Mitchell Nebraska - Nebraska Directory

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City · Scotts Bluff County · Population 1,548 (2020 census) · ZIP 69357 · Founded 1900 · Peak population 2,181 (1940)

About Mitchell

Mitchell is a city of 1,548 (2020) in the North Platte valley of northwestern Scotts Bluff County, at 3,954 feet, about 9 miles northwest of Scottsbluff. US 26 runs through town on Broadway, and NE 29 heads north on 19th Avenue toward Harrison and Agate Fossil Beds. The Scotts Bluff County Fair is held at the fairgrounds just west of town. Mitchell is on Mountain Time.

History

A post office named Mitchell, for nearby Fort Mitchell (1864–67), was serving the valley by 1890, and Mitchell lost the county-seat runoff to Gering in February 1889. The present town grew up when the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy reached the site in 1900, and it incorporated in 1902. Great Western Sugar opened a factory here in 1920, and the population peaked at 2,181 in 1940. The county fair, first organized in 1887, held its 139th edition in 2026.

Highways and trails through Mitchell

Route	One way	Other way
US 26Through town on Broadway	East to Scottsbluff	West to Morrill, Henry and Torrington, Wyoming
NE 29North on 19th Avenue	North to Agate Fossil Beds and Harrison	Ends at US 26

Nearby towns

Haig	about 5 mi south-southeast	County roads
Morrill	about 6 mi west-northwest	US 26
Scottsbluff	about 9 mi southeast	US 26
Gering	about 11 mi southeast	US 26 and NE 92
Lyman	about 12 mi west	County roads
Henry	about 13 mi west-northwest	US 26

Things to see

the Scotts Bluff County Fairgrounds, 130625 County Road E, with Sandford Hall (National Register) · the M. B. Quivey House, 1462 19th Ave. (National Register; private) · the 9-hole Scenic Knolls Golf Course, 2 mi north on NE 29, with RV sites · Zeigler Park, with camping · the Mitchell Public Library, 1449 Center Ave. · the Scotts Bluff County Fair in late July

Events in Mitchell

Scotts Bluff County Fair
Scotts Bluff County Fair, a county fair in Gering, Nebraska.

Know of another event here? Tell us about it.

Schools and health care

Schools: Mitchell Public Schools, 1819 19th Ave., (308) 623-1707: Mitchell Elementary (PK–6), 1439 13th Ave., and Mitchell Junior/Senior High (7–12), 1819 19th Ave.

Health care: No physician clinic in Mitchell; Regional West clinic in Morrill, about 6 mi, and Regional West Medical Center in Scottsbluff, about 9 mi

Sources: U.S. Census; Wikipedia; Who's Who in Nebraska, Scotts Bluff County (1940); Grant L. Shumway, History of Western Nebraska (1921); Nebraska State Gazetteer (1890); Fitzpatrick and Link, Nebraska Place-Names (1960); National Park Service; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; Nebraska Game and Parks; History Nebraska and its markers; National Register nominations; Nebraska Department of Transportation; Bureau of Reclamation; city and village websites; school districts; Regional West Health Services; Visit Scottsbluff; Star-Herald; KNEB; KHYY. Distances marked "about" are straight-line estimates.