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History · Chester Township

60% of Chester Township’s homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1899 on.

0on the National Register
60%homes built before 1940
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What stands out about Chester Township’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 Chester Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18993 editions of the USGS map, 1899 to 1982. Watch Chester Township change.Old housesHalf of Chester Township’s homes were built before 1938.Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Chester Township, and 1 old place names are still on the map.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Chester Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Chester Township’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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On the map

Chester Township on the map, 1899 to 1982

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

Chester Township on the 1899 USGS mapChester Township on the 1969 USGS mapChester Township on the 1982 USGS map1899Wahoo sheet · 1:125,000

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

The story so far

Chester Township, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Chester Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Chester Township is one of twenty-four townships in Saunders County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 380 at the 2020 census. A 2021 estimate placed the township's population at 385. Most of the Village of Prague lies within the Township.

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 412 to 395 (-4%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

Timeline

Chester Township, 1872 to 1933

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1872Post officeThe Willow Creek post office opens
  3. 1874Post officeThe Rescue post office opens
  4. 1888Post officeThe Willow Creek post office closes
  5. 1899On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 20th century
  7. 1933Post officeThe Rescue post office closes
By decade

No old photos in the archives yet

Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
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Famous people

Famous people close to Chester Township

Nobody well known was born in Chester Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Bob CervAmerican baseball player · b. 1925
Catherine HanawayAmerican politician · b. 1963
Charles H. PurcellAmerican civil engineer · b. 1883
John M. GerrardUnited States District Judge · b. 1953
Kim SiglerAmerican politician · b. 1894
B
Brad VeringAmerican sport wrestler · b. 1977
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Willow Creek
1872–1888
Rescue
1874–1933
18701950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Rescue
Gone or out of use
RescuelocaleRescue Post Officepost officeWillow Creek Post Officepost office
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Chester Township
Bohemian NationalSaint JohnWillow Creek

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Elk TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townBohemia TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townLinwood TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townDouglas TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townPragueIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Chester Township’s history

Memory lane

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

Town Square →
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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 U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.