Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Humboldt

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
–Not graded
History · Humboldt

Humboldt’s post office opened in 1861, and 51% of its homes were built before 1940

2 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 28 buildings. Below: 10 old photos and papers, maps from 1885 on, and the census since 1880.

1861first post office
2on the National Register
51%homes built before 1940
10old photos & papers
3famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Humboldt’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Humboldt began, and where its name came from

When was Humboldt founded?

1861

The Humboldt post office opened in 1861, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 917 in 18802020 census: 800165 years

How did Humboldt get its name?

Humboldt was named after Humboldt, Tennessee, where an early settler had stayed while fighting in the Civil War.

Founding year: the first Humboldt post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.The full story ↓

What stands out about Humboldt’s past

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

Old housesHalf of Humboldt’s homes were built before 1938.Boom and bustPeaked at 1,435 in 1930; 800 people lived here in 2020.Mapped building by building5 fire insurance maps, 1885 to 1922, drew every building in Humboldt.A historic districtThe Humboldt Commercial Historic District takes in 28 historic buildings.
★ What stands out · The story

How Humboldt came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Humboldt.

Read it all →

Humboldt was platted in 1868. It was named after Humboldt, Tennessee, where an early settler had stayed while fighting in the Civil War.

In December 1993, Humboldt was the site of a triple murder. The victims were Phillip DeVine, Lisa Lambert, and Brandon Teena, a transgender man.

Three Ball Charlie, pictured on the cover of The Rolling Stones' album Exile on Main St., grew up in Humboldt.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

People over time

Humboldt, census by census

02004006008001,0001,2001,4001,60018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 1,435

Peaked at 1,435 in 1930; 800 people lived here in 2020.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Every building

Humboldt, building by building, 1885–1922

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.

Humboldt fire insurance map, 1885, sheet 11885Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Humboldt in 1917

Passages that mention Humboldt, cut from the printed page as they were published.

out as a farm hand. In 1869 he came to Richardson county, Nebraska, setthng on a farm east of the town of Humboldt, remaining there until he could erect a dwelling on his own land, having purchased a tract of virgin soil in section 11, Franklin precinct. His first house was sixteen by twentyfour fe…
History of Richardson County, Nebraska1917Read the page →
Read the text

out as a farm hand. In 1869 he came to Richardson county, Nebraska, setthng on a farm east of the town of Humboldt, remaining there until he could erect a dwelling on his own land, having purchased a tract of virgin soil in section 11, Franklin precinct. His first house was sixteen by twentyfour feet. He also built a .«mall stable, dug a well and broke up the sod, improving the land as he could. He set out a number of trees, having the oi>ly grove of cottonwoods between his farm and Brownsville, Nebraska.

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Humboldt and in Pawnee county, about thirty miles west of Falls City. Prior to the coming of the Burlington railroad, as it is known today, a mail route was in operation between Falls City and Table Rock, but the stations were very much different from those now on the line of the railroad between t…
History of Richardson County, Nebraska1917 · page 251Read the page →
Read the text

Humboldt and in Pawnee county, about thirty miles west of Falls City. Prior to the coming of the Burlington railroad, as it is known today, a mail route was in operation between Falls City and Table Rock, but the stations were very much different from those now on the line of the railroad between the two points, i. e., Falls City and Table Rock, -many of them being mentioned in the story. of Defunct Towns of the County in another part of this work. Miss Giddings was one of the carriers on the route. Later, she was united in marriage to a man b\' the name of Holmes, and again to a

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.

Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

Timeline

Humboldt, 1861 to 1973

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1861Post officeThe Humboldt post office opens
  3. 1873Born hereF. W. Sweeney is born here
  4. 1885In the archiveReuel Nims Store in
  5. 1885Born hereOtto Kotouč is born here
  6. 1893BuiltJohn Holman House is built
  7. 20th century
  8. 1916On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  9. 1918Born hereDon Ingalls is born here
  10. 1930CensusPopulation peaks at 1,435
  11. 1933In the archiveDECORATED FLOORING AT NORTHEAST CORNER OF ROOM 21 - Reuel Nims Store, South terminus of P…
  12. 1973In the archivePrivate Rites Held For Otto Kotouc
By decade

Humboldt, decade by decade

3 decades in the archive, from the 1880s to the 1970s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1880s1 item
Reuel Nims Store in1885Reuel Nims Store in
1890s–1920snothing 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 album
1930s2 items
DECORATED FLOORING AT NORTHEAST CORNER OF ROOM 21 - Reuel Nims Store, South terminus of Parkview Street1933DECORATED FLOORING AT NORTHEAST CORNER OF ROOM 21 - R…FLUE BREACHING FOR STOVE, EAST WALL OF ROOM 12 - Reuel Nims Store, South terminus of Parkview Street1933FLUE BREACHING FOR STOVE, EAST WALL OF ROOM 12 - Reue…
1940s–1960snothing 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 album
1970s1 item
Private Rites Held For Otto Kotouc1973Private Rites Held For Otto Kotouc
1980s–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 album
Date unknown6 to date
GENERAL VIEW FROM NORTHEAST - Reuel Nims Store, South terminus of Parkview StreetDate?GENERAL VIEW FROM NORTHEAST - Reuel Nims Store, South…GENERAL VIEW FROM SOUTHEAST - Reuel Nims Store, South terminus of Parkview StreetDate?GENERAL VIEW FROM SOUTHEAST - Reuel Nims Store, South…GENERAL VIEW FROM SOUTHEAST, ACROSS POND - Reuel Nims Store, South terminus of Parkview StreetDate?GENERAL VIEW FROM SOUTHEAST, ACROSS POND - Reuel Nims…GENERAL VIEW FROM SOUTHEAST, INCLUDING RETAINING WALL - Reuel Nims Store, South terminus of Parkview StreetDate?GENERAL VIEW FROM SOUTHEAST, INCLUDING RETAINING WALL…GENERAL VIEW FROM SOUTHWEST, INCLUDING OUTBUILDING REMAINS - Reuel Nims Store, South terminus of Parkview Street, Humbo…Date?GENERAL VIEW FROM SOUTHWEST, INCLUDING OUTBUILDING RE…OLD SHELVES SUPPORTED BY TREE LIMBS, IN ROOM 02 - Reuel Nims Store, South terminus of Parkview StreetDate?OLD SHELVES SUPPORTED BY TREE LIMBS, IN ROOM 02 - Reu…
Today1 recent
NEMap-doton-Humboldt2005NEMap-doton-Humboldt
On the map

Humboldt on the map, 1916 to 1965

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

Humboldt on the 1916 USGS mapHumboldt on the 1965 USGS map1916Humboldt 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 Humboldt.

Then & 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.

Reuel Nims Store in
Retake this viewReuel Nims Store in, 1885

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Humboldt’s page.

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

2 listings protect 29 historic buildings

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

places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
29
each building in a district counts
first listed
1972
John Holman House
John Holman House, built 1893Humboldt Commercial Historic District
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Queen Anne1
Chateauesque1
Commercial1
John Holman HouseQueen Anne · Built 1893
All 2 listings
Humboldt Commercial Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2005

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 Humboldt

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

See all →
D
Don IngallsAmerican novelist · b. 1918
Otto KotoučU.S. politician of Czech origin, member of Czec… · b. 1885
F
F. W. SweeneyAmerican football coach · b. 1873
Help out

Start Humboldt’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
2 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo6 archive items have no date. Guess the decade.+2Retake an old viewReuel Nims Store in: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about Humboldt’s history

What year was Humboldt founded?

The Humboldt post office opened in 1861, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

What is on the National Register in Humboldt?

Two places: the John Holman House (listed 1972) and the Humboldt Commercial Historic District (2005).

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 (11), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (2), 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, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.