Valentine, Nebraska  Valentine is a city in Cherry County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 2,737 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Cherry County. Valentine was founded in 1883 when the Sioux City and Pacific Railroad was extended to that point. It was named for Edward K. Valentine, a Nebraska representative. As late as 1967, Valentine was split between two time zones. As described in one news report, "The mountain and central time zones meet at the center of Main Street, so an hour separates the two curb lines." According to the report, when clocks were required to be set back one hour for daylight saving time, Valentine's post office (which was in the central zone) split the difference and turned back its clock by only half an hour. Valentine participates in an annual re-mailing program where thousands of pieces of mail flow into the local United States Post Office so that they can be re-mailed with a special Valentine's Day postmark and verse. In 2007, "National Geographic Adventure" magazine included Valentine in its list of the best ten adventure towns and cities. In the Lakota language, Valentine is known as "Oínažiŋ" or "Mnináȟaȟa Otȟúŋwahe", meaning "station stopping place" or "water and waterfall city". Valentine is located at (42.873686, −100.550308). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water. Valentine is immediately north of the Niobrara River, on the northern edge of the Sandhills physiographic region. Merritt Reservoir, created by a dam on the Snake River, is located approximately southwest of Valentine. Snake River Falls, the largest waterfall in Nebraska, is located on the Snake River between the reservoir (a few miles downstream) and Valentine. Smith Falls, the tallest waterfall in Nebraska, is located on a small stream tributary to the Niobrara River about east of Valentine in Smith Falls State Park. Just south of Valentine, a pair of bridges span the Niobrara River. The modern bridge carries traffic north and south along U.S. Route 83. Just to the west, an arched cantilever truss bridge named the Bryan Bridge is also open to through traffic. Designed by Josef Sorkin and built in 1932, the Bryan Bridge is made of steel and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.