Dixon County

General

Population: 5,545
Land area (sq. mi.): 439.85
Population per square mile: 4.2

Race

White: 89.0%
African American: 0.4%
American Indian: 1.6%
Asian: 0.4%
Hispanic: 8.4%
Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander: 0.0%

Age

0-17: 25.2%
18-64: 53.4%
65+: 21.4%

Socioeconomics

Personal income per capita: $54,144
% of Population in Poverty: 7.9%
# of Housing Units: 1,048
Owner-occupied rate: 78.4%
Median home price: $119,150

Technology

Access to broadband (100 Mbps via fiber or cable modem): 84.5%

Sources: National Association of Realtors, Nebraska Library Commission, U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. Census Bureau

Employment, Schools, and Child Care

Unemployment rate: 1.6% (as of September 2022)

County Employment Website: https://dixoncountyne.gov/webpages/links/public_notices.html

High school graduate or higher: 89.9%

Bachelor's degree or higher: 20.7%

School Districts: Allen Consolidated Schools, Hartington Newcastle Public Schools, Emerson-Hubbard Public Schools, Laural-Concord-Coleridge School, Ponca Public Schools, Wakefield Public Schools, Wayne Community Schools, Wynot Public Schools 

Countywide child care capacity: 4 providers; 102 children

Find child care: For a list of child care providers in your zip code, visit Nebraska DHHS or the Nebraska Resource and Referral System.

Dixon County Economy

Annual Gross Domestic Product (2020): $318,920,000

Ag. Producers (Cattle): 215

Ag. Producers (Crop): 83

Grain Co-ops and Purchasers: AGP, Aurora Cooperative, CHS, CPI, Central Valley Ag, Fairfield Non-Stock Co-op, Farmers Coop, Gottsch Cattle Company, KAAPA Ethanol, Pillen Family Farms

Local Grain Market: Click for today's grain prices in Dixon County

Electricity Providers: Cedar-Knox PPD, City of Emerson, City of Wakefield, Northeast Power

Rail-served Communities: Allen, Dixon, Waterbury

Sources: National Agricultural Statistics Service (USDA), Nebraska Cooperative Council, Nebraska Coordinating Commission for Postsecondary Education, Nebraska Department of Transportation, Nebraska Office of the CIO, Nebraska Power Review Board, U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Census Bureau

2022 Levies and Valuation

County levy rate: $0.2394 per $100 of taxable valuation

County property taxes levied: $3,535,491

Total local government property taxes levied: $20,680,848

Total countywide taxable valuation: $1,476,706,058

Click here for all levy rates in Dixon County

County Levy and Taxation Laws

Levy limits

Since 1996, counties and other political subdivisions have been subject to the levy limits listed in Neb. Rev. Stat. § 77-3442 and Neb. Rev. Stat. § 77-3443.

Statutes and regulations

Nebraska Revised Statutes (Chapter 77)

Nebraska Administrative Code (Title 350)

Local tax reductions, exemptions, and credits:

Neb. Rev. Stat. § 76-902(5)(a) (Deed "stamp tax" exemption): "The [stamp tax] shall not apply to: ... (5)(a) Deeds between spouses, between ex-spouses for the purpose of conveying any rights to property acquired or held during the marriage, or between parent and child, without actual consideration therefor."

Neb. Rev. Stat. § 77-201(2) (Valuation of agricultural land and horticultural land): "Agricultural land and horticultural land as defined in section 77-1359 shall constitute a separate and distinct class of property for purposes of property taxation, shall be subject to taxation, unless expressly exempt from taxation, and shall be valued at seventy-five percent of its actual value, except that for school district taxes levied to pay the principal and interest on bonds that are approved by a vote of the people on or after January 1, 2022, such land shall be valued at fifty percent of its actual value."

Neb. Rev. Stat. § 77-6703(1) (Tax credit for school district taxes paid): "(1) For taxable years beginning or deemed to begin on or after January 1, 2020, under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, there shall be allowed to each eligible taxpayer a refundable credit against the income tax imposed by the Nebraska Revenue Act of 1967 or against the franchise tax imposed by sections 77-3801 to 77-3807. The credit shall be equal to the credit percentage for the taxable year, as set by the department under subsection (2) of this section, multiplied by the amount of school district taxes paid by the eligible taxpayer during such taxable year."

Sources: Nebraska Department of Revenue

State Senator: Joni Albrecht (District 17)
Committees: Agriculture, Business and Labor, Government, Military and Veterans Affairs

Map and statistics for Legislative District 17

State Senator: Barry DeKay (District 40)
Committees: Agriculture, Business and Labor, Government, Military and Veterans Affairs

Map and statistics for Legislative District 40

Map of all districts in the Nebraska Unicameral Legislature

Dixon County History

Number of Registered Historic Places: 6

Year Founded: 1856

Etymology: Dixon family (early Nebraska settlers)

Dixon County may be the only county in Nebraska that can claim a volcano as part of its history. It may not have been a Mt. Vesuvius, but the phenomenon of nature that occurred prior to the time the county was organized certainly generated as much attention from those who had settled in this area.

As the story goes, the waters of the Missouri River once undermined a large section of bluff along its south bank. As the bluff slid into the river, a chemical reaction occurred between the earth's minerals and the water and for days a column of fire, smoke and fumes rose toward the sky. As rumors began to circulate that a volcano had erupted, a steam-powered excursion boat from Sioux City would bring sightseers up the river at regular intervals to view this anomaly.

The original boundaries of Dixon County were created in 1856 and were redefined again in 1858 and 1860. At the time it was established, the name Dixon was chosen in honor of an early pioneer who had settled in this area. Ponca, said by some to be the fourth-oldest community in Nebraska, has served as the county seat since the days when the county was first organized.

Members of the Ponca Indian tribe inhabited this area long before the first settlers arrived. That changed the year the county's boundaries were created, as a group of 11 Easterners settled along the creek banks that would eventually become the town of Ponca. Despite a hand-drawn sign that proclaimed the area to be Indian territory, the settlers staked out claims and built sod shanties. In August of that same year, Frank West arrived from Sioux City. West had a reputation for being a great fighter and seeing that same hand-drawn sign, he kicked it to the ground. West would soon begin platting the first 24 blocks of the townsite that he daringly named Ponca, after the tribe.

The county's original courthouse was built in 1883, 27 years after West founded Ponca. A three-story brick addition was added in 1938.

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License Plate Number: 35

Time Zone: Central

Zoned County: No

Number of Veterans: 359

Voter Turnout (2022): 63.98%

Emergency Mgt. Planning, Exercise and Training (PET) Region: Northeast

Number of County-Owned Bridges: 114

Number of County-Owned Dams: 2

State Lands (acres): Buckskin Hills WMA (340), Elk Point Bend WMA (626.84), Haskell Ag Lab (480), Mulberry Bend WMA (6), Ponca State Park (2,123.63), Powder Creek WMA (467)

Federal Lands (acres): Mulberry Bend Overlook (31)

Sources: Nebraska Department of Transportation, Nebraska Emergency Management Agency, Nebraska Game & Parks Commission, Nebraska Legislature, Nebraska Office of the CIO, Nebraska Secretary of State, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (eCFR)