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History · Niobrara Township

Niobrara Township dates to 1856

Most of Niobrara Township was built recently: 9% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1975. Below: maps from 1974 on and the census since 1880.

1856founded
0on the National Register
9%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Niobrara Township began

When was Niobrara Township founded?

1856

Niobrara Township dates its founding to 1856 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1880.

First census: 475 in 18802020 census: 406170 years
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1857.The full story ↓

What stands out about Niobrara 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 Niobrara Township are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 761 in 1930; 365 people lived here in 2020.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Niobrara Township’s collection

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

Niobrara Township, census by census

020040060080018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 761

Peaked at 761 in 1930; 365 people lived here in 2020.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

The story

How Niobrara Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Niobrara Township.

Read it all →

Niobrara was founded in 1856, when a group of men headed by a Dr. Benneville Yeakel Shelly marked their claim to an area on the banks of the Missouri River. There, a fort was built to protect the early settlers from Indian attacks. The settlement took its name from the Niobrara River.

The village has been moved twice. It was first moved after a winter flood destroyed parts of the original settlement in 1881. It was moved again after a ruling in 1976 by the US Court of Claims, in the case of Barnes v. United States. The court ruled that US Corps of Engineers was responsible for ground water related damage driven by sediment build up caused by the Gavins Point Dam.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Niobrara Township, 1856 to 1974

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1856
    FoundingNiobrara Township is established
  3. 20th century
  4. 1930CensusPopulation peaks at 761
  5. 1974On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Niobrara Township, decade by decade

Today4 recent
Niobrara, Nebraska downtown 22013Niobrara, Nebraska downtown 2Niobrara, Nebraska downtown 12013Niobrara, Nebraska downtown 1Niobrara, Nebraska Walnut Street 12013Niobrara, Nebraska Walnut Street 1NEMap-doton-Niobrara2005NEMap-doton-Niobrara
On the map

Niobrara Township on the map in 1974

The U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Niobrara Township.

Niobrara Township on the 1974 USGS map1974Sparta 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 Niobrara Township.

Places that used to be

Places now gone

Gone or out of use
Fort MitchelllocaleNiobraralocale

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.

Raymond Township1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townUnion TownshipIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townSparta Township1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Niobrara Township’s history

What year was Niobrara Township founded?

In 1856, according to Wikidata. Niobrara Township’s post office opened in 1857, and the census of 1880 counted 475 people here.

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 Wikimedia Commons (4), Wikidata (1), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) 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.