Banner County, Nebraska

Banner County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education

County Seat: Harrisburg
Year Organized: 1888
Square Miles: 746

Court House:

204 State Street, P.O. Box 67
County Courthouse
Harrisburg, NE 69345-0067

Etymology - Origin of County Name

According to some, early settlers in this Panhandle region aspired to make it the "banner county" of the state since it was to be "the brightest star in the constellation of Nebraska counties."

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts

County History

Banner County is one of two counties in Nebraska that received its name from the aspirations of the inhabitants. According to some, early settlers in this Panhandle region aspired to make it the "banner county" of the state since it was to be "the brightest star in the constellation of Nebraska counties."

The area that today makes up Banner County was once part of a larger Cheyenne County. In an election held on Nov. 6, 1888, Banner, Kimball and Scotts Bluff Counties were created from the western third of Cheyenne County. Immediately upon receiving word that the area would become a county, local residents proposed a design for a county seal. In the center of a circle is a banner, and across the banner is a line representing Pumpkin Creek which traverses the area from west to east. In the center of the banner is a pumpkin.

Banner County was officially organized on Jan. 29, 1889, and the settlement of Ashford was designated as a temporary county seat. A special election was scheduled for the following month to select a permanent site from among four aspirants: Ashford; Banner; Freeport; and Harrisburg. It actually took two elections, with Harrisburg finally being chosen.

Neighboring Counties:

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Cities and Towns:

- Harrisburg (County Seat)

County Resources:

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County Resources

The history of our nation was a prolonged struggle to define the relative roles and powers of our governments: federal, state, and local. And the names given the counties, our most locally based jurisdictions, reflects the "characteristic features of this country!"

But age, size and colorful names of our counties isn't the only reason to explore counties' role in American history, or the history of county government itself. In fact, the story of county government reflects the larger meanings of American history.

Today's counties are the most flexible, locally responsive and creative governments in the US. They are the most diverse, varying in size, population, geography, and governmental structure. In their politics and policies, they express a 1990's political slogan "Think globally, act locally."