Culbertson, Nebraska
7 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1954 and the latest in 1979. It stands in Culbertson precinct. It lies in ZIP code area 69024. It stands on Frenchman Creek. The Survey maps it on the Culbertson quadrangle. 534 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 2,610 feet above sea level.
On record in Culbertson
Buildings and businesses the archive holds for this place. Each opens its own page, with the source record it came from.
On the National Register 1 record
St. Paul's Methodist Protestant Churchlisted 1979
Population over time
2 figuresCulbertson fell from 595 to 534 between 2010 and 2020. These are the recorded population figures Wikidata holds for this place, reached through the Geographic Names Information System number this page is keyed on rather than by name, so they belong to this place and not to another of the same name. Most are census counts, but not all are: an early figure may be a founding or settlement estimate, and an estimate published within five years of a census is left out. The change column is computed, and is left blank where more than 20 years separate a figure from the one before it, because a gap that long is not a change between two counts.
| Year | People | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 595 | |
| 2020 | 534 | -61 (-10%) |
Topographic sheets covering this place
5 surveys from 7 printed sheetsMatched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.
- 1954 USGS McCook quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1957 USGS McCook quadrangle1:250000
- 1958 USGS McCook quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1970 USGS Culbertson quadrangle1:24000
- 1979 USGS McCook quadrangle1:100000
Fires near this place
3 since 2003Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 3 fires within 5 miles of Culbertson between 2003 and 2014, burning about 6 acres in total. None started naturally. None was recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Reported cause | Fires |
|---|---|
| Railroad operations and maintenance | 1 |
| Debris and open burning | 1 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1 |
The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.
| Date | Cause | Size | Reported by | Name on the report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30 September 2010 | Debris and open burning | 1.0 acres | Nebraska Forest Service | not named |
| 20 March 2014 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 4.0 acres | Nebraska Forest Service | not named |
| 5 October 2003 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Nebraska Forest Service | not named |
Storms near this place
60 of 84 shownRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Culbertson in 84 storm reports between 1994 and 2025: 59 hail, 20 thunderstorm wind, 3 flash flood, 1 tornado. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.
| When | Event | Place named | Harm | What the report says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| August 2008 | Flash Flood | Culbertson | $250,000 | Hitchcock county commissioner estimated 5.25 of rain fell from overnight storms, with several roads in the extreme northeast part of Hitchcock county damaged and impassible. At approximately 11:45 am CDT, an earthen dam partially failed on the Hayes-Hitchcock county border, resulting in further flooding during the next 24 hours. |
| May 2007 | Flash Flood | Culbertson | $200,000 | Law enforcement reported that Frenchmen Creek was 25 feet wide at the river gauge. One home was flooded with some railroad damage between Palisade and Culbertson. Frenchman Creek near Palisade was running over bridge. County roads around Palisade have been washed out. 5.88 inches of rain produced flash flooding 4 SE of Palisade where roads are also washed out.||Frenchman Creek ultimately crested at 9.8 feet at Culbertson, which is 1.8 feet above flood stage (8.0 feet). The Frenchman was over flood stage for approximately 34 hours on May 30-31. This was the third highest crest reported in a nearly continuous period of record beginning in 1913. |
| July 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Culbertson | $31,000 | A barn at the fair grounds had extreme damage done to the siding and parts of the roof were blown off the building. The barn eventually collapsed. A power pole was also blown down. |
| April 2007 | Flash Flood | Culbertson | $25,000 | Rainfall of 3 to 5 inches fell Monday night (4/23) into Tuesday morning, resulting in county roads being washed out. Road 716 1 mile south of Culbertson was washed out with culverts overflowing. A bridge on Road 708, west of Hwy 17 about 10 miles south of Culbertson was washed out making the road impassible. Some county roads between Trenton and Culbertson under water. |
| August 2023 | Thunderstorm Wind | Culbertson | $21,000 | Report received of roof blown off home and barn door also torn off by a strong thunderstorm wind gust at location. Speed is estimated by damage indicators and time is estimated by radar. |
| August 2019 | Thunderstorm Wind | Culbertson | $10,000 | An irrigation pivot was reportedly overturned by thunderstorm wind gusts. |
| May 2023 | Flood | Culbertson | $5,000 | The Frenchman creek was reported to be out of its bank and flooding county multiple roads, although it seemingly never flooded over highway 6. |
| August 2019 | Thunderstorm Wind | Culbertson | $1,000 | A large tree was reportedly downed by thunderstorm wind gusts. |
| July 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Culbertson | $500 | The public also reported that a few shingles had been blown off the roof of the house. |
| May 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Culbertson | - | Visibility fell to 100 yards with these winds. |
| September 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Culbertson | - | Ambient weather site FVC. |
| May 2024 | Hail | Culbertson | - | Report of nickel size hail occurring in the town of Culbertson. |
| June 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Culbertson | - | Wind gust was reported by Ambient Weather site AW_2902D. |
| June 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Culbertson | - | Large tree was snapped in town. Lower branches of the tree were not healthy. |
| June 2024 | Hail | Culbertson | - | Quarter to golf ball size hail was reported by the public and a trained spotter. |
| June 2024 | Hail | Culbertson | - | Hail of 2.75 and 3.2 inches was measured by a storm chaser using calipers. |
| June 2023 | Thunderstorm Wind | Culbertson | - | Recorded gust at EW9525 mesonet site. |
| September 2023 | Hail | Culbertson | - | Trained spotter reported 1.75 inch diameter hail in Culbertson. |
| September 2023 | Hail | Culbertson | - | Public report of 1.5 inch diameter hail becoming heavy rain. |
| September 2023 | Hail | Culbertson | - | Trained spotter reported 1.5 inch diameter hail east of Culbertson. |
| July 2023 | Hail | Culbertson | - | Initial size estimate of 2 inches seems underestimated based on submitted photo. 4.25 inches will be the official measurement. |
| July 2023 | Hail | Culbertson | - | County EM reported 1.25 inch hail. |
| July 2023 | Hail | Culbertson | - | Spotter report of 1 inch hail and leaves torn off of trees. |
| July 2023 | Hail | Culbertson | - | Public report of 1.5 inch hail. |
| June 2022 | Hail | Culbertson | - | Quarter to egg sized hail reported. |
| June 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Culbertson | - | Reported via mesonet station EW9525. |
| June 2022 | Hail | Culbertson | - | Multiple reports of dime to egg sized hail reported in the town of Culbertson. |
| May 2021 | Hail | Culbertson | - | The hail ranged from pea to dime in size. |
| July 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Culbertson | - | Law enforcement reported estimated 74 mph wind gusts. |
| July 2020 | Hail | Culbertson | - | Citizen reported quarter sized hail that stripped corn crop of all its leaves. |
| July 2020 | Hail | Culbertson | - | Hail ranged from dime to penny in size. |
| July 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Culbertson | - | Wind gusts were estimated to be 55-60 MPH. Visibility was reduced to zero in the torrential rainfall. |
| May 2019 | Tornado (EFU) | Culbertson | - | Hitchcock County Emergency Management reported a tornado south of Culbertson, NE. The tornado crossed Highway 17 between mile markers 10 and 11. No damage was reported and no clear damage was found by NWS storm survey on May 18th, 2019. |
| May 2019 | Hail | Culbertson | - | Numerous hail stones ranging in size from 1.5 to 2 inches in diameter were observed during a severe thunderstorm. |
| May 2019 | Hail | Culbertson | - | Numerous hail from 1.5 to 2 inches in diameter. |
| October 2017 | Hail | Culbertson | - | Tea cup size hail fell, then the size decreased to quarters. |
| July 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Culbertson | - | Wind gusts were estimated to be close to 60 MPH. |
| June 2013 | Hail | Culbertson | - | Time estimated from Doppler radar. |
| September 2012 | Hail | Culbertson | - | Estimated the time of the report based on radar data. |
| July 2011 | Hail | Culbertson | - | Observer reported dime to half dollar sized hail along with heavy rain. |
| August 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Culbertson | - | Spotter estimated gusts to be 60 MPH. |
| August 2010 | Thunderstorm Wind | Culbertson | - | Pea sized hail was also occurring at the time of this report. |
| May 2008 | Hail | Culbertson | - | Spotters reported dime to quarter size hail that lasted approximately 15 minutes. |
| June 2008 | Hail | Culbertson | - | Nickel size hail and wind gusts of up to 40 mph were reported. |
| May 2003 | Hail | Culbertson | - | Reported by coop observer. |
| May 1999 | Thunderstorm Wind | Culbertson | - | Numerous 2 inch tree limbs broken by strong winds. |
| June 1999 | Thunderstorm Wind | Culbertson | - | Numerous large tree limbs broken by strong winds. |
| October 1998 | Hail | Culbertson | - | Hail piled up a few inches deep near town. |
| July 1998 | Hail | Culbertson | - | Also, reported 2.5 South of Culbertson. |
| August 2023 | Hail | Culbertson | - | no account filed |
| July 2020 | Hail | Culbertson | - | no account filed |
| August 2019 | Hail | Culbertson | - | no account filed |
| August 2019 | Hail | Culbertson | - | no account filed |
| August 2019 | Hail | Culbertson | - | no account filed |
| August 2019 | Hail | Culbertson | - | no account filed |
| August 2019 | Hail | Culbertson | - | no account filed |
| August 2019 | Thunderstorm Wind | Culbertson | - | no account filed |
| July 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | Culbertson | - | no account filed |
| August 2015 | Hail | Culbertson | - | no account filed |
| May 2013 | Hail | Culbertson | - | no account filed |
Nearest settlements
The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.
| Map | Place | Distance | Sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beverly | 8.0 miles | 7 | |
| Trenton | 10.0 miles | 7 | |
| Cornell (historical) | 15.1 miles | 7 | |
| Palisade | 16.5 miles | 8 | |
| Stratton | 21.3 miles | 7 |
Elsewhere
Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.
| Wikipedia article on Culbertson | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q920645 | The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0). |
Provenance
This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 828508. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.




