Plainview Cleanup and Restoration

Plainview Nebraska was first settled by William B. Chilvers around 1871. In 1874, after Christian Lerum made a suggestion, the area and the post office were renamed to Plainview. The town of Plainview was incorporated in April of 1886.  It took its name after Plainview Minnesota, from the scenic landscapes of the surrounding plains. When Plainview was platted in 1880, there were roughly 80 settlers, two churches (one Methodist and one Congregational), one doctor, one drug store, two blacksmiths, two general stores, one hotel, and two agricultural implement dealers. The first school was made out of sod and was organized in 1872. Plainview is a city in Pierce County. The population was 1,246 at the 2010 census. Pierce County is represented by the prefix 40 on the Nebraska license plate. For the 2023 school year, there are 2 public schools serving 341 students in Plainview, NE there is 1 private school, serving 36 private students. The Zion Lutheran School has about 36 students from grades K-6th. The other is Plainview Public School, where students from K-12 attend. Plainview promotes itself as the "Klown Kapital" of the world, boasting a Klown Festival every June and a Klown Doll Museum with more than 4,500 pieces on display. The city council is a four-person council with a mayor position. Council members serve four-year terms, with a rotating schedule of term limits. The mayor also recently appointed a city administrator. Plainview was used as the fictional "Hawthorne" where much of the 2013 film Nebraska takes place. Nestled along Highway 20 in Plainview, Nebraska, is one of the strangest little places! The Klown Doll Museum is home to more than 7,000 clown dolls donated since the late 1800s. Over the years, they've collected thousands of clown dolls from countless donors. In 2007, the building had an addition added and dedicated, and it is currently open six afternoons a week. One can find clowns of all kinds here, from the friendly and cute to the bizarre and unsettling.