Why visit Sidney
Townapedia lists 5 museums and landmarks, 7 parks and trails, 25 places to eat, 11 places to stay and 1 attraction in and around town.
Highlights include Fox Theatre, Deadwood Draw, Sidney Carnegie Library and Living Memorial Gardens.
July is the warmest month, with average highs of 90°F; January lows average 14°F.
Weather in Sidney
Forecast from the National Weather Service. Full forecast
About Sidney
Sidney is a city in and the county seat of Cheyenne County, Nebraska, United States. The city is nine miles (14 km) north of the Colorado state line. The population was 6,410 at the 2020 census.
From the Wikipedia article Sidney, Nebraska (this version), under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Things to do1
Museums and landmarks5
Deadwood Draw
Monument and historic site · National Register of Historic Places · 2.7 mi
Valley, part of the Sidney-Black Hills Trail near Sidney, Nebraska
Sidney Carnegie Library
Monument and historic site · National Register of Historic Places · 0.8 mi
Carnegie library in Sidney, Nebraska
Sidney Historic Business District
Monument and historic site · National Register of Historic Places · 0.8 mi
Historic district in Sidney, Nebraska
Parks, trails and playgrounds7
Restaurants and cafes25
13 more on the map.
History
The city was named for Sidney Dillon, president of the Union Pacific Railroad. It was founded in 1867 by the Union Pacific and grew up around the military base of Fort Sidney (also known as Sidney Barracks), where soldiers were stationed to guard the transcontinental railroad against potential Native American attacks.
The town became the southern terminus of the Sidney Black Hills Stage Road which used Clarke's Bridge (near Bridgeport, Nebraska) to allow military and civilian traffic to reach Fort Robinson, Red Cloud Agency, Spotted Tail Agency, Custer, South Dakota, and Deadwood, South Dakota in the late 1870s and 1880s.
When the railroad reached Sidney, it was the end of a sub-division of the rail line and played host to a roundhouse, repair facilities, and a railroad hotel for passengers.
Sidney is home to one of the Old West's Boot Hill cemeteries; many of those interred there were soldiers from the fort.
The former headquarters for Cabela's was located in Sidney until 2017, when Cabela’s was acquired by Bass Pro Shops. Approximately 2,000 jobs were eliminated, while about 120 were relocated to the Bass Pro Shops headquarters in Springfield, Missouri.
From the History section of Sidney, Nebraska on Wikipedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Where to stay11
Churches and places of worship16
Christ Episcopal Church
Church · Episcopal · National Register of Historic Places · 0.7 mi
Shopping5
Gas and EV charging8
Schools, colleges and libraries9
Healthcare3
Map of Sidney
90 places. The map loads OpenStreetMap tiles when you open it.
Climate by month
Monthly table
| Month | High | Low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 42°F | 14°F | 0.1 in |
| Feb | 44°F | 15°F | 0.2 in |
| Mar | 54°F | 23°F | 0.6 in |
| Apr | 61°F | 30°F | 1.7 in |
| May | 70°F | 40°F | 2.9 in |
| Jun | 82°F | 51°F | 3.1 in |
| Jul | 90°F | 57°F | 2.1 in |
| Aug | 88°F | 55°F | 2.0 in |
| Sep | 79°F | 46°F | 1.3 in |
| Oct | 64°F | 32°F | 1.0 in |
| Nov | 51°F | 21°F | 0.5 in |
| Dec | 42°F | 14°F | 0.2 in |
U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020 for Sidney Muni Ap 72561 (2 mi away), NOAA NCEI.
People and cost of living
American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020-2024, U.S. Census Bureau. Estimates have margins of error, larger for small towns.
Disaster history
Cheyenne County has had 9 federal disaster declarations since 2000, most often for severe storms.
- 2024-05-24: Severe Winter Storm And Straight-Line Winds (Severe Storm)
- 2020-04-04: Covid-19 Pandemic (Biological)
- 2020-03-13: Covid-19 (Biological)
- 2019-03-21: Severe Winter Storm, Straight-Line Winds, And Flooding (Flood)
- 2018-06-29: Severe Winter Storm And Straight-Line Winds (Snowstorm)
- 2010-07-15: Severe Storms And Flooding (Severe Storm)
OpenFEMA disaster declarations summaries.
Getting there and nearby towns
Lloyd W. Carr Field (SNY) is the nearest airport with scheduled flights listed in OpenStreetMap, 2 miles away.
- Dalton 19 mi north, about 31 min by car
- Chappell 26 mi east, about 42 min by car
- Fleming 32 mi south, about 51 min by car
- Ovid 33 mi east, about 52 min by car
- Kimball 36 mi west, about 58 min by car
- Sterling 37 mi south, about 1 h by car
- Bridgeport 37 mi north, about 1 h by car
- Julesburg 38 mi east, about 1 h by car
- Oshkosh 38 mi northeast, about 1 h by car
- Holyoke 52 mi southeast, about 1 h 30 min by car
Drive times are estimates from straight-line distance, not routes.
Local news
Headlines from INDB, the NEMICO news database.
Reviews, tips and questions
Loading what members have shared...
Sources and licences
- NCES EDGE (Public domain): public schools
- NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020 (Public domain): climate by month
- OpenFEMA (Public domain): disaster declarations
- OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL 1.0): places, airports, map data
- U.S. Census Bureau (Public domain): population, income, housing, education, commute
- Wikidata (CC0 1.0): elevation, founding date, time zone, website, landmarks and historic places
- Wikimedia Commons (see each image): photos
- Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0): overview and history text
Photo credits
- Cheyenne County Chamber 580, Chris Light, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Christ Episcopal Sidney NE, Smallbones, CC0
- Sidney NE Business HD 2, Smallbones, CC0
- Sidney, Nebraska Carnegie library from SW 3, Ammodramus, Public domain
- Deadwod Draw nr Sidney NE, Smallbones, CC0
Page built October 30, 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us or suggest a place.