The story
Read it all →How De Witt came to be
From Wikipedia’s history of De Witt.
De Witt was established in 1872 when the railroad was extended to that point.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
–Not graded
History · De Witt
De Witt’s post office opened in 1872, and 35% of its homes were built before 1940
Below: 2 old photos and papers from 1908 on.
1872first post office
0on the National Register
35%homes built before 1940
2old photos & papers
2famous people
Quick answers
How De Witt began
When was De Witt founded?
1872
The De Witt post office opened in 1872, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Swan City (1866), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
2020 census: 530154 years
Founding year: the first De Witt post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
What stands out about De Witt’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
★ What stands out · Help out
Start De Witt’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how De Witt’s history is told.
Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.Timeline
De Witt, 1866 to 1913
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
- 19th century
- 1866Post officeThe Swan City post office opens
- 1872Post officeThe De Witt post office opens
- 1874Post officeThe Swan City post office closes
- 1880
Born hereHarry L. Hollingworth is born here - 20th century
- 1908
In the archiveCrowd to greet Wm. H. Taft, De Witt, Nebraska, 1908 - 1913Born hereClifford Dwight Waldo is born here
By decade
De Witt, decade by decade
One decade in the archive so far: the 1900s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.
19081910s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your albumToday1 recent
2005Then & now
Stand where they stood
No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.
Retake this viewCrowd to greet Wm. H. Taft, De Witt, Nebraska, 1908, 1908
Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on De Witt’s page.
Retake this view · +15Famous people
See all →2 famous people were born in De Witt
Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.
Places that used to be
Lost post offices
De Witt’s post office has been open since 1872. Another post office, Swan City, opened and closed inside today’s town.
Swan City
De Witt
18601940today
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.
Questions about De Witt’s history
What year was De Witt founded?
The De Witt post office opened in 1872, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
Memory lane
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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 (2), the Library of Congress (1), Wikidata (1), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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.