Welcome to Kearney ...
The city of Kearney is located in Buffalo County<1> and is the County Seat for Buffalo County.
The pronunciation of Kearney: CAR-nee<2>
While we don't have a date for the founding of Kearney, you might consider that their post office opened in 1875.
From the Census Estimates for 2019, Kearney has a population of 34,006 people<3> (see below for details).
Kearney is 2,150 feet [655 m] above sea level.<4> In other words, the elevation of Kearney is about ½ mile above sea level.
Time Zone: Kearney lies in the Central Time Zone (CST/CDT) and observes daylight saving time
Kearney lies within the (308) area code.
The ZIP codes for Kearney: 68845, 68847-68849<5>
Websites for Kearney ...
Official Website: www.cityofkearney.org/
Chamber of Commerce: www.kearneycoc.org/
Population Details ...
Taken from the 2019 Census Estimates, Kearney had an population of 34,006 people. This is an increase of 10.46% since the 2010 Census (or an increase of 23.97% since the 2000 Census).
At the time of the 2010 Census, Kearney had a population of 30,787 people (or 66.78% of the total population of Buffalo County). This makes Kearney the county's most populous community.
The population of Kearney represents 1.69% of the total population of Nebraska (which has 1,826,341 people), making it the state's 5th most populous community.
With a 2010 count of 30,787 people, the population of Kearney increased 12.23% from the 2000 Census (with a count of 27,431 people).
More information can be found on the Census Page for Kearney.
Communities Also Named Kearney ...
Using our Gazetteer, we found that there are 18 communities that are also named Kearney - they are located in Alabama, Arkansas, California, Kansas (3), Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ontario (3), Pennsylvania (2) and South Carolina.
For more information, see our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Kearney.
Communities near Kearney ...
We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Kearney.
- Minden
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minden
- Minden is located in Kearney County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,020 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Minden <6>
- Gibbon
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gibbon have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gibbon
- Gibbon is located in Buffalo County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,875 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gibbon <6>
- Shelton
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shelton have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shelton
- Shelton is located in Buffalo County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,055 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Shelton <6>
- Elm Creek
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Elm Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elm Creek
- Elm Creek is located in Buffalo County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 945 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Elm Creek <6>
- Axtell
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Axtell
- Axtell is located in Kearney County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 776 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Axtell <6>
- Pleasanton
(18 miles [29 km] to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasanton
- Pleasanton is located in Buffalo County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 361 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pleasanton <6>
- Amherst
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Amherst
- Amherst is located in Buffalo County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 254 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Amherst <6>
- Funk
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Funk have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Funk
- Funk is located in Phelps County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 182 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Funk <6>
- Riverdale
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Riverdale have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverdale
- Riverdale is located in Buffalo County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 179 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Riverdale <6>
- Heartwell
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Heartwell have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Heartwell
- Heartwell is located in Kearney County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 72 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Heartwell <6>
To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.
We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Kearney. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Kearney.
Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Kearney. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around Kearney.
We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Kearney. Our list includes 48 papers. See our Newspapers Page for Kearney.
TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Kearney ...
Looking for more information about Kearney? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.
In addition to the Tourism page for Kearney, there are neighboring communities that also have Tourism pages. More information about those communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for Kearney.
Adding Kearney to Our Gazetteer ...
We originally found mention of Kearney in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.
From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found for Kearney was in the document titled List of Post Offices from Cameron Blevins and Richard Helbock.<8>
From that list, the Kearney post office opened in 1875.
We also found Kearney on a map titled Rand McNally Map of Nebraska (1895).
For more details, see References and Mentions for Kearney.
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for Kearney: www.cityofkearney.org/
The official website for Buffalo County: www.buffalogov.org/
The official website for State of Nebraska: www.nebraska.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | If you're interested in how the shape of Nebraska's counties, including Buffalo, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. |
| <2> | The pronunciation we've provided is our attempt to give a phonetic pronunciation for Kearney. While it might not be exactly right, hopefully it will be close. If we have it wrong or there's a better way to pronounce the name, please contact us through our Feedback Page. |
| <3> | Population counts have been provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. For more detail, please visit our Census Page for Kearney. |
| <4> | The elevation is an estimate for the area around Kearney - it will be higher in some places and lower in others. |
| <5> | ZIP Codes have been created by the United States Postal Service (USPS) as a way of grouping addresses to make delivery more efficient. The boundaries of the ZIP Code can be changed, re-assigned, eliminated or overlapped with other ZIP Codes. So keep in mind that any given ZIP Code is only 'loosely' associated with a city (such as Kearney). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether Kearney or elsewhere, it's always best to check the website of the United States Postal Service (USPS). Our list of ZIP Codes for Kearney includes: 68845, 68847, 68848 & 68849. |
| <6> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <7> | The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required. |
| <8> | A copy of their list with background information can be found at: https://cblevins.github.io/us-post-offices/data-biography/ |