Polk County, Nebraska

Polk County
County
Polk County Courthouse in Osceola, Nebraska
Location within the U.S. state of Nebraska
Nebraska's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 41°11′N 97°34′W
Country	United States
State	Nebraska
Founded	1856
Seat	Osceola
Largest city	Stromsburg
Area
• Total	441 sq mi (1,140 km2)
• Land	439 sq mi (1,140 km2)
• Water	2 sq mi (5 km2)  0.43%
Population  (2000)
• Total	5,639
• Density	10/sq mi (5/km2)
Website	www.polkcounty.ne.gov

Polk County is a county located in the U.S. state of Nebraska. As of 2000, the population was 5,639. Its county seat is OsceolaTemplate:GR. The center of population of Nebraska is located in Polk County, near the village of Shelby [2].

In the Nebraska license plate system, Polk County is represented by the prefix 41 (it had the forty-first-largest number of vehicles registered in the county when the license plate system was established in 1922).

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,141 km² (441 mi²). 1,137 km² (439 mi²) of it is land and 5 km² (2 mi²) of it (0.43%) is water.

Adjacent counties

• Butler County, Nebraska - (East)
• York County, Nebraska - (South)
• Hamilton County, Nebraska - (Southwest)
• Merrick County, Nebraska - (West)
• Platte County, Nebraska - (North)

History

Polk County was formed in 1856. It was named after President James K. Polk.

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1860	19		—
1870	136		615.8%
1880	6,846		4,933.8%
1890	10,817		58.0%
1900	10,542		−2.5%
1910	10,521		−0.2%
1920	10,714		1.8%
1930	10,092		−5.8%
1940	8,748		−13.3%
1950	8,044		−8.0%
1960	7,210		−10.4%
1970	6,468		−10.3%
1980	6,320		−2.3%
1990	5,668		−10.3%
2000	5,639		−0.5%

As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 5,639 people, 2,259 households, and 1,570 families residing in the county. The population density was 5/km² (13/mi²). There were 2,717 housing units at an average density of 2/km² (6/mi²). The racial makeup of the county was 98.92% White, 0.02% Black or African American, 0.28% Native American, 0.09% Asian, 0.28% from other races, and 0.41% from two or more races. 1.08% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 2,259 households out of which 29.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.90% were married couples living together, 4.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.50% were non-families. 27.60% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 2.97.

In the county the population was spread out with 25.10% under the age of 18, 6.00% from 18 to 24, 24.40% from 25 to 44, 23.10% from 45 to 64, and 21.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 100.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.70 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $37,819, and the median income for a family was $45,081. Males had a median income of $30,286 versus $19,595 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,934. About 4.40% of families and 5.80% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.20% of those under age 18 and 4.70% of those age 65 or over.

Cities and villages

• Osceola
• Polk
• Shelby
• Stromsburg

Popular culture

Polk County is the locale for the fictional town of Hemingford Home in Stephen King's novel The Stand.