Johnson County is a

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the southwe ...

. As of the

2020 United States Census The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to of ...

, the population was 5,290. Its

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

Tecumseh Tecumseh ( ; October 5, 1813) was a Shawnee chief and warrior who promoted resistance to the expansion of the United States onto Native American lands. A persuasive orator, Tecumseh traveled widely, forming a Native American confederacy and ...

. The county was formed in 1855, and was organized in 1857. It was named after

Richard Mentor Johnson Richard Mentor Johnson (October 17, 1780 – November 19, 1850) was an American lawyer, military officer and politician who served as the ninth vice president of the United States, serving from 1837 to 1841 under President Martin Van Buren ...

, who was Vice President of the United States from 1837 to 1841. In the Nebraska license plate system, Johnson County is represented by the prefix 57 (it had the fifty-seventh-largest number of vehicles registered in the county when the license plate system was established in 1922).

Geography

The terrain of Johnson County consists of low rolling hills whose flattened tops are mostly used for agriculture. The Big Nemaha River flows southeastward through the central part of the county. The county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.2%) is water. It is the fourth-smallest county in Nebraska by area.

Major highways

U.S. Highway 136 U.S. Route 136 is an east-west U.S. highway that is a spur route of U.S. Route 36. It runs from Edison, Nebraska, at U.S. Route 6 and U.S. Route 34 to the Interstate 74/Interstate 465 interchange in Speedway, Indiana. This is a distance of . U ...

Nebraska Highway 41 Nebraska Highway 41 is a highway in Nebraska. It runs for a length of in a west-to-east direction. Its western terminus is in Clay Center at an intersection with Nebraska Highway 14 and Nebraska Spur 18D. Its eastern terminus is at an interse ...

Nebraska Highway 50 Nebraska Highway 50 (N-50) is a north–south highway in the state of Nebraska. The southern terminus is at the Nebraska-Kansas border near Du Bois. The northern terminus is in the Millard neighborhood of Omaha at an intersection with U.S. Hi ...

Nebraska Highway 62 Nebraska Highway 62 is a highway in southeastern Nebraska. It is a discontinuous highway with two segments which combine for a length of . The west terminus of the western segment of Nebraska Highway 62 is at Nebraska Highway 50 south of Tecumse ...

Adjacent counties

* Otoe County - north * Nemaha County - east * Pawnee County - south * Gage County - west * Lancaster County - northwest

Demographics

As of the

2000 United States Census The United States census of 2000, conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2 percent over the 248,709,873 people enumerated during the 1990 ce ...

, there were 4,488 people, 1,887 households, and 1,254 families in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...

was 12 people per square mile (5/km²). There were 2,116 housing units at an average density of 6 per square mile (2/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 93.54%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

, 0.11%

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have o ...

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.40% Native American, 2.67%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 0.02%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe the original p ...

, 1.96% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 1.29% from two or more races. 2.87% of the population were

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race. There were 1,887 households, out of which 29.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.10% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 5.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.50% were non-families. 29.90% of all households were made up of individuals, and 17.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.92. The county population contained 24.20% under the age of 18, 5.70% from 18 to 24, 24.40% from 25 to 44, 23.60% from 45 to 64, and 22.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 91.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.80 males. The median income for a household in the county was $32,460, and the median income for a family was $41,000. Males had a median income of $26,282 versus $20,799 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the county was $16,437. About 6.70% of families and 8.90% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including 10.50% of those under age 18 and 11.10% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

City

(county seat)

Villages

Cook Cook or The Cook may refer to: Food preparation * Cooking, the preparation of food * Cook (domestic worker), a household staff member who prepares food * Cook (professional), an individual who prepares food for consumption in the food industry * ...

* Crab Orchard * Elk Creek * Sterling

Unincorporated communities

Saint Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of ...

* Vesta

Politics

Johnson County voters have been reliably Republican for decades. In no national election since 1964 has the county selected a Democratic Party candidate (as of 2020).

References

{{authority control 1857 establishments in Nebraska Territory Populated places established in 1857