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History · Dunbar

Dunbar dates to 1856, and 71% of its homes were built before 1940

Its Register listing is the Little Nemaha River Bridge. Below: maps from 1903 on and the census since 1900.

1856founded
1on the National Register
71%homes built before 1940
3famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Dunbar began

When was Dunbar founded?

1856

Dunbar dates its founding to 1856 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1900.

First census: 208 in 19002020 census: 165170 years
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1866.The full story ↓

What stands out about Dunbar’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 Dunbar are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Dunbar’s homes were built before 1938.Boom and bustPeaked at 336 in 1940; 165 people lived here in 2020.On the map since 19034 editions of the USGS map, 1903 to 1986. Watch Dunbar change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Dunbar’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
The story

How Dunbar came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Dunbar.

Read it all →

Dunbar was founded in 1856 by John Dunbar on the intersection of the properties of John Dunbar, T. H. Dunbar, J. Wilson, and John McGinley. It was originally known as Wilson until 1856 when it was renamed for the oldest resident and recognized founder. Dunbar was a large freighting depot for goods traveling west out of Nebraska City. The first railroad was built in Dunbar in 1869 when the Midland Pacific Railway and Burlington and Missouri River Railroads reached Nebraska City. By the 1880s, the town contained a grocery, general store, restaurant, boarding house, two hotels, two liveries, five churches, pharmacy, lumberyard, two banks, barbershop, two saloons, dentist, optometrist. In 1884 and 1888 two fires occurred, prompting the usage of brick and mortar. About 1 mile (1.6 km) south of Dunbar, the Delaware (named for the township) Cemetery was constructed. The earliest marked grave b…

ChaptersTrain derailment and State v. Hoffman

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

People over time

Dunbar, census by census

01002003001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 336

Peaked at 336 in 1940; 165 people lived here in 2020.

13 censuses, 1900–2020.

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

Timeline

Dunbar, 1856 to 1940

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1856
    FoundingDunbar is established
  3. 1866Post officeThe Wilson post office opens
  4. 1874Post officeThe Wilson post office closes
  5. 1874Post officeThe Dunbar post office opens
  6. 1882Born hereGeorge H. Heinke is born here
  7. 1894Born hereWilliam H. Harrison is born here
  8. 20th century
  9. 1903On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  10. 1916Born hereWillis Wagner Wirth is born here
  11. 1940CensusPopulation peaks at 336
By decade

Dunbar, decade by decade

Today5 recent
Dunbar, Nebraska post office2012Dunbar, Nebraska post officeDunbar, Nebraska ghost sign2012Dunbar, Nebraska ghost signDunbar, Nebraska downtown 22012Dunbar, Nebraska downtown 2Dunbar, Nebraska downtown 12012Dunbar, Nebraska downtown 1NEMap-doton-Dunbar2005NEMap-doton-Dunbar
On the map

Dunbar on the map, 1903 to 1986

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

Dunbar on the 1903 USGS mapDunbar on the 1929 USGS mapDunbar on the 1966 USGS mapDunbar on the 1986 USGS map1903Weeping Water 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 Dunbar.

On the National Register

1 historic place in Dunbar

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

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
1992
Little Nemaha River Bridge
Structures

Architectural styles listings

Bowstring pony arch-truss1
All 1 listings
Little Nemaha River BridgeStructure · listed 1992

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

Famous people

3 famous people were born in Dunbar

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
George H. HeinkeAmerican politician · b. 1882
W
Willis Wagner WirthAmerican entomologist · b. 1916
W
William H. HarrisonAmerican politician in Wyoming · b. 1894
Places that used to be

Lost post offices

Dunbar’s post office has been open since 1874. Another post office, Wilson, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Wilson
1866–1874
Dunbar
1874–today
18601940today

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

Questions about Dunbar’s history

What year was Dunbar founded?

In 1856, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Dunbar’s post office opened in 1866, and the census of 1900 counted 208 people here.

What is on the National Register in Dunbar?

One place: the Little Nemaha River Bridge (listed 1992).

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 (5), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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) 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.