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Nebraska County
Pierce County, Nebraska
Pierce County's Elkhorn River valley and northeast Nebraska agricultural heritage - from the Elkhorn River's Pierce County corridor (the Elkhorn River flowing through Pierce County provides fishing, wildlife habitat, and scenic valley terrain in the rolling northeast Nebraska landscape) to Pierce County's productive hog and cattle farming economy (the county's agricultural identity is defined by large-scale hog confinement operations and cattle feeding that have made northeast Nebraska one of the most significant livestock production regions in the United States).
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What do you need to do?
Tell us your goal and we'll guide you step-by-step to the right office, forms, and official resources.
Office: Pierce County Emergency Manager – confirm current phone via piercecountyne.gov.
Dispatch: Pierce County 911 Center – Director Capt. Robert Newton.
Sheriff: Pierce County Sheriff’s Office – Pierce, NE 68767; Sheriff Rick Eberhardt; operates the Pierce County Jail, 111 W Court St #7, a medium-security local correctional facility.
City Police: Pierce Police Department – 106 South 1st Street, Pierce, NE 68767 | Non-emergency (402) 329-4400.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911. NAMING TRAP: “Pierce County Sheriff” and “Pierce County Library” searches frequently return results for Pierce County, Washington (Tacoma) or Pierce County, North Dakota – always confirm Nebraska context.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-20 and NE-13 serve Pierce, the county seat, in northeastern Nebraska along the North Fork of the Elkhorn River, part of the Norfolk Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Notes: Pierce County is named for President Franklin Pierce. Roughly 7,300-7,900 residents (2000 census figures) across a rural county entirely classified as rural (0% urban). German Lutheran families began settling the rich valley near what became Pierce as early as 1869.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Pierce County Courthouse – Pierce, NE 68767 | Clerk (402) 329-4225 | Assessor (402) 329-4215 | Treasurer (402) 329-6335; an elevator was completed at the courthouse in 2009.
Notes: Pierce County is genuinely home to Cuthills Vineyards, which opened December 17, 1994 as Nebraska’s first winery. St. John’s Lutheran Church, established 1871 just east of town, is one of the area’s oldest country churches. The Pierce Historical Society Museum, in Gilman Park, occupies a former Chicago & North Western Railway depot alongside a rural schoolhouse, blacksmith shop, and farm machinery building, displaying nearly 3,000 catalogued artifacts; a new complex building was added in 2000. The Pierce County Veterans Memorial was dedicated May 28, 1995.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Pierce County Veterans Services Officer – confirm current contact via piercecountyne.gov.
Federal: VA facilities accessible via an Omaha or Norfolk VA clinic; confirm current routing.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Lied Pierce Public Library – 207 West Court, Pierce, NE 68767 | (402) 329-6324; constructed in 2002.
Osmond Public Library – 412 North State Street, Osmond, NE 68765 | (402) 748-3382.
Plainview Carnegie Library – 102 Main Street, Plainview, NE 68769.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Cuthills Vineyards (Nebraska’s first winery), the Pierce Historical Society Museum, and Gilman Park are the county’s premier attractions.
Notes: The genuine distinction of hosting Nebraska’s first winery is a notable local fact.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Pierce County Assessor – (402) 329-4215; GIS mapping available via gWorks per the county website.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Great Pyrenees Rescue of NE – based in Pierce, NE 68767 | (402) 371-7637; a breed-specific rescue organization.
No dedicated general-purpose Pierce County animal shelter was confirmed – flagged honestly rather than smoothed over. NAMING TRAP: “Humane Society for Tacoma and Pierce County” refers to Pierce County, Washington – an entirely different jurisdiction. The Animal Shelter of Northeast Nebraska, in nearby Norfolk, (402) 750-4665, may serve as a regional option; confirm current service area.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Pierce County – confirm current contact via piercecountyne.gov.
NOTES: Pierce County is the seventh and final county in the tenth batch of the Nebraska v2 A+ sourced redo. The genuine distinction of hosting Cuthills Vineyards, Nebraska’s first winery, is a notable local fact, and a naming trap with Pierce County, Washington’s humane society is flagged for accuracy. All contact information above was sourced via web search as of early August 2026 and should be reconfirmed directly with the relevant office before a visit, deadline-sensitive filing, or emergency-adjacent decision.
About Pierce County
Pierce County is northeast Nebraska’s Elkhorn River livestock farming county – the productive agricultural land and significant hog and cattle operations define a rural community at the heart of Nebraska’s livestock production corridor.
Pierce (the county seat, population ~1,700) and Plainview (population ~1,200) serve the county’s agricultural communities in the Elkhorn River valley.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Pierce County Assessor at 111 W. Court Street, Pierce, NE 68767, phone 402-329-4045. NE property assessed at actual value.
Courts & Legal
Pierce County District Court at 111 W. Court Street, Pierce, NE 68767, phone 402-329-4034, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK
111 W. Court St., Pierce, NE 68767
(402) 329-4225
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Pierce County Court, Probate Division (probate case files – see Probate section above). County Clerk holds marriage, land and military records.
Local societies
No dedicated Pierce County genealogical society was confirmed in available directories.
Probate & Estate
Losing someone and having to deal with courts and paperwork at the same time is hard. This section won’t make that easier, but it should tell you what to expect, what it costs, and where to go – so at least you’re not walking in blind.
Where to go
Pierce County Court, Probate Division 111 West Court Street, Room 11, Pierce, NE 68767 (402) 329-6245
Pierce County was formed in 1859, named for President Franklin Pierce, in northeastern Nebraska, seated in Pierce.
Step 1: figure out which path applies
Nebraska adopted the Uniform Probate Code, codified as the Nebraska Probate Code (Neb. Rev. Stat. Chapter 30). In Nebraska, the COUNTY COURT has exclusive original jurisdiction over probate matters.
Small Estate Affidavit (Neb. Rev. Stat. § 30-24,125 for personal property; § 30-24,129 for real property) – as of a July 2024 statutory amendment, available when personal property does not exceed $100,000 and real property does not exceed $100,000 (both thresholds raised from $50,000). At least 30 days must have passed since death, and no application or petition for a personal representative may be pending. For personal property, the affiant presents a notarized affidavit directly to the institution holding the property along with a certified death certificate. For real property, the affidavit is filed with the register of deeds in the county where the property is located.
Informal Probate – the most common path for uncontested estates, handled by the county court registrar with minimal judicial involvement.
Formal Probate – required when there’s no will, when a will’s validity is contested, or when there’s disagreement over the personal representative or how assets should be distributed. Handled by a county judge.
Step 2: filing for formal or informal probate
File an application (informal) or petition (formal) with the County Court in the county where the decedent resided.
The court appoints the personal representative and issues Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration.
The personal representative publishes notice to creditors and gives direct notice to known creditors, who have a limited window from the date of first publication to file claims.
The personal representative inventories the estate’s assets and completes the required Probate Inventory Worksheet.
The personal representative completes and files any required Nebraska inheritance tax paperwork before the estate can be closed.
After debts, taxes, and expenses are paid, the personal representative distributes the remaining assets and closes the estate.
What it costs
Nebraska does not set statutory percentage-based fees; personal representative and attorney fees are generally based on reasonable compensation for time and services.
UNIQUE TO NEBRASKA: Nebraska is one of only six states with an inheritance tax, collected at the COUNTY level. Transfers to a surviving spouse are exempt; close relatives get reduced rates; more distant relatives and unrelated beneficiaries are taxed at higher rates.
No separate state estate tax.
Probate filings, estate administration, and guardianship matters are handled by the following office(s):
Public Safety & Arrests
Arrest records, inmate search, and law enforcement services are handled by the following office(s):
SHERIFF
111 W. Court St., Pierce, NE 68767
(402) 329-6536
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS
111 W. Court St., Pierce, NE 68767
(402) 329-4225
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
NE DHHS — Pierce
(402) 329-4793
Faith Regional Health — Norfolk
frhs.org (accessible; quality regional hospital)
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Pierce County Health Department – confirm current phone via piercecountyne.gov.
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Editorial Trust
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Pierce
Population: 7,100
Area: 574 sq mi
Established: 1870
Tier: 3
Public Records
TruthFinder
Search public records for Pierce County residents.
