About Pawnee City
Pawnee City is the county seat of Pawnee County. The 2020 census recorded 865 residents, down from 878 in 2010. The city covers 1.21 square miles. County material places it roughly 90 miles south of Omaha and about 70 miles south-east of Lincoln.
History
The territorial legislature defined Pawnee County on 3 March 1855, naming it for the Pawnee, who had lived in the region for generations. An election on 4 November 1856 made Pawnee City the county seat. The townsite was platted in the spring of 1857 and the first lots sold that season. The city incorporated in 1858, and a post office was established on 2 June 1858. Two railroads later reached town: the Burlington and Missouri River in 1881, and the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific in 1886.
Fire and rebuilding
A fire on 9 August 1881 destroyed about two-thirds of the downtown business district. The town rebuilt in fireproof construction over the decades that followed. The result, the Pawnee City Historic Business District, takes in 56 buildings across six blocks and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1994. The Pawnee City Historical Society Museum maintains a group of more than 20 buildings, including the home of David Butler.
People
David Butler, the first governor of Nebraska, U.S. Senator Kenneth S. Wherry, and the comedian Dan Whitney, known as Larry the Cable Guy, are all connected with Pawnee City.
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Pawnee City, the seat of Pawnee County, was settled in 1854 by Ohio pioneers who followed the Nemaha River to a site where a Pawnee band reportedly once camped along Turkey Creek. The town was platted in 1857 and designated county seat in the mid-1850s, and a major downtown fire on August 9, 1881 destroyed two-thirds of its business district before it was rebuilt with fireproof construction. Two railroads eventually served the town, the Burlington & Missouri River in 1881 and the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific in 1886. Pawnee City is home to six National Register of Historic Places listings, including the 1911 Pawnee County Courthouse and the Pawnee City Carnegie Library, and its notable natives include Nebraska's first governor David Butler, U.S. Senator Kenneth Wherry, and comedian Daniel Lawrence Whitney, known professionally as Larry the Cable Guy.
Pawnee City, the Pawnee County seat, was settled in 1854 and is home to six National Register of Historic Places sites.
Navigate & Explore Pawnee City
Get directions: search "Pawnee City Nebraska" in Waze or Google Maps
Road Conditions: Nebraska 511 — 511.nebraska.gov
Pawnee County Cameras: View Pawnee County cameras