North Platte, Nebraska
North Platte, Nebraska
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North Platte, Nebraska

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2300971

North Platte, Nebraska

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North Platte, Nebraska

North Platte is a city in and the county seat of Lincoln County, Nebraska, United States. It is located in the west-central part of the state, along Interstate 80, at the confluence of the North and South Platte Rivers forming the Platte River. The population was 23,390 at the 2020 census, making it the 11th most populous city in Nebraska.

North Platte is a railroad town; Union Pacific Railroad's large Bailey Yard is located within the city. Today, North Platte is served only by freight trains, but during World War II the city was known for the North Platte Canteen, a volunteer organization serving food to millions of traveling soldiers.

North Platte is the principal city of the North Platte Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes Lincoln, Logan, and McPherson counties.

North Platte was established in 1866 when the Union Pacific Railroad was extended to that point. It derives its name from the North Platte River.

North Platte was the western terminus of the Union Pacific Railway from December 1866 until the next section to Ogallala was opened the following year. Even though Congress had authorized the building of the Transcontinental Railroad in 1862, it had been extended only as far as Fremont, Nebraska by the end of the 1865 construction season. The 275-mile (443 km) section from Fremont to North Platte was completed in 1866.

In the 1880s, Buffalo Bill Cody established his ranch, known as Scout's Rest Ranch, just north of town. It is now a National Historic Landmark.

On July 13, 1929, a black man shot and killed a white police officer. The black man reportedly took his own life, being trapped by a mob. This led to the formation of white mobs combing the city, and ordering black residents to leave North Platte. Fearing mob violence, most of North Platte's black residents fled.

The North Platte Canteen was one of the largest volunteer efforts of World War II, originating in 1941. Tens of thousands of volunteers from North Platte and surrounding towns met the troop trains passing through North Platte, offering coffee, sandwiches, dessert, and hospitality to nearly seven million servicemen.

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