The district was named by explorer William Landsborough, after the Babylonian god Nabu (Hebrew: Nebo). Although the name Nebo was widely used for the town, the official name was Fort Cooper until it was eventually changed to Nebo in 1923. Fort Cooper was utilised as a Native Police barracks from 1862 until 1878 from which many punitive expeditions were conducted. Officers such as Robert Arthur Johnstone were deployed to this post and their efficiency in forcing local Aboriginals into submission were appreciated by the local residents and squatters.
Pastoralists settled in the Nebo region as early as the 1860s. The Nebo Post Office opened on 1 January 1864.
Architectural drawing of the Nebo Police Quarters, 1884
The Nebo Police Station opened in February 1867. In December 1886 new police quarters were built.
The Nebo Court of Petty Sessions opened on 29 January 1866. The Nebo Small Debts Court opened on 31 December 1867. Following the Magistrates Courts Act 1921, the Small Debts Court became the Nebo Magistrates Court on 3 April 1922. On 31 December 1964, the Court of Petty Sessions was absorbed into the Magistrates Court. The Magistrates Court closed on 20 December 1990.
Nebo Provisional School opened on 29 June 1874. It became Nebo State School in 1909.