The congregation was organized in 1879, eight years after the first homestead claim was filed in Howard County. The first church at this location, a frame structure dedicated in 1881, was destroyed by fire in February 1905. Construction of this building, the oldest church in town still at its original site, began in September 1905 and was completed in July 1907 at a cost of $15,000, including the furniture and organ. The bell now in use survived the 1905 fire.

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In the spring of 1871 several members of the Danish Land and Homestead Company from Wisconsin claimed land along Oak Creek. The migrants, led by Lars Hannibal, were drawn by fertile soil and the idea that Danes from across the U.S. and the Old Country could form a colony in Howard County. Hannibal called the settlement "Dannebrog," the name of the red and white national flag of Denmark.

Construction of a water-powered grist mill on Oak Creek sparked the village's early growth, and Dannebrog unsuccessfully sought the county seat in 1874. The town almost disappeared in the early 1880s, when businesses relocated to Nysted, but the coming of a railroad in 1885 brought new life. Dannebrog was incorporated in 1886. By 1920 the population peaked at 436.

Germans, Czechs, Poles, and Swedes also settled at Dannebrog. Although the founders' dream of an exclusive colony of Danes was never realized, Dannebrog and the nearby towns of Nysted and Dannevirke preserve the Danish heritage. In 1989 the Nebraska Legislature proclaimed Dannebrog as Nebraska's Danish Capital.

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The cemetery was established in 1876, one year after the first settlers of the Czech club "Slovania" arrived in the Warsaw vicinity. The plot was donated by Martin Slobodny. Initially, Sunday worship was held around a large wooden cross in the cemetery. In 1877 the community built their first church across the road, a small wooden building combining the sanctuary and the rectory.

Inspiration to build a larger church began during the tenure of Rev. John Stephen Broz (1890- 94), who initiated many Czech customs into the community. The bell in the cemetery was acquired during his time. Construction of a brick church began in 1895. It was built by parishioner C. V. Svoboda and Andrew Gruber, proprietors of the St. Paul brickyard. It was blessed on the feast of St. Wenceslaus, September 28, 1895.

St. Wenceslaus of Warsaw was the first Catholic church in Howard County. The last mass offered was on December 21, 1949, and the church was demolished in 1964. Only the names on the monuments remind passersby of the Czech pioneers whose struggle made a future for their descendants.

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Grover Cleveland Alexander, the third winningest pitcher in major league baseball history, was born near Elba, Nebraska, on February 26, 1887. After pitching for local and minor league teams, Alexander signed with the Philadelphia Phillies. In 1911, his first season, he amassed twenty-eight victories, still a rookie record. In a career that included stints with the Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals, "Alexander the Great" compiled 373 victories; ninety shutouts, a National League record; and a major league record of sixteen shutouts in a season. Military service and bouts with epilepsy and alcoholism probably limited his career totals.Renowned for pinpoint control,

Alexander threw one of baseball's most famous strikeouts in the seventh game of the 1926 World Series. Pitching in relief for the Cardinals, the veteran righthander, then called "Old Pete," struck out the Yankees' Tony Lazerri with the bases loaded.

In 1938 Alexander was among the first thirteen inductees to baseball's Hall of Fame. He died in St. Paul, Nebraska, on November 4, 1950. In "The Winning Team," Alexander's 1952 film biography, the baseball immortal was portrayed by Ronald Reagan.

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