Nelson, Nebraska
11 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1898 and the latest in 1985. It stands in Nelson precinct. It lies in ZIP code area 68961. The Survey maps it on the Nelson quadrangle. 456 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 1,699 feet above sea level.
On record in Nelson
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 2 records
Nelson Cemetery Walklisted 2002
Nuckolls County Courthouselisted 1990
Population over time
2 figuresNelson fell from 488 to 456 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 | 488 | |
| 2020 | 456 | -32 (-7%) |
Topographic sheets covering this place
6 surveys from 11 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.
- 1898 USGS Superior quadrangle1:125000, 3 printings
- 1955 USGS Grand Island quadrangle1:250000, 3 printings
- 1957 USGS Grand Island quadrangle1:250000
- 1958 USGS Grand Island quadrangle1:250000
- 1974 USGS Nelson quadrangle1:24000
- 1985 USGS Red Cloud quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
Fires near this place
13 since 2000Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 13 fires within 5 miles of Nelson between 2000 and 2020, burning about 744 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 |
|---|---|
| Debris and open burning | 7 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 2 |
| Smoking | 2 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 August 2008 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Nebraska Forest Service | not named |
| 7 June 2013 | Equipment and vehicle use | 1.0 acres | Nebraska Forest Service | not named |
| 20 May 2005 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1.5 acres | Nebraska Forest Service | not named |
| 9 April 2011 | Debris and open burning | 1.0 acres | Nebraska Forest Service | not named |
| 19 April 2008 | Debris and open burning | 3.0 acres | Nebraska Forest Service | not named |
| 8 March 2008 | Debris and open burning | 6.0 acres | Nebraska Forest Service | not named |
| 18 March 2011 | Debris and open burning | 20 acres | Nebraska Forest Service | not named |
| 6 February 2000 | Debris and open burning | 3.0 acres | Nebraska Forest Service | not named |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Storms near this place
60 of 67 shownRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Nelson in 67 storm reports between 1995 and 2025: 30 thunderstorm wind, 24 hail, 8 heavy rain, 4 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| June 2014 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | $1,000,000 | A line of thunderstorms with damaging wind gusts up to 80 MPH moved across the county. In Nelson, trees were reported down, including one that fell on a house and pickup, causing extensive damage to the house. At the fairgrounds, a tin roof was removed from a barn, and a couple its trusses were damaged. The roof of the arena was damaged and a camper was flipped on it side. |
| August 2020 | Hail | Nelson | $300,000 | Hail ranging in size from quarters to tennis balls was reported in and around Nelson. |
| June 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | $200,000 | Wind gusts estimated to be near 65 MPH resulted in tree damage in the area. A couple of grain bins and pieces of farm equipment were damaged. |
| August 1996 | Lightning | Nelson | $100,000 | no account filed |
| May 2006 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | $75,000 | no account filed |
| June 1998 | Hail | Nelson | $75,000 | no account filed |
| July 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | $75,000 | no account filed |
| May 1999 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | $50,000 | no account filed |
| May 2004 | Tornado (F0) | Nelson | $45,000 | A tornado set down south of Deweese and hit one farmstead on its 2 mile path. A shed and grain bin were damaged. Power poles were broken in the small tornadoes path. |
| August 2020 | Hail | Nelson | $25,000 | no account filed |
| June 2003 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | $25,000 | no account filed |
| July 2006 | Hail | Nelson | $15,000 | no account filed |
| September 2006 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | $15,000 | no account filed |
| May 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | $5,000 | Wind gusts estimated to be near 65 MPH resulted in a truck and livestock trailer being tipped over at the junction of Highway 136 and Highway 14. |
| June 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | $5,000 | A tree branch with a diameter of at least 10 inches fell across the road in Nelson. |
| November 2016 | Tornado (EF0) | Nelson | $3,000 | This tornado caused very minor damage along its short path through rural areas. The maximum wind speed was estimated to be 75 MPH. |
| August 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | - | A wind gust of 68 MPH was measured by a mesonet station located near Nelson. Local law enforcement reported tree damage and several downed power lines in the area. |
| August 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | - | A wind gust of 58 MPH was measured by a mesonet station located six miles northwest of Nelson. |
| May 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | - | Wind gusts were estimated to be near 65 MPH. |
| April 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | - | A wind gust of 67 MPH was measured by a mesonet station located one mile north of Nelson, and a wind gust of 64 MPH was measured by a mesonet station located seven miles west-southwest of Nelson. |
| June 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | - | A wind gust of 59 MPH was measured by a mesonet station located one mile north of Nelson. |
| June 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | - | A wind gust of 58 MPH was measured by a mesonet station located one mile north of Nelson. |
| July 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | - | A wind gust of 67 MPH was measured by a mesonet station located one mile north of Nelson. |
| July 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | - | Wind gusts estimated to be near 60 MPH resulted in area power outages. |
| June 2019 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | - | Wind gusts were estimated to be near 70 MPH. |
| June 2019 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | - | A 64 mph wind gust was measured by a mesonet station located 6 miles southwest of Nelson. |
| April 2019 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | - | A 59 MPH wind gust was measured by a mesonet station located 1 mile north of Nelson. |
| August 2019 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | - | A 71 MPH wind gust was measured by a mesonet station located 1 mile north of Nelson at 3:41 AM CDT, with a 73 MPH wind gust measured at 3:43 AM CDT. |
| August 2019 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | - | A 63 MPH wind gust was measured by a mesonet station located 5 miles north of Nelson. |
| September 2018 | Heavy Rain | Nelson | - | A multi-day rainfall total of 6.99 was reported 5 miles south-southeast of Deweese. |
| July 2017 | Heavy Rain | Nelson | - | A storm total rainfall amount of 3.16 inches was measured. |
| July 2017 | Heavy Rain | Nelson | - | A storm total rainfall amount of 3.83 inches was measured. |
| August 2016 | Heavy Rain | Nelson | - | Storm total rainfall of 3.81 inches...all of which fell between 9:30 p.m. and 5 a.m. CDT. |
| August 2014 | Hail | Nelson | - | One inch diameter hail began falling at 3:55 p.m. CDT, and by 3:58 p.m. CDT, hail diameter increased to 1.5 inches. |
| June 2012 | Heavy Rain | Nelson | - | Rain total of 3.08 inches for the past 24 hours. Report comes from the Nebraska Rainfall Assessment and Information Network. The rain began during the late afternoon on June 14th, with the last round of rain ending during the early morning hours of June 15th. |
| June 2012 | Heavy Rain | Nelson | - | Rain total of 3.28 of inches for the past 24 hours. The rain began during the late afternoon on June 14th, with the last round of rain ending during the early morning hours of June 15th. |
| May 2011 | Heavy Rain | Nelson | - | Storm total rainfall of 3.98 inches was reported by a NeRAIN observer. |
| May 2011 | Heavy Rain | Nelson | - | Storm total rainfall of 4.12 inches was reported by a NeRAIN observer. |
| June 2010 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | - | Wind gusts estimated at 60 mph. |
| May 2004 | Tornado (F0) | Nelson | - | A tornado was reported by spotters just northwest of Nelson and moving southeast at the time. |
| May 2004 | Tornado (F0) | Nelson | - | A tornado was reported just east of Nelson along the Elk Creek. |
| July 2023 | Hail | Nelson | - | no account filed |
| April 2022 | Hail | Nelson | - | no account filed |
| June 2022 | Hail | Nelson | - | no account filed |
| August 2021 | Hail | Nelson | - | no account filed |
| June 2019 | Hail | Nelson | - | no account filed |
| June 2018 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | - | no account filed |
| September 2018 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | - | no account filed |
| June 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | - | no account filed |
| August 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | - | no account filed |
| June 2010 | Hail | Nelson | - | no account filed |
| April 2009 | Hail | Nelson | - | no account filed |
| May 2008 | Hail | Nelson | - | no account filed |
| July 2008 | Hail | Nelson | - | no account filed |
| August 2007 | Hail | Nelson | - | no account filed |
| April 2005 | Hail | Nelson | - | no account filed |
| July 2005 | Hail | Nelson | - | no account filed |
| June 2005 | Thunderstorm Wind | Nelson | - | no account filed |
| June 2004 | Hail | Nelson | - | no account filed |
| May 2003 | Hail | Nelson | - | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smyrna | 5.7 miles | 12 | |
| Nora | 5.9 miles | 12 | |
| Abdal (historical) | 6.2 miles | 12 | |
| Angus | 7.3 miles | 12 | |
| Cadams | 7.4 miles | 12 | |
| Mount Clare | 8.1 miles | 11 | |
| Oak | 9.0 miles | 12 | |
| Oak Mill | 10.3 miles | 12 |
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 Nelson | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q952899 | 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 831585. 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.





