Fillmore County, Nebraska

Fillmore County is a county in Nebraska, United States, on the fertile plains south of the Platte Valley. It had a population of 5,551 at the 2020 census and covers 577 square miles (1,490 km2), of which 575 square miles are land and 1.2 square miles are water, centred near 40°31′N 97°36′W.

Geneva is the county seat, and its postal code is 68361. The county has one city and seven villages, plus a handful of unincorporated crossroads communities. Fillmore County sits in the Central time zone and carries FIPS code 31059.

Towns & Villages in Fillmore County

Fillmore County has eight incorporated places — one city and seven villages — along with a few small unincorporated communities that never grew past a grain elevator or a rail siding. The table below lists Type as City · seat, Village, or Unincorp. for places with no municipal government.

Exeter and Fairmont share a single consolidated township (Exeter-Fairmont), a merger carried over from the county’s original 16-township survey grid. No confusable place names or county-line straddlers occur elsewhere in Fillmore County.

Townships

Fillmore County is divided into 15 civil townships, most named for early settlers or for the villages that grew up inside them. Verified 2020 township-level population figures are not published in a form this page can cite, so the Pop. column is omitted rather than guessed.

ZIP Codes

• 68361 — Geneva (also serves the surrounding unincorporated county)
• 68351 — Exeter
• 68354 — Fairmont
• 68365 — Grafton
• 68406 — Milligan
• 68416 — Ohiowa
• 68436 — Shickley
• 68444 — Strang

Every incorporated place in Fillmore County keeps its own ZIP code and post office; the unincorporated communities of Bixby, Carlisle and Martland have no post office of their own and are served by the ZIP of the nearest village.

Geography

Fillmore County lies on the gently rolling loess plains of south-central Nebraska, drained by the West Fork Big Blue River and several of its tributary creeks. Farmland covers nearly all of the county’s 575 square miles of land, with the 1.2 square miles of water made up of small streams and farm ponds rather than any single lake.

The county borders York County to the north, Seward County to the northeast, Saline County to the east, Thayer County to the south, Clay County to the west, and Hamilton County to the northwest.

Demographics

Fillmore County had 5,551 residents at the 2020 census. Geneva, with 2,136 people, is by far the county’s largest community, followed at some distance by Exeter and Fairmont. Fillmore County’s median household income runs below the Nebraska median of $74,590, reflecting the county’s heavily agricultural, low-density economy. At 5,551 people across 575 square miles of land, the county has a density of roughly 9.7 people per square mile.

Economy & Local Life

Row-crop and livestock farming — corn, soybeans and cattle — anchors Fillmore County’s economy, supplemented by grain handling, agricultural equipment dealers and county-seat services in Geneva. Fillmore Central Public Schools serves the Geneva area, while Exeter-Milligan Public Schools serves the county’s northeastern communities. Fillmore County Fair, held each summer in Geneva, is the county’s largest annual community event.

History

The Nebraska Territorial Legislature established Fillmore County and defined its boundaries in 1856, naming it for Millard Fillmore, the thirteenth president of the United States, who had left office three years earlier. Geneva, the county seat, was originally platted as Henry before residents renamed it in 1872 at the suggestion of a settler’s daughter who wanted the town named after her family’s former home, Geneva, Illinois. Like much of south-central Nebraska, the county grew quickly along the railroads through the 1870s, then endured a mid-decade depression and grasshopper infestation that slowed settlement before recovery took hold.

Getting There

U.S. Route 81 runs north–south through the eastern part of Fillmore County, and Nebraska Highway 41 crosses it east–west through Geneva, linking the county to the regional highway grid.

• York — 20 miles north
• Lincoln — 55 miles east
• Hastings — 35 miles west
• Beatrice — 40 miles southeast

The nearest commercial airport is Lincoln Airport, roughly an hour’s drive east of Geneva.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Fillmore County, Nebraska?
It sits in south-central Nebraska, between York and Thayer counties, on the plains drained by the West Fork Big Blue River.

What is the population of Fillmore County?
Fillmore County had a population of 5,551 at the 2020 census.

How big is Fillmore County?
The county covers 577 square miles (1,490 km2), of which 575 square miles are land.

What is the Fillmore County seat?
Geneva is the county seat.

How many towns are in Fillmore County?
The county has one city, Geneva, and seven villages: Exeter, Fairmont, Grafton, Milligan, Ohiowa, Shickley and Strang.

What ZIP codes are in Fillmore County?
Fillmore County’s ZIP codes are 68361 (Geneva), 68351 (Exeter), 68354 (Fairmont), 68365 (Grafton), 68406 (Milligan), 68416 (Ohiowa), 68436 (Shickley) and 68444 (Strang).

How did Fillmore County get its name?
It was named for Millard Fillmore, the thirteenth U.S. president, when the Nebraska Territorial Legislature organized the county in 1856.

More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Nebraska.