henry Morrill, president of the Lincoln Land Company | 64 | 4,527 | 1,424 sq mi (3,688 $km^2)$ |
| Nance County | 125 | Fullerton | 1879 | Formed from a Pawnee Indian reservation | Albinus Nance, fourth governor of Nebraska | 58 | 3,326 | 441 sq mi (1,142 $km^2)$ |
| Nemaha County | 127 | Auburn | 1854 | One of nine original counties | Nimaha, the Otoe name meaning miry water for a local stream | 44 | 7,035 | 409 sq mi (1,059 $km^2)$ |
| Nuckolls County | 129 | Nelson | 1860 | Unorganized territory | Lafayette Nuckolls, a member of the first Nebraska territorial legislature; and his brother, Stephen Nuckolls, a pioneering Nebraska settler, businessman and banker | 42 | 4,041 | 575 sq mi (1,489 $km^2)$ |
| Otoe County | 131 | Nebraska City | 1854 | One of nine original counties | Oto (also Otoe) Native American tribe | 11 | 16,198 | 616 sq mi (1,595 $km^2)$ |
| Pawnee County | 133 | Pawnee City | 1855 | Formed from Richardson County | Pawnee Native American tribe | 54 | 2,528 | 432 sq mi (1,119 $km^2)$ |
| Perkins County | 135 | Grant | 1887 | Formed from Keith County | Charles E. Perkins, a president of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad | 74 | 2,829 | 883 sq mi (2,287 $km^2)$ |
| Phelps County | 137 | Holdrege | 1873 | Formed from Kearney County | William Phelps, an early settler | 37 | 8,988 | 540 sq mi (1,399 $km^2)$ |
| Pierce County | 139 | Pierce | 1856 | Formed from Izard County, McNeale County, and unorganized territory | Franklin Pierce, the fourteenth president of the United States | 40 | 7,332 | 574 sq mi (1,487 $km^2)$ |
| Platte County | 141 | Columbus | 1856 | Formed from Greene and Loup Counties | Platte River which is in turn named for the French word for flat | 10 | 34,296 | 678 sq mi (1,756 $km^2)$ |
| Polk County | 143 | Osceola | 1856 | Formed from York County and unorganized territory | James Knox Polk, the eleventh president of the United States | 41 | 5,166 | 439 sq mi (1,137 $km^2)$ |
| Red Willow County | 145 | McCook | 1873 | Unorganized territory | Red Willow Creek, which runs through the area | 48 | 10,573 | 717 sq mi (1,857 $km^2)$ |
| Richardson County | 147 | Falls City | 1854 | One of nine original counties | William A. Richardson, a governor of the Nebraska Territory | 19 | 7,705 | 554 sq mi (1,435 $km^2)$ |
| Rock County | 149 | Bassett | 1885 | Formed from Brown County | Either Rock Creek, which flows in the county; or the rocky condition of the soil in the area | 81 | 1,245 | 1,008 sq mi (2,611 $km^2)$ |
| Saline County | 151 | Wilber | 1867 | Unorganized territory | Named for a belief held by the early pioneers that great salt springs and deposits could be found in the area, a hope found to be false | 22 | 14,116 | 575 sq mi (1,489 $km^2)$ |
| Sarpy County | 153 | Papillion | 1857 | Formed from Cass and Douglas Counties | Peter A. Sarpy, a commander of a trading post in the future county | 59 | 196,553 | 241 sq mi (624 $km^2)$ |
| Saunders County | 155 | Wahoo | 1856 | Formed from Douglas and Lancaster Counties | Alvin Saunders, a governor of the Nebraska Territory | 6 | 23,118 | 754 sq mi (1,953 $km^2)$ |
| Scotts Bluff County | 157 | Gering | 1888 | Formed from Cheyenne County | Named for a towering bluff located in the Scotts Bluff National Monument; the bluffs themselves are named for Hiram Scott, a fur trapper who is alleged to have crawled 75 miles with a broken leg before collapsing and dying at the foot of the formation | 21 | 35,603 | 739 sq mi (1,914 $km^2)$ |
| Seward County | 159 | Seward | 1855 | Formed from Cass and Pierce Counties | William Henry Seward, the United States Secretary of State during the 1860s | 16 | 17,692 | 575 sq mi (1,489 $km^2)$ |
| Sheridan County | 161 | Rushville | 1885 | Formed from Sioux County | Philip Henry Sheridan, a general in the American Civil War | 61 | 4,996 | 2,441 sq mi (6,322 $km^2)$ |
| Sherman County | 163 | Loup City | 1871 | Formed from Buffalo County and unorganized territory | William Tecumseh Sherman, the American Civil War general | 56 | 2,980 | 566 sq mi (1,466 $km^2)$ |
| Sioux County | 165 | Harrison | 1877 | Unorganized territory | Sioux Native American tribe | 80 | 1,127 | 1,313 sq mi (3,401 $km^2)$ |
| Stanton County | 167 | Stanton | 1855 | Formed from Burt County | Edwin M. Stanton, the United States Secretary of War during most of the American Civil War | 53 | 5,717 | 430 sq mi (1,114 $km^2)$ |
| Thayer County | 169 | Hebron | 1871 | Formed from Jefferson County | John Milton Thayer, the seventh governor of Nebraska | 32 | 4,885 | 575 sq mi (1,489 $km^2)$ |
| Thomas County | 171 | Thedford | 1887 | Unorganized territory | George Henry Thomas, a general in the American Civil War | 89 | 671 | 713 sq mi (1,847 $km^2)$ |
| Thurston County | 173 | Pender | 1889 | Formed from Blackbird County and an Omaha Indian reservation | John Mellen Thurston, a U. S. senator from Nebraska | 55 | 6,507 | 394 sq mi (1,020 $km^2)$ |
| Valley County | 175 | Ord | 1871 | Unorganized territory | Named for the many valleys in the area | 47 | 4,073 | 568 sq mi (1,471 $km^2)$ |
| Washington County | 177 | Blair | 1854 | One of nine original counties | George Washington, the first president of the United States | 29 | 21,167 | 390 sq mi (1,010 $km^2)$ |
| Wayne County | 179 | Wayne | 1867 | Unorganized territory | Anthony Wayne, the American Revolutionary War general nicknamed "Mad Anthony" by his troops | 27 | 9,871 | 444 sq mi (1,150 $km^2)$ |
| Webster County | 181 | Red Cloud | 1867 | Unorganized territory | Daniel Webster, the statesman and U.S. Senator from Massachusetts | 45 | 3,336 | 575 sq mi (1,489 $km^2)$ |
| Wheeler County | 183 | Bartlett | 1877 | Unorganized territory | Daniel H. Wheeler, a secretary of the Nebraska State Board of Agriculture | 84 | 785 | 575 sq mi (1,489 $km^2)$ |
| York County | 185 | York | 1855 | Formed from Cass County, Pierce County, and unorganized territory | Named for either York, England, or York County, Pennsylvania | 17 | 14,354 | 576 sq mi (1,492 $km^2)$ |

## Former counties

* Clay (1855-1864) Formed from unorganized territory and dissolved into Gage and Lancaster County.
* Jackson (1855-1856) Formed from unorganized territory and dissolved to Fillmore County and unorganized territory
* Johnson (1855-1856) Formed from unorganized territory and dissolved to unorganized territory
* Blackbird (1855-1888) Formed from Burt County and dissolved to Thurston County
* Loup (1855-1856) Formed from Burt and Un-Organized and then dissolved Madison, Monroe and Platte Counties
* Jones (1856-1866) Formed from unorganized territory and dissolved into Jefferson County.
* Grant, Harrison, Jackson, Lynn, Monroe and Taylor counties listed in 1870 - see map
* West (1860-1862) Formed from unorganized territory and dissolved into Holt County
