Platte County is a

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

located 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 sover ...

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 southwe ...

. As of the

2010 United States Census The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators servin ...

, the population was 32,237. 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 st ...

Columbus Columbus is a Latinized version of the Italian surname "''Colombo''". It most commonly refers to: * Christopher Columbus (1451-1506), the Italian explorer * Columbus, Ohio, capital of the U.S. state of Ohio Columbus may also refer to: Places ...

. The county was created in 1855. Platte County comprises the Columbus, NE Micropolitan Statistical Area. In the Nebraska license plate system, Platte County is represented by the prefix 10 (it had the 10th-largest number of vehicles registered in the state when the license plate system was established in 1922).

History

Platte County was officially established in 1856 and the

board of commissioners A county commission (or a board of county commissioners) is a group of elected officials (county commissioners) collectively charged with administering the county government in some states of the United States; such commissions usually comprise ...

had its first meeting the following year. Platte County had its first presumptive case of

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

in late March 2020. As of Oct. 3, 2021, one in seven residents of the county have tested positive for COVID-19 and 40% of all residents are

vaccinated A vaccine is a biological preparation that provides active acquired immunity to a particular infectious or malignant disease. The safety and effectiveness of vaccines has been widely studied and verified.< ...

Geography

The

Platte River The Platte River () is a major river in the State of Nebraska. It is about long; measured to its farthest source via its tributary, the North Platte River, it flows for over . The Platte River is a tributary of the Missouri River, which itself ...

flows eastward along the south line of Platte County. The Loup River also flows eastward and east-southeastward through the lower section of the county, discharging into the Platte River near

. The Platte County terrain consists of low rolling hills, largely devoted to agriculture, sloping to the east-southeast. The county has an area of , of which is land and (1.5%) is water.

Major highways

U.S. Highway 30 U.S. Route 30 or U.S. Highway 30 (US 30) is an east–west main route in the system of the United States Numbered Highways, with the highway traveling across the northern tier of the country. With a length of , it is the third longest ...

U.S. Highway 81 U.S. Route 81 or U.S. Highway 81 (US 81) is a major north–south U.S. highway that extends for in the central United States and is one of the original United States Numbered Highways established in 1926 by the American Association of Stat ...

Nebraska Highway 22 Nebraska Highway 22 is a highway in central Nebraska. It runs east–west for . Its western terminus is at Nebraska Highway 70 south of Ord. Its eastern terminus is at U.S. Highway 81 northwest of Columbus. Route description Nebraska Highwa ...

Nebraska Highway 39 Nebraska Highway 39 is a highway in central Nebraska. It runs for a length of . It has a southern terminus west of Osceola at an intersection with Nebraska Highway 92. Its northern terminus is at an intersection with Nebraska Highway 14 south ...

Nebraska Highway 45 Nebraska Highway 45 is a highway in Nebraska. It runs in a south-to-north direction for . It has a southern terminus at Nebraska Highway 91 south of Newman Grove. It has a northern terminus in Tilden at an intersection with U.S. Highway 275. ...

Nebraska Highway 91 Nebraska Highway 91 is a highway in central and eastern Nebraska. Its western terminus is at an intersection with Nebraska Highway 2 north of Dunning. Its eastern terminus is at an intersection with U.S. Highway 30 and U.S. Highway 75 in Blair ...

Adjacent counties

* Colfax County – east * Butler County – southeast *

Polk County Polk County is the name of twelve counties in the United States, all except two named after president of the United States James Knox Polk: * Polk County, Arkansas * Polk County, Florida * Polk County, Georgia * Polk County, Iowa * Polk Count ...

– south * Merrick County – south * Nance County – southwest * Boone County – west * Madison County – north * Stanton County – northeast

Protected areas

* George Syas State Wildlife Management Area

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 ce ...

, there were 31,662 people, 12,076 households, and 8,465 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 RosenberPopul ...

was 47 people per square mile (18/km²). There were 12,916 housing units at an average density of 19 per square mile (7/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 94.29%

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 on ...

, 0.35%

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have o ...

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.28% Native American, 0.40%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 0.03%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe the original p ...

, 3.49% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 1.15% from two or more races. 6.54% of the population were

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, 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 Vic ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race. There were 12,076 households, out of which 36.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.20% 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 t ...

living together, 7.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.90% were non-families. 25.90% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.14. The county population contained 29.00% under the age of 18, 8.10% from 18 to 24, 27.50% from 25 to 44, 21.60% from 45 to 64, and 13.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 98.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.60 males. The median income for a household in the county was $39,359, and the median income for a family was $47,776. Males had a median income of $30,672 versus $21,842 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 $18,064. About 5.40% of families and 7.70% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including 9.00% of those under age 18 and 6.80% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

(county seat) *

Humphrey Humphrey is both a masculine given name and a surname. An earlier form, not attested since Medieval times, was Hunfrid. Notable people with the name include: People with the given name Medieval period :''Ordered chronologically'' *Hunfrid of P ...

* Newman Grove (part)

Villages

* Cornlea * Creston * Duncan * Lindsay * Monroe * Platte Center * Tarnov

Census-designated place

* Lakeview

Other unincorporated communities

* Oconee * Rosenborg * Saint Bernard * Tracy Valley

Townships

* Bismark * Burrows *

Butler A butler is a person who works in a house serving and is a domestic worker in a large household. In great houses, the household is sometimes divided into departments with the butler in charge of the dining room, wine cellar, and pantry. Some a ...

* Creston * Grand Prairie * Granville *

* Joliet * Lost Creek * Loup * Monroe * Oconee * St. Bernard * Shell Creek *

Sherman Sherman most commonly refers to: *Sherman (name), a surname and given name (and list of persons with the name) ** William Tecumseh Sherman (1820–1891), American Civil War General *M4 Sherman, a tank Sherman may also refer to: Places United St ...

Walker Walker or The Walker may refer to: People *Walker (given name) *Walker (surname) *Walker (Brazilian footballer) (born 1982), Brazilian footballer Places In the United States *Walker, Arizona, in Yavapai County *Walker, Mono County, California * ...

* Woodville

Notable people

* James Keogh, executive editor of

Time magazine ''Time'' (stylized in all caps) is an American news magazine based in New York City. For nearly a century, it was published weekly, but starting in March 2020 it transitioned to every other week. It was first published in New York City on Mar ...

and the head of the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...

speechwriting staff under Richard M. Nixon

Politics

Platte County voters have been reliably Republican for decades. In only one election since 1936 has the county selected the Democratic Party candidate.

References

{{authority control 1855 establishments in Nebraska Territory Populated places established in 1855