McCook’s post office opened in 1882, and 29% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 70% of U.S. towns · #19 of 57 in Nebraska. What drives it
6 places in town are on the National Register, among them the Senator George William Norris House, a National Historic Landmark. Below: 11 old photos and papers, maps from 1889 on, and the census since 1890.
The McCook post office opened in 1882, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Fairview (1879), opened inside today’s city and later closed.
First census: 2,346 in 18902020 census: 7,446144 years
How did McCook get its name?
McCook was named in honor of Alexander McDowell McCook, a brigadier general in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
How historic is McCook?
B+
More historic than 70% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, McCook is more historic than 70% of U.S. towns, #19 of 57 in Nebraska. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of McCook’s overall grade.
Nebraska towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Nebraska town has 16.3 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so McCook’s 10.9 sits near the middle of its state (52% of Nebraska towns have fewer) while its 8 historic buildings outnumber those of 74% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B− to A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.7 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
Founding year: the first post office (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about McCook’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Every building
McCook, building by building, 1889–1921
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
McCook was platted in 1882 when the Burlington and Missouri River Railroad was extended to that point. It was named in honor of Alexander McDowell McCook, a brigadier general in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
On May 17, 2019, a large EF2 tornado tore through parts of McCook, Nebraska. It destroyed a farmhouse, tearing off the roof and completely demolishing the garage. The storm formed around 4:30 p.m. Central Time and quickly developed into a large, wedge tornado. There were no fatalities or severe injuries. The storm was called the Perry EF2, originally forming in Perry, Nebraska.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
The McCook post office opened in 1882, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does McCook rank for history?
McCook is more historic than 70% of U.S. towns, #19 of 57 in Nebraska. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in McCook?
6 listings: 6 buildings, among them the Senator George William Norris House (a National Historic Landmark since 1967). 8 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in McCook?
29% of McCook’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.7 points), against a typical 18% for a Nebraska town; the median home was built in 1957.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From Wikimedia Commons (11), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (6), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
★ Landmark
1981
1981
1981
1981
1981
1981
1981
1981
