A community with a population of about 6000 people, located in the northeastern part of Dawes County, which is in the Nebraska panhandle. The town is the only large community in the county and serves a large rural region which it supplies with products and services for agri-business and related industries. An additional economic and social strong point for the town, is that it is the site of Chadron State College. The college evolved from the state normal school, founded in 1911 through the efforts of Charles Coffee and others.