Washington County, Nebraska

Washington County is a county in the U.S. state of Nebraska. As of the 2020 census, the population was 20,865, and was estimated to be 21,302 in 2025.

Washington County is part of the Omaha–Council Bluffs metropolitan area.

In the Nebraska license plate system, Washington County was represented by the prefix "29" (as it had the 29th-largest number of vehicles registered in the state when the license plate system was established in 1922).

History

Washington County was created on November 23, 1854 and named for George Washington.

Washington County is in eastern Nebraska on the Missouri River. It was explored by Europeans as early as 1739 by Pierre Antoine and Paul Mallet, who were on a trapping expedition to Canada. In 1804, Lewis and Clark reported the establishment of the new United States government to a council of Indian chiefs near the present site of Fort Calhoun. As a result of this council, Fort Atkinson was established in 1819 and served as a key midwestern outpost until 1827.

The first permanent settlement in Washington County was in 1854. In that same year, the county was organized as one of the eight original counties proclaimed by acting Governor Thomas B. Cuming; it was reorganized in 1855. The county seat has been in three different towns: Fort Calhoun, DeSoto, and Blair, its present site since 1869.

The Fort Calhoun Nuclear Generating Station south of Blair, which was North America's smallest commercial nuclear reactor by rated capacity, was closed in October 2016 to begin decommissioning. An associated system of warning sirens was located in the southeastern part of the county for emergency notification in the event of a problem at the station.

An Atlas missile launch site (Site B), formerly associated with Offutt Air Force Base and deactivated in the 1960s, lies east of Arlington.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.83%) is water. It is the 5th-smallest county in Nebraska by total area.

Washington County lies on the east side of Nebraska. Its east boundary line abuts the west boundary line of the state of Iowa, across the Missouri River. The Elkhorn River flows southeastward along the county's southwest border, and a smaller drainage, the Little Papillon River, flows southward through the center part of the county, discharging into Glenn Cunningham Reservoir south of the county. The county's terrain consists of low rolling hills sloping to the east, with several drainage channels eroded into its eastern portion sloping down to the river. The county's planar areas are largely devoted to agriculture.

Transportation

Major highways

20px U.S. Highway 30
20px U.S. Highway 75
20px Nebraska Highway 31
20px Nebraska Highway 91
20px Nebraska Highway 133

Airports

Washington County contains Blair Municipal Airport, and several small privately owned grass airstrips, such as the Orum Aerodrome. There is also a helipad at the Memorial Community Hospital in Blair.

Adjacent counties

Burt County – north
Harrison County, Iowa – northeast
Pottawattamie County, Iowa – southeast
Douglas County – south
Dodge County – west

Protected areas

Boyer Chute National Wildlife Refuge
DeSoto National Wildlife Refuge (part)
Fort Atkinson State Historical Park
Neale Woods Nature Center (partial)

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 20,865. The median age was 42.5 years. 24.2% of residents were under the age of 18 and 19.1% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 99.5 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 97.2 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 93.5% White, 0.3% Black or African American, 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 1.2% from some other race, and 4.3% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 3.0% of the population.

There were 8,115 households in the county, of which 31.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 19.0% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 23.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.