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History · Naper

Naper dates to 1892, and 17% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1951 on and the census since 1900.

1892founded
0on the National Register
17%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Naper began, and where its name came from

When was Naper founded?

1892

Naper dates its founding to 1892 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1900.

First census: 94 in 19002020 census: 89134 years

How did Naper get its name?

Naper was named for Ralph Naper, an original owner of the town site.

Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1894. Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.The full story ↓

What stands out about Naper’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 Naper are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 300 in 1910; 89 people lived here in 2020.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Naper’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Naper’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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People over time

Naper, census by census

01002003001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 300

Peaked at 300 in 1910; 89 people lived here in 2020.

13 censuses, 1900–2020.

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

The story

How Naper came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Naper.

Read it all →

Naper was founded in 1892. It was named for Ralph Naper, an original owner of the town site.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Naper, 1892 to 1951

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1892
    FoundingNaper is established
  3. 1894Post officeThe Naper post office opens
  4. 20th century
  5. 1910CensusPopulation peaks at 300
  6. 1951On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Naper, decade by decade

Today10 recent
NapierMo2025NapierMoNaper, Nebraska2012Naper, NebraskaNaper, Nebraska2012Naper, NebraskaNaper, Nebraska2012Naper, NebraskaNaper, Nebraska2012Naper, NebraskaNaper, Nebraska2012Naper, NebraskaNaper, Nebraska downtown 32011Naper, Nebraska downtown 3Naper, Nebraska downtown 22011Naper, Nebraska downtown 2Naper, Nebraska downtown 12011Naper, Nebraska downtown 1NEMap-doton-Naper2005NEMap-doton-Naper
On the map

Naper on the map in 1951

The U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Naper.

Naper on the 1951 USGS map1951Naper sheet · 1:24,000

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

Questions about Naper’s history

What year was Naper founded?

In 1892, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Naper’s post office opened in 1894, and the census of 1900 counted 94 people here.

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 (10), Wikipedia, 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.