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History · Arthur

Arthur dates to 1913, and 30% of its homes were built before 1940

2 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 2 buildings. Below: maps from 1949 on and the census since 1950.

1913founded
2on the National Register
30%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Arthur began

When was Arthur founded?

1913

Arthur dates its founding to 1913 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1950.

First census: 176 in 19502020 census: 128113 years
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1914.The full story ↓

What stands out about Arthur’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Arthur are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.
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Start Arthur’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Arthur’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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The story

How Arthur came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Arthur.

Read it all →

Arthur was founded in 1913 to be the seat of Arthur County, then just organizing. The town and county were both named for President Chester A. Arthur. Arthur was incorporated as a village in 1944. The first county office was a covered wagon, with a one-room courthouse being built in 1915. A year before that, in the Spring, a general store was constructed, and afterward a newspaper, the first church and the post office were established. A one-room high school was also built in 1914, expanding to two rooms in 1920. In 1916 the Arthur State Bank was founded. Into the 1920s, Arthur continued to be built. The town got electricity in 1926, though most of the county would not have it until the early 1950s.

ChaptersHistoric sites

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Arthur, 1913 to 1949

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 20th century
  2. 1913
    FoundingArthur is established
  3. 1914Post officeThe Arthur post office opens
  4. 1949On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Arthur, decade by decade

Today4 recent
Arthur, Nebraska welcome sign2010Arthur, Nebraska welcome signArthur, Nebraska downtown 22010Arthur, Nebraska downtown 2Arthur, Nebraska downtown 12010Arthur, Nebraska downtown 1NEMap-doton-Arthur2005NEMap-doton-Arthur
On the map

Arthur on the map, 1949 to 1985

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Arthur. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Arthur on the 1949 USGS mapArthur on the 1950 USGS mapArthur on the 1985 USGS map1949Arthur sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Arthur.

On the National Register

2 historic places in Arthur

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
3
each building in a district counts
first listed
1979
Pilgrim Holiness Church
Pilgrim Holiness ChurchFirst Arthur County Courthouse and Jail
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Italianate1
Pilgrim Holiness ChurchBuilding
First Arthur County Courthouse and JailItalianate

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

People over time

Arthur, census by census

01001960198020002020Peak: 176

Between 117 and 176 people in every census since 1950.

8 censuses, 1950–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Arthur’s Wikipedia page.

Questions about Arthur’s history

What year was Arthur founded?

In 1913, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Arthur’s post office opened in 1914, and the census of 1950 counted 176 people here.

What is on the National Register in Arthur?

Two places: the Pilgrim Holiness Church (listed 1979) and the First Arthur County Courthouse and Jail (1990).

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (4), the National Register of Historic Places (2), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.