Dawson County, Nebraska

Dawson County is a county in the U.S. state of Nebraska. As of the 2020 census, the population was 24,111, and was estimated to be 24,452 in 2025.

Dawson County is part of the Lexington, NE micropolitan area.

In the Nebraska license plate system, Dawson County was represented by the prefix "18" (as it had the 18th-largest number of vehicles registered in the state when the license plate system was established in 1922).

History

Dawson County was created on January 11, 1860 and organized on July 11, 1871 by proclamation of acting Governor William James. The county website states that the county was named for Jacob Dawson, the first postmaster in the settlement of Lancaster County, Nebraska. Other sources state that it was named after Pennsylvania Congressman John Littleton Dawson.

Geography

Dawson County lies near the center of Nebraska, in the portion of the state that observes Central Time.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.55%) is water. It is the 15th-largest county in Nebraska by total area.

Major highways

20px Interstate 80
20px U.S. Highway 30
25px U.S. Highway 283
20px Nebraska Highway 21
20px Nebraska Highway 23
20px Nebraska Highway 40
20px Nebraska Highway 47

Transit

Burlington Trailways
Express Arrow

Protected areas

Bitterns Call State Wildlife Management Area
Dogwood State Wildlife Management Area
East Willow Island State Wildlife Management Area
Gallagher Canyon State Recreation Area

Adjacent counties

Buffalo County – east
Phelps County – southeast
Gosper County – south
Frontier County – southwest
Lincoln County – west
Custer County – north

Demographics

As of the third quarter of 2025, the median home value in Dawson County was $176,050.

As of the 2024 American Community Survey, there are 9,145 estimated households in Dawson County with an average of 2.62 persons per household. The county has a median household income of $69,880. Approximately 10.8% of the county's population lives at or below the poverty line. Dawson County has an estimated 69.1% employment rate, with 17.6% of the population holding a bachelor's degree or higher and 77.9% holding a high school diploma. !! Pop. 1990 !! Pop. 2000 !! Pop. 2010 !!

| White alone (NH)

| 21,575 (96.73%) || 19,164 (96.11%) || 17,746 (72.83%) || 15,464 (63.57%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |13,529 (56.11%)

| Black or African American alone (NH)

| 14 (0.06%) || 11 (0.06%) || 58 (0.24%) || 710 (2.92%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |1,187 (4.92%)

| Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)

| 35 (0.16%) || 62 (0.31%) || 112 (0.46%) || 74 (0.30%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |44 (0.18%)

| Asian alone (NH)

| 54 (0.24%) || 38 (0.19%) || 150 (0.62%) || 135 (0.55%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |192 (0.80%)

| Pacific Islander alone (NH)

| — || — || 1 (0.00%) || 39 (0.16%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |41 (0.17%)

| Other race alone (NH)

| 39 (0.17%) || 2 (0.01%) || 6 (0.02%) || 21 (0.09%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |60 (0.25%)

| Mixed race or multiracial (NH)

| — || — || 114 (0.47%) || 137 (0.56%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |415 (1.72%)

| Hispanic or Latino (any race)

| 587 (2.63%) || 663 (3.32%) || 6,178 (25.36%) || 7,746 (31.84%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |8,643 (35.85%)

| Total

| 22,304 (100.00%) || 19,940 (100.00%) || 24,365 (100.00%) || 24,326 (100.00%) || style='background: #ffffe6; |24,111 (100.00%)

2024 estimate

As of the 2024 estimate, there were 24,554 people, 9,145 households, and _ families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 9,958 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 85.3% White (51.1% NH White), 8.5% African American, 2.9% Native American, 1.5% Asian, 0.5% Pacific Islander, _% from some other races and 1.5% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 39.6% of the population.

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 24,111 people, 8,868 households, and 6,144 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 9,792 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 62.62% White, 5.02% African American, 1.12% Native American, 0.83% Asian, 0.19% Pacific Islander, 19.81% from some other races and 10.41% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 35.85% of the population.

The median age was 36.4 years. 28.1% of residents were under the age of 18 and 16.4% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 102.6 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 101.2 males age 18 and over.

43.3% of residents lived in urban areas, while 56.7% lived in rural areas.

There were 8,868 households in the county, of which 35.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 22.6% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 26.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 9,792 housing units, of which 9.4% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 67.9% were owner-occupied and 32.1% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.6% and the rental vacancy rate was 8.9%.

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 24,326 people, 8,899 households, and 6,122 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 10,123 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 78.02% White, 3.06% African American, 0.82% Native American, 0.58% Asian, 0.18% Pacific Islander, 15.24% from some other races and 2.10% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 31.84% of the population.

2000 census

As of the 2000 census, there were 24,365 people, 8,824 households, and 6,273 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 9,805 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 82.32% White, 0.31% African American, 0.67% Native American, 0.66% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 14.49% from some other races and 1.53% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 25.36% of the population. 32.0% were of German, 6.7% American, 6.7% Irish and 6.4% English ancestry.

There were 8,824 households out of which 35.80% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.80% were married couples living together, 7.90% have a female householder with no husband present, and 28.90% were non-families. 24.60% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.00% have someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.71 and the average family size was 3.21.

In the county the population was spread out with 29.20% under the age of 18, 8.40% from 18 to 24, 27.60% from 25 to 44, 20.70% from 45 to 64, and 14.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 101.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.90 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $36,132, and the median income for a family was $42,224. Males have a median income of $26,865 versus $20,569 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,973. 10.80% of the population and 8.60% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 14.20% were under the age of 18 and 9.20% were 65 or older.

Communities

Cities

Cozad
Gothenburg
Lexington (county seat)

Villages

Eddyville
Farnam
Overton
Sumner

Census-designated place

Willow Island

Unincorporated communities

Buffalo
Darr
Josselyn

Politics

{| class="wikitable"

! colspan="2" |Political Party

! Number of registered voters (March 1, 2026)

! Percent

| Republican

| 7,619

| 59.30%

| Democratic

| 2,774

| 21.59%

| Independent

| 2,234

| 17.39%

| Libertarian

| 139

| 1.08%

| Legal Marijuana Now

| 82

| 0.64%

! colspan="2" |Total

! 12,848

! 100.00%

Education

School districts include:

Callaway Public Schools #180, Callaway
Cozad Community Schools #11, Cozad
Elm Creek Public Schools #9, Elm Creek
Elwood Public Schools #30, Elwood
Eustis-Farnam Public Schools #95, Eustis
Gothenburg Public Schools #20, Gothenburg
Lexington Public Schools #1, Lexington
Overton Public Schools #4, Overton
Sumner-Eddyville-Miller Schools #101, Sumner