Phelps County, Nebraska

Phelps County
Phelps County
County
	Phelps County Courthouse in Holdrege
	Location within the U.S. state of Nebraska
	Nebraska's location within the U.S.
	Coordinates: 40°31′N 99°25′W / 40.51°N 99.41°W
Country	United States
State	Nebraska
Founded	1873
Named for	William Phelps
Seat	Holdrege
Largest city	Holdrege
Area
• Total	540 sq mi (1,400 km2)
• Land	540 sq mi (1,400 km2)
• Water	0.6 sq mi (2 km2) 0.1%
Population (2020)
• Total	8,968
• Density	17/sq mi (6.4/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	3rd
Website	www.phelpsgov.org

Phelps County is a county in the U.S. state of Nebraska. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 8,968.^[1] Its county seat is Holdrege.^[2] The county was formed in 1873, and was named for William Phelps (1808–1889), a steamboat captain and early settler.^[3]^[4]^[5]^[6]

In the Nebraska license plate system, Phelps County is represented by the prefix 37 (it had the 37th-largest number of vehicles registered in the county when the license plate system was established in 1922).

It is considered part of the Kearney μSA's development and expansion plans.

Geography

Phelps County terrain consists of low rolling hills, mostly devoted to agriculture, sloping to the east, and dropping off toward the river basin along its northern boundary line. The Platte River flows eastward along the north line.^[7]^[8]

The county has a total area of 540 square miles (1,400 km²), of which 540 square miles (1,400 km²) is land and 0.6 square miles (1.6 km²) (0.1%) is water.^[9]

Major highways

Transit

Amtrak California Zephyr (Holdrege station)

Adjacent counties

Kearney County – east
Franklin County – southeast
Harlan County – south
Furnas County – southwest
Gosper County – west
Dawson County – northwest
Buffalo County – northeast

Protected areas

Atlanta Marsh National Wildlife Management Area^[10]
Cottonwood Federal Waterfowl Production Area^[11]
Johnson Federal Waterfowl Production Area^[12]
Jones Federal Waterfowl Production Area^[13]
Lake Seldom Wildlife Refuge^[14]
Lynder Federal Waterfowl Production Area^[15]
Richardson Lagoon State Wildlife Management Area^[16]
Sacramento-Wilcox State Wildlife Management Area^[17]

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1880	2,447	—
1890	9,869	303.3%
1900	10,772	9.1%
1910	10,451	−3.0%
1920	9,900	−5.3%
1930	9,261	−6.5%
1940	8,452	−8.7%
1950	9,048	7.1%
1960	9,800	8.3%
1970	9,553	−2.5%
1980	9,769	2.3%
1990	9,715	−0.6%
2000	9,747	0.3%
2010	9,188	−5.7%
2020	8,968	−2.4%
US Decennial Census^[18] 1790-1960^[19] 1900-1990^[20] 1990-2000^[21] 2010^[22]

As of the 2000 United States Census,^[23] there were 9,747 people, 3,844 households, and 2,683 families in the county. The population density was 18 people per square mile (6.9 people/km²). There were 4,191 housing units at an average density of 8 units per square mile (3.1/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 97.79% White, 0.11% Black or African American, 0.28% Native American, 0.28% Asian, 0.79% from other races, and 0.75% from two or more races. 2.26% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 3,844 households, out of which 33.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.60% were married couples living together, 5.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.20% were non-families. 26.70% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 3.00.

The county population contained 26.50% under the age of 18, 6.10% from 18 to 24, 25.80% from 25 to 44, 23.60% from 45 to 64, and 18.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 96.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.90 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $37,319, and the median income for a family was $44,943. Males had a median income of $28,962 versus $21,741 for females. The per capita income for the county was $19,044. About 6.20% of families and 8.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.10% of those under age 18 and 7.70% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

City

Holdrege (county seat)

Villages

Unincorporated communities

Townships

Politics

Phelps County voters have been reliably Republican for decades. In no national election since 1936 has the county selected the Democratic Party candidate (as of 2020).

United States presidential election results for Phelps County, Nebraska^[24]
Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party
Year	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2020	4,157	82.79%	752	14.98%	112	2.23%
2016	3,849	81.98%	572	12.18%	274	5.84%
2012	3,400	77.63%	880	20.09%	100	2.28%
2008	3,360	75.12%	1,050	23.47%	63	1.41%
2004	3,872	81.64%	830	17.50%	41	0.86%
2000	3,575	77.26%	934	20.19%	118	2.55%
1996	3,015	65.86%	1,071	23.39%	492	10.75%
1992	2,752	56.13%	830	16.93%	1,321	26.94%
1988	3,316	75.59%	1,047	23.87%	24	0.55%
1984	3,741	83.11%	740	16.44%	20	0.44%
1980	3,465	77.95%	734	16.51%	246	5.53%
1976	3,210	71.19%	1,168	25.90%	131	2.91%
1972	3,356	82.03%	735	17.97%	0	0.00%
1968	2,976	73.39%	825	20.35%	254	6.26%
1964	2,440	53.12%	2,153	46.88%	0	0.00%
1960	3,795	75.19%	1,252	24.81%	0	0.00%
1956	3,502	72.73%	1,313	27.27%	0	0.00%
1952	3,822	77.98%	1,079	22.02%	0	0.00%
1948	2,489	57.83%	1,815	42.17%	0	0.00%
1944	2,460	62.90%	1,451	37.10%	0	0.00%
1940	2,512	57.63%	1,847	42.37%	0	0.00%
1936	1,884	41.96%	2,587	57.62%	19	0.42%
1932	1,709	39.09%	2,589	59.22%	74	1.69%
1928	3,297	77.56%	927	21.81%	27	0.64%
1924	1,928	48.88%	993	25.18%	1,023	25.94%
1920	2,324	61.91%	1,169	31.14%	261	6.95%
1916	971	38.61%	1,425	56.66%	119	4.73%
1912	254	10.56%	972	40.42%	1,179	49.02%
1908	1,445	51.10%	1,238	43.78%	145	5.13%
1904	1,567	67.86%	219	9.48%	523	22.65%
1900	1,202	53.26%	979	43.38%	76	3.37%

References

^ "Phelps county, Nebraska". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved June 19, 2023.
^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
^ Fitzpatrick, Lilian Linder A. M. "Nebraska Place-Names". University of Nebraska Studies in Language, Literature, and Criticism. 6: 113. Retrieved July 22, 2017.
^ "Bulletin". U.S. Government Printing Office. May 1, 1905 – via Google Books.
^ "Phelps County History". phelpsgov.org.
^ Beatty, Michael A. (May 1, 2001). "County Name Origins of the United States". McFarland – via Google Books.
^ "Google Maps Find Altitude". www.daftlogic.com. Archived from the original on May 21, 2019. Retrieved January 26, 2019.
^ "Phelps County". Phelps County.
^ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". US Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Archived from the original on November 13, 2013. Retrieved December 11, 2014.
^ "Google Maps". Google Maps.
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^ "US Decennial Census". US Census Bureau. Retrieved December 11, 2014.
^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved December 11, 2014.
^ "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". US Census Bureau. Retrieved December 11, 2014.
^ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 27, 2010. Retrieved December 11, 2014.
^ "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on July 28, 2011. Retrieved September 21, 2013.
^ "U.S. Census website". US Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
^ "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org.