Three years after the town of Arcadia was platted in October 1885, the First Congregational Church was organized on November 25, 1888, the second church in town. Articles of incorporation were recorded on December 2, 1889, and the building, costing…

St. Mary's Catholic Church was built in 1900 by Polish immigrants near Elyria. They came to Valley County in the early 1880s and attended services in Boleszyn, a Polish church ten miles away. When this church was destroyed by a tornado a…

In 1873 the first settlers, George McKeller and Porter Brown, arrived near the Valley County site which would later become Arcadia. They were followed in 1874 by Samuel Hawthorne, his brother Boone and their families. Mrs. Hawthorne named the…

The town of Calamus was platted in September of 1874. One of its principal organizers was Lt. Thaddeus Capron, an officer in Company C, 9th Infantry Regiment, then stationed at nearby Fort Hartsuff. Calamus was a typical town designed to meet the…

Fort Hartsuff State Historical Park is comprised of a portion of the original 1280-acre Military Reservation. The nine original permanent buildings on the Park grounds are constructed of grout, a mixture of gravel, lime, and cement similar to…

Evelyn Genevieve Sharp was Nebraska's best-known aviatrix during her eight-year career. She was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John E. Sharp and was born October 1, 1919, in Melstone, Montana. Her family moved to Ord in her youth. She became…

The North Loup Valley provided a route for the Sioux raids upon the Pawnee. In 1872 white settlers moved into the valley. Sioux depredations at Sioux Creek in October 1873 and at Pebble Creek in January of 1874 prompted the settlers to request…

On January 12, 1888, a sudden fierce blizzard slashed across the Midwest. The temperature fell to between 30 and 40 degrees below zero. A howling northwest wind swept the plains. The storm raged for 12 to 18 hours and is probably the most severe…