Wayne County is a county located in the U.S. state of Nebraska. As of the 2010 census, the population was 9,595. Its county seat is Wayne.
In the Nebraska license plate system, Wayne County is represented by the prefix 27 (it had the twenty-seventh-largest number of vehicles registered in the state when the license plate system was established in 1922).
Wayne County was organized by a proclamation of Governor David Butler in the fall of 1870. As the county was settled, precincts were formed and boundaries defined. Precincts were named for officials, early settlers, and neighborhood creeks. At the present time there are 13 precincts in Wayne County.
Wayne County, like the City of Wayne, was named for the Revolutionary War hero General Anthony Wayne. General Wayne was bold and daring in planning and carrying out his strategies. His reputation seems to have inspired steadfast loyalty in his men and his friends.