Fillmore County, Nebraska

Fillmore County, Nebraska
Fillmore County courthouse in Geneva
Location in the U.S. state of Nebraska
Nebraska's location in the U.S.
Founded	1871
Named for	Millard Fillmore
Seat	Geneva
Largest city	Geneva
Area
• Total	577 sq mi (1,494 km2)
• Land	575 sq mi (1,489 km2)
• Water	1.2 sq mi (3 km2), 0.2%
Population
• (2010)	5,890
• Density	10/sq mi (4/km²)
Congressional district	3rd
Time zone	Central: UTC-6/-5
Website	www.fillmorecounty.org

Fillmore County is one of 93 counties in the U.S. state of Nebraska. As of the 2010 census, the population was 5,890. Its county seat is Geneva. The county was named for President Millard Fillmore.

Fillmore County was established, and its boundaries defined, by the Nebraska Territorial Legislature in 1856. It was named for Millard Fillmore, the thirteenth president of the United States, who had left office in 1853.

The first homesteaders arrived in the county in 1866. William O. Bussard and his cousin William C. Whitaker, both Ohio natives, filed claims on the West Fork of the Big Blue River in the county's northeastern portion. Settlement of the area was slow until 1870; it was concentrated in the county's northern part, in part because the surveyed route of the Burlington and Missouri River Railroad ran through York County just north of the present-day York-Fillmore county line. In 1870, Fillmore City, the county's first town, was established on the Big Blue about four miles (4 miles (6 km)) north of present-day Grafton; in 1871, the county's first post office opened in Fillmore City.

In 1871, the Burlington and Missouri laid its tracks through the area. A recent change in federal law allowed them to alter their route, shifting it about five miles (5 miles (8 km)) south of their original surveyed path. This placed the route on more level country, reducing the cost of cutting and bridging; it also shifted the line from York County to northern Fillmore County.

The county was formally organized in 1871; up to this time, it had been administered from, and taxed by, Saline County, its neighbor to the east. In April, an election was held to choose officers to organize the county; at this time, it was decided to place the county seat in the county's center. The town site was surveyed and platted, and given the name "Henry". It could not be occupied, since it was on school land owned by the State; an act of the Legislature was necessary before the land could be sold.