[4][5] It was originally called Greene County, and in 1862 it was renamed for William H. Seward, Secretary of State under Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Johnson.

Seward County is part of the Lincoln, NE Metropolitan Statistical Area.

The Seward County terrain consists of low rolling hills, largely dedicated to agriculture including center pivot irrigation.

The Big Blue River flows south-southeasterly through the central part of the county.

Nearly all of the civil forfeitures stem from traffic stops of out-of-state drivers on Interstate 80 where Seward County police give stopped drivers a choice to give up their cash with an "abandonment form" or refuse and be subject to felony charges; the routine seizures never result in convictions of drivers, raising questions about the intent of the forfeitures.

[19] This practice continues despite 2016 state law LB 1106, meant to stop it by first requiring a criminal conviction for illegal drugs, child pornography, or illegal gambling, and establishing new reporting requirements and transfer regulations for seizures or forfeitures.

[19][20] A bill introduced in February 2024 by Nebraska legislator Tom Brewer, LB 916, intends to ban civil forfeiture in the state entirely, requiring in all cases that prosecutors use the criminal justice process, rather than civil courts, to seize property.