In 1901, Goodwell was established as a switch along the Chicago and Rock Island Railroad.

[5] The No Man's Land Museum was established in 1932 as a project of the science department at Panhandle Agricultural and Mechanical College.

In 1933, the No Man's Land Historical Society was established and took control of the museum.

[6] On June 24, 2012, two Union Pacific trains collided head-on and caught on fire about 1 mile (1.6 km) east of Goodwell.

[7] The Union Pacific continues to provide rail freight service to the town.

[9] According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 1.2 square miles (3.1 km2), all land.

The racial and ethnic composition of the population was 70.6% non-Hispanic white, 8.2% African American, 2.2% Native American, 0.2% Asian, 0.1% Hawaiian Native, 3.1% reporting two or more races and 17.5% Hispanic or Latino.