Валентайн, Небраска: История и особенности города

Valentine is a city in Cherry County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 2,737 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Cherry County.

Valentine was founded in 1882. The Valentine post office was established on December 4, 1882. The Sioux City and Pacific Railroad was extended to that point and train service began on April 1, 1883. It was named for Edward K. Valentine, a Nebraska representative. As late as 1967, Valentine was split between two time zones. As described in one news report, "The mountain and central time zones meet at the center of Main Street, so an hour separates the two curb lines." According to the report, when clocks were required to be set back one hour for daylight saving time, Valentine's post office (which was in the central zone) split the difference and turned back its clock by only half an hour. Valentine participates in an annual re mailing program where thousands of pieces of mail flow into the local United States Post Office so that they can be re mailed with a special Valentine's Day postmark and verse. In 2007, National Geographic Adventure magazine included Valentine in its list of the best 100 adventure towns and cities. In the Lakota language, Valentine is known as Oínažiŋ or Mnináȟaȟa Otȟúŋwahe, meaning "station stopping place" or "water and waterfall city".

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has an area of 2.25 square miles (6 km2), of which 2.22 square miles (6 km2) is land and 0.03 square miles (0 km2) is water. Valentine is immediately north of the Niobrara River, on the northern edge of the Sandhills physiographic region. Merritt Reservoir, created by a dam on the Snake River, is about southwest of Valentine. Snake River Falls, Nebraska's largest waterfall, is on the Snake River between the reservoir (a few miles downstream) and Valentine. Smith Falls, Nebraska's tallest waterfall, is on a small stream tributary to the Niobrara River about 15 mile (24 km) east of Valentine in Smith Falls State Park. Just south of Valentine, a pair of bridges span the Niobrara River. The modern bridge carries traffic north and south along U. S. Route 83. Just to the west, an arched cantilever truss bridge named the Bryan Bridge is also open to through traffic. Designed by Josef Sorkin and built in 1932, the Bryan Bridge is made of steel and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. A large red neon heart (a star during the Christmas season) is on the pine covered Minnechaduza Creek canyon wall at the north end of Main Street.

As of the census of 2010, there were 2,737 people, 1,259 households, and 719 families living in the city. The population density was There were 1,430 housing units at an average density of The racial makeup of the city was 86.3% White, 0.1% African American, 9.1% Native American, 0.5% Asian, 0.7% from other races, and 3.3% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.6% of the population. There were 1,259 households, of which 24.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.6% were married couples living together, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.5% had a male householder with no wife present, and 42.9% were non families. 38.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 18.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.13 and the average family size was 2.78. The median age in the city was 46 years. 21.3% of residents were under the age of 18; 6.3% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 21.2% were from 25 to 44; 27.2% were from 45 to 64; and 24% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 47.2% male and 52.8% female.

In 2011/2012, an independent feature film, The Aviation Cocktail, had its principal photography in Valentine.