Harrisburg is a census-designated place in and the county seat of Banner County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 99 at the 2020 census.
History
Harrisburg, and all of Banner County, were originally part of Cheyenne County and began with a homestead in 1884. A settlement, at first called Randall and then Centropolis, developed around this and neighboring homesteads. In November, 1888, Cheyenne County subdivided into five counties, and the settlement was included in the territory which became Banner County. Its county seat was originally located at Ashford, a few miles northeast. However, in 1889 Charles Schooley, a settler, donated part of his land for the development of a formal town. A migrant being from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania caused the name to be selected.
Because of its central location, Harrisburg became the home base for stagecoach and mail carrier lines in the county, and the county government moved its operations from Ashford in mid-1891. By 1892, Harrisburg had two hotels, two livery stables, a brickwork, a cheese factory, two banks and three newspapers. It was the principal community for the county, which was almost entirely devoted to wheat farming and cattle ranching. In 1951, oil (which had first been discovered in 1919) became the county's third commodity.
Harrisburg's fortunes rose and fell with the county's. The lack of a railroad line for shipping eventually drew the larger farm and ranch houses to the north, while the 1960s routing of Interstate Highway 80 through Kimball brought the removal of other businesses to the south. Other small hamlets in Banner County collapsed as people moved either north or south, or consolidated their activities around Harrisburg. This movement has allowed Harrisburg to flourish into the 21st century, despite its low resident population.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of , all land.
Climate
According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Harrisburg has a cold semi-arid climate, abbreviated "BSk" on climate maps. The hottest temperature recorded in Harrisburg was on July 16, 2006, June 24, 2012, and June 27, 2012, while the coldest temperature recorded was on December 22, 1989.
|source 2 = National Weather Service
Demographics
Harrisburg is part of the Scottsbluff, Nebraska Micropolitan Statistical Area.
Harrisburg CDP
As of the census