Garland was platted in 1874 by Hiland Fraisure as “Germantown,” reflecting the German heritage of its settlers, when the Midland Pacific Railroad built a depot on its Lincoln-to-Seward line. Amid anti-German sentiment during World War I, the town was renamed Garland on December 11, 1918, honoring Raymond Garland, reportedly the first local soldier to die in the war.

Garland, population 210 in 2020, is the hometown of U.S. Poet Laureate Ted Kooser.