Kearney County is named for Fort Kearney, which was named for Stephen Watts Kearney or was named for Philip Kearney, who was a general.
Surrounding County Courthouses:
N – Buffalo County
E – Adams County
S – Franklin County
W – Phelps County
Created: January 10, 1860 
County Seat:
Minden 1860 – present
County Courthouse – Minden
Location: 424 North Colorado Avenue / East 4th Street
Built: 1906 – 1907
Style: Beaux Arts
Architect: George A Berlinghof of Beatrice
Contractor: Shaul and Assenmacher of Seneca, Kansas
Description: The building faces west and is a three story gray stone and concrete structure. The building is located on the landscaped grounds of the Courthouse Square in the center of Minden. The first story has horizontal smooth, rusticated stone. On the west and east sides, the central entrance has an arched widow above on the second story and rises to a pediment at the roof line. On the north and south sides, there are three arches for the central entrances. On each corner of the building there is a white colored flat dome. On the center of the roof is a large white colored dome rising to a white colored cupola at the top. The building is located in Courthouse Square. In the interior, the sole staircase is located at the center of the west facade directly across from the entry at the ground level. A large assembly room and library were also on the ground floor, on the east side.The courtroom is located on the east side of the third story. The building houses the District Court and County Court of the 10th Judicial District.
See: The architect, George A Berlinghof of Beatrice, designed courthouses in Colfax County, Franklin County, Greeley County, Howard County, Lincoln County, Nemaha County, Seward County and Thayer County; and in Iowa in Crawford County.
See: National Register of Historic Places – Kearney County Courthouse
See: The 10th Judicial District includes Adams County, Clay County, Franklin County, Harlan County, Nuckolls County, Phelps County and Webster County.
History: The county was created in 1860 and Lowell was selected as the county seat in 1872 when the county was organized. The first courthouse was a brick structure built in 1872. The county seat was moved to Minden in 1878 and the second courthouse was a modest frame structure built in 1878. The third courthouse was built on the Courthouse Square in 1879 to 1880. The fourth and present courthouse was constructed in 1906 to 1907 at a cost of $78,000.
County Courthouse – Minden
Photos taken 2010