Town Overview

Monroe is a village of 296 on just 0.17 square miles in southwestern Platte County. Settlement in the area goes back to the 1850s, but the village itself was not platted until 1889, when the railroad arrived; it is named for President James Monroe.

Population has held steady better than most villages its size — 307 in 2000, 284 in 2010, 296 in 2020.

Adjacent Counties & Nearby Towns

Platte County covers 685 square miles of low rolling hills sloping east-southeast, with 34,296 residents in 2020 and Columbus as its seat and largest city. The Platte River runs along its southern edge and the Loup River crosses the lower part of the county eastward. It borders Madison County to the north, Stanton County to the northeast, Colfax County to the east, Butler County to the southeast, Polk County and Merrick County to the south, Nance County to the southwest and Boone County to the west.

Nearest towns. Genoa, in Nance County, is about 7 miles west-southwest and shares a school district with Monroe. Platte Center is about 7 miles northeast, Duncan about 8 miles southeast, Tarnov about 11 miles north-northeast and Columbus, the county seat, about 12 miles east-southeast. Distances given here are straight-line measurements.

Points of Interest & Events

Monroe Congregational Church and New Hope Cemetery — Located at nearby O'Kay, the church and cemetery are listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and are the most notable historic site in this corner of the county.

The old school gymnasium. Monroe's K–6 school closed in the autumn of 2007, six years after the district consolidated, but the village gymnasium is still used by the Twin River district for junior high athletics — a small example of a rural community keeping a building in service after the school itself has gone.

The Loup River Water Trail. Monroe has a developed canoe and kayak access point on the Loup, south of the village on 370th Avenue just past the river bridge — turn east about an eighth of a mile beyond the bridge and follow the road to its end. Platte County built the site, with ample parking and interpretive signage. The float from Monroe down to Columbus runs about 16 miles and takes six to eight hours on a wide, shallow, sandy-bottomed river where bald eagles, red-tailed hawks, beaver and deer are common sights. Flows fluctuate because of diversions upstream near Genoa, so shallow-draft canoes and kayaks are recommended, and Nebraska Game and Parks warns of an I-beam protruding from the south bank about half a mile above the Columbus takeout.

Events. No recurring town-wide celebration could be independently verified for Monroe at the time of writing, so none is claimed here.

Education & Health

Schools. In 2001 Monroe consolidated with Silver Creek and Genoa to form the Twin River Public Schools. The district’s buildings are now together at 816 Willard Avenue in Genoa — Twin River Elementary (PK–6) and Twin River Senior High (7–12), around 400 students in total, playing as the Titans. The Monroe K–6 building closed in autumn 2007, though the village gymnasium is still used for junior high athletics.

Health care. There is no hospital in Monroe. The nearest is Genoa Community Hospital (Genoa Medical Facilities), 706 Ewing Avenue in Genoa, about 7 miles west-south-west, which also runs the Park Street Medical Clinic, long-term care and assisted living. Columbus Community Hospital, 4600 38th Street in Columbus, about 12 miles east-south-east, is the larger regional hospital. Distances given here are straight-line.

Highway Access

Nebraska Highway 22 runs east–west straight through Monroe — the village is on a numbered state highway, not merely near one. NE-22 is an 89-mile route beginning at NE-70 south of Ord and ending at U.S. Route 81 north-west of Columbus, passing Scotia, Wolbach, Fullerton, Genoa and Monroe along the way.

Nebraska Highway 39 is the nearest other route, about 7 miles west-south-west at Genoa, where it runs concurrently with NE-22 through town before heading north-west toward St. Edward and south across the Loup and Platte to meet US-30 at Silver Creek. U.S. Route 30 itself does not pass near Monroe; its closest points are about 8 miles south-east at Duncan and about 11 miles south-south-west at Silver Creek.

Columbus, about 12 miles east-south-east, is the regional junction where US-30 and US-81 meet. Interstate 80 lies well south beyond the Platte; the nearest interchange is the I-80 and US-81 junction at York, roughly 41 miles due south in a straight line and appreciably farther by road.

Monroe is a village of 296 in southwestern Platte County, settled in the 1850s but not platted until the railroad arrived in 1889, and named for President James Monroe. The Monroe Congregational Church and New Hope Cemetery at nearby O'Kay are on the National Register of Historic Places. Monroe consolidated with Silver Creek and Genoa in 2001 to form the Twin River School District.

Navigate & Explore Monroe

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