Adams County is a county located in the U.S. state of Nebraska. As of the 2020 census, the population was 31,205, and was estimated to be 31,071 in 2025.

Adams County comprises the Hastings, NE Micropolitan Statistical Area.

In the Nebraska license plate system, Adams County was represented by the prefix "14" (as it had the 14th-largest number of vehicles registered in the state when the license plate system was established in 1922).

History

Adams county was created on February 16, 1867 and organized on December 12, 1871. It is named for John Adams, the second President of the United States.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.17%) is water. It is the 66th-largest county in Nebraska by total area.

Major highways

  • 20px U.S. Highway 6
  • 20px U.S. Highway 34
  • 25px U.S. Highway 281
  • 20px Nebraska Highway 74

Transit

  • Amtrak California Zephyr (Hastings station)

Adjacent counties

  • Hamilton County – northeast
  • Clay County – east
  • Webster County – south
  • Kearney County – west
  • Buffalo County – northwest
  • Hall County – north

History

Adams County, Nebraska, was established on February 16, 1867, and named in honor of John Adams, the second President of the United States. The first settlers began to arrive in the late 1860s, following the Homestead Act of 1862, which encouraged settlement by providing land to those who would develop and farm it. The initial settlement was somewhat slow due to Adams County's location in the Great Plains, often considered inhospitable because of its harsh climate and lack of timber. The establishment of the city of Hastings in 1872 by the Burlington and Missouri River Railroad, however, marked a significant turning point. The town of Juniata was initially the county seat, but after a contentious election in 1877, Hastings became the county seat due to its strategic location at the junction of two railroads.

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2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 31,205. The median age was 38.1 years. 23.6% of residents were under the age of 18 and 18.6% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 97.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 96.3 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 85.4% White, 0.8% Black or African American, 0.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.4% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 5.0% from some other race, and 6.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 11.7% of the population.

There were 12,690 households in the county, of which 29.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 26.2% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 31.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

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Communities

City

  • Hastings (county seat)

Villages

  • Ayr
  • Holstein
  • Juniata
  • Kenesaw
  • Prosser
  • Roseland
  • Trumbull

Unincorporated communities

  • Assumption
  • Hansen
  • Hayland
  • Ingleside
  • Pauline

Townships

  • Ayr
  • Blaine
  • Cottonwood
  • Denver
  • Hanover
  • Highland
  • Juniata
  • Kenesaw
  • Little Blue
  • Logan
  • Roseland
  • Silver Lake
  • Verona
  • Wanda
  • West Blue
  • Zero

See also

  • National Register of Historic Places listings in Adams County, Nebraska

References

  • Adams County government's website
  • Adams County Historical Society
  • Adams County Convention & Visitors Bureau