KEARNEY, a city of Nebraska, U.S.A., 15om. west of Lin coln and just north of the Platte river, at an altitude of 2,146ft.; the county seat of Buffalo county. It is on the Lincoln highway; is served by the Burlington and the Union Pacific railways; and has an aviation field. The population was 7,702 in 1920 (92% native white), and was 8,575 by the Federal census of 1930. It is the seat of the State industrial school for boys, the State tuberculosis hos pital, a State teachers' college and the "1733 Amusement Park" (including a tourist camp) so called because it is 1,733m. from both Boston and San Francisco by highway. The city has a sub stantial wholesale trade, ships great quantities of wheat and other grain and has sundry manufacturing industries. Kearney takes its name from old Ft. Kearney (established 1848), which stood across the river, 6m. south-east of the present city, at the junction of the old trails from Kansas City and from Omaha. Here in
1861 the post office of Kearney City was established. Around the fort grew up in the '5os a settlement called Dobey Town (from adobe), which was one of the most important towns west of the Missouri in the days of the freighting caravans across the prairies. It was the scene of desperate fighting and hair-raising adventures with the Indians, especially during the construction of the Union Pacific railroad, of which every mile through this territory was surveyed and built under military protection. After the railroad was built, north of the river, Dobey Town dwindled, and in 1871 both the town-site and the fort were abandoned. The site of the present city was settled about 1872, and the city was incor porated and made the county seat in 1874. Fort and city were named after Gen. Stephen W. Kearny and the name was spelled correctly at first, without the second "e."