Auburn dates to 1882, and 38% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 87% of U.S. towns · #3 of 57 in Nebraska. What drives it
7 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 89 buildings between them. Below: maps from 1893 on and the census since 1890.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1869.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Auburn’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Auburn is more historic than 87% of U.S. towns, #3 of 57 in Nebraska. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Auburn’s overall grade.
Nebraska towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Nebraska town has 16.3 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Auburn’s 271 sits above most of its state (98% of Nebraska towns have fewer) while its 94 historic buildings outnumber those of 89% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B+ to A+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.8 points). Two sources give 1882.
Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Auburn’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Auburn is an incorporation of two towns, Calvert and Sheridan, which combined in 1882 in part to have the voting power to wrestle the county seat away from Brownville, a village located ten miles to the east. The incorporation was successful, and in 1883, Auburn was named the county seat. The city is named after Auburn, New York.
The only person to be elected to the United States Congress as a member of the Prohibitionist Party, Charles Hiram Randall, was born in Auburn on July 23, 1865.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Auburn. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1915Howe 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 Auburn.
Every building
Auburn, building by building, 1893–1913
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
In 1882, according to Wikidata. Auburn’s post office opened in 1869, and the census of 1890 counted 1,537 people here.
How does Auburn rank for history?
Auburn is more historic than 87% of U.S. towns, #3 of 57 in Nebraska. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in Auburn?
7 listings: 5 buildings, among them the Wilber T. Reed House (listed 1980, the first), and 2 historic districts, the Legion Memorial Park and the Auburn Historic District, with 89 contributing buildings. 94 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Auburn?
38% of Auburn’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.8 points), against a typical 18% for a Nebraska town; the median home was built in 1953.
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).
From Wikimedia Commons (2), the Library of Congress (6), Wikidata (4), the National Register of Historic Places (7), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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