The First white settlers arrived in 1865 from Indiana and Wisconsin. Stanton saw little growth until after the coming of the railroad in 1879, when more than two dozen businesses sprung up and two churches were organized. Stanton became an incorporated village in 1881, the year a tornado struck with buildings under construction being destroyed, causing great hardship and loss. By 1893, Stanton had bounced back, gaining in population and becoming a city, second class.

The first school was in granary west of town. As the population increased, a site was chosen for a school in 1879 on a hill above the business area being developed. There are two elementary schools: Stanton Public and St. John's Lutheran. In the fall of 1993, citizens of Stanton approved a bond issue for a new high school completed in 1996. The old high school, which is joined to the new one, has become the Middle School to alleviate overcrowding in the Elementary School, built in 1969. There is a Head Start School and Noah's Ark School in Stanton for pre-school children.

Primary industries located in Stanton County are Nucor Steel and US Greenfiber, an insulation manufacturer.

Visit the Stanton County Historical Society