Gretna, Nebraska
Encyclopedia
Gretna is a city in Sarpy County
Sarpy County, Nebraska
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 122,595 people, 43,426 households, and 33,220 families residing in the county. The population density was 510 people per square mile . There were 44,981 housing units at an average density of 187 per square mile...

, Nebraska
Nebraska
Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....

, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. The population was 2,355 at the 2000 census
United States Census, 2000
The Twenty-second United States Census, known as Census 2000 and conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2% over the 248,709,873 persons enumerated during the 1990 Census...

. In 2008, its population was estimated to be 6,572. Gretna has the fastest rate of growth of any Nebraska city since 2000.

History

Gretna started shortly after the Burlington Railroad built a short line between Omaha and Ashland in the summer of 1886. Advent of the village of Gretna on this new laid rail line was the cue for the exit of the nearby trading post of Forest City, which had existed since 1856. In its day, Forest City, located 2.5 miles southwest of where Gretna now stands, was a flourishing and busy place, but it was doomed by the rail road which passed it by. The only marker that exists today to show the site of old Forest City is the cemetery (Holy Sepulcher) which is located a little the east of what was the center of activity in the settlement. Names that were prominent in the beginnings of Forest City were the families of William Langdon, John Thomas and John Conner.

The Lincoln Land Company, recognizing the potential of the site, surveyed and plotted the town site of Gretna in 1887. The village was incorporated by July 10, 1889. The name suggests Scotland's Gretna Green, the ancestral county of some of the earliest settlers.

Geography

Gretna is located at 41°8′20"N 96°14′42"W (41.138898, -96.244947).

According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...

, the city has a total area of 1.2 square miles (3.1 km²), all land.

The nearest hospitals are Lakeside Hospital (9.5 miles away), located in Omaha
Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha is the largest city in the state of Nebraska, United States, and is the county seat of Douglas County. It is located in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about 20 miles north of the mouth of the Platte River...

, or Midlands Hospital in Papillion
Papillion, Nebraska
Papillion is a city in Sarpy County in the U.S. state of Nebraska. It is a suburb to the southwest of neighboring Omaha, and is the county seat of Sarpy County. The population of Papillion was 18,894 at the 2010 census. In 2009, Papillion was named the #3 best place to live in the United States by...

 (11.4 miles). Papillion is also the location of the county courthouse.

Demographics

As of the census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

of 2000, there were 2,355 people, 889 households, and 642 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...

 was 1,996.2 people per square mile (770.6/km²). There were 917 housing units at an average density of 777.3 per square mile (300.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 98.64% White, 0.04% African American, 0.42% Native American, 0.42% Asian, 0.17% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, and 0.30% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.15% of the population.

There were 889 households out of which 38.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.0% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...

 living together, 11.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.7% were non-families. 23.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.07.

In the city the population was spread out with 28.1% under the age of 18, 8.3% from 18 to 24, 28.6% from 25 to 44, 21.9% from 45 to 64, and 13.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 89.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.2 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $50,112, and the median income for a family was $56,410. Males had a median income of $37,868 versus $27,569 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...

 for the city was $21,729. About 2.3% of families and 3.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.4% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.

External links

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