McPherson County is a

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the sout ...

. As of the

2020 United States Census The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to off ...

, the population was 399, making it the least populous county in the state of Nebraska and the fifth-least populous county in the United States. Its

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US ...

is Tryon. The county was formed in 1890 from Logan County; it was named for Civil War General James B. McPherson. In 1913 a portion of McPherson County was partitioned off to create Arthur County, giving McPherson County its present boundaries. McPherson County is part of the

North Platte North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography. Etymology The word ''north'' is ...

, NE Micropolitan Statistical Area. In the Nebraska license plate system, McPherson County is represented by the prefix 90 (it ranked 90th of 93 counties in the number of vehicles registered when the license plate system was established in 1922).

Geography

The terrain of McPherson County consists of low rolling hills sloping to the south-southeast. A small portion of the area is under center pivot irrigation. The county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.1%) is water. Most of Nebraska's 93 counties (the eastern 2/3, including McPherson County) observe

Central Time Central Time may refer to: * Central Time Zone, a time zone in North America * Central European Time, a time zone in Europe *Australian Central Time, a time zone in Australia (see Time in Australia Australia uses three main time zones: Austra ...

; the western counties observe Mountain Time. McPherson County is the westernmost of the Nebraska counties to observe Central Time.

Adjacent counties

* Hooker County - north * Thomas County - northeast * Logan County - east * Lincoln County - southeast * Keith County - southwest (boundary of Mountain Time) * Arthur County - west (boundary of Mountain Time)

Major highways

Nebraska Highway 92 Nebraska Highway 92 is a highway that enters the state from Nebraska's western border at the Wyoming state line west of Lyman, Nebraska, to the state's eastern border on the South Omaha Veterans Memorial Bridge over the Missouri River in Omaha, ...

Nebraska Highway 97

Demographics

As of the

2000 United States Census The United States census of 2000, conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2 percent over the 248,709,873 people enumerated during the 1990 c ...

, there were 533 people, 202 households, and 157 families in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopu ...

was 0.6 people per square mile (0.2/km²). There were 283 housing units at an average density of 0.3 per square mile (0.1/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 97.94%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White ...

, 0.38% Asian, 1.69% from other races. 1.50% of the population were

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties for ...

or Latino of any race. 44.4% were of

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

, 14.4%

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

, 9.2% Irish, 8.7% Swedish and 6.3%

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

ancestry according to

Census 2000 The United States census of 2000, conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2 percent over the 248,709,873 people enumerated during the 1990 ce ...

. There were 202 households, out of which 34.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 73.80% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between ...

living together, 3.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.80% were non-families. 19.80% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.64 and the average family size was 3.01. The county population contained 27.60% under the age of 18, 5.30% from 18 to 24, 26.10% from 25 to 44, 22.90% from 45 to 64, and 18.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.90 males. The median income for a household in the county was $25,750, and the median income for a family was $31,250. Males had a median income of $25,192 versus $13,393 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the county was $13,055. 16.20% of the population and 14.00% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 21.70% are under the age of 18 and 17.30% are 65 or older.

Communities

Census-designated place

* Tryon (county seat)

Unincorporated community

* Ringgold

Former communities

Flats Flat or flats may refer to: Architecture * Flat (housing), an apartment in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia and other Commonwealth countries Arts and entertainment * Flat (music), a symbol () which denotes a lower pitch * Flat (soldier), ...

''Flats NE'' Google Maps (accessed 23 January 2019)
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Politics

McPherson County voters have been strongly Republican since the beginning. In only two national elections since 1900 has the county selected the Democratic Party candidate (as of 2020). In 2016, Democrat

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...

had the worst showing for a major party Presidential candidate in the county's history, tallying just 14 votes for only 4.9%. She had accumulated less votes than any third-party or write-in votes, making it the only county in Nebraska for this to happen.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mcpherson County, Nebraska Nebraska counties North Platte Micropolitan Statistical Area 1890 establishments in Nebraska Populated places established in 1890