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History · Potter

Potter’s post office opened in 1885, and 41% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1972 on and the census since 1920.

1885first post office
0on the National Register
41%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Potter began, and where its name came from

When was Potter founded?

1885

The Potter post office opened in 1885, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 486 in 19202020 census: 342141 years

How did Potter get its name?

Potter was named for General Potter, a railroad shareholder.

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

What stands out about Potter’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 Potter are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Potter’s homes were built before 1956.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Potter’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Potter’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 Potter came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Potter.

Read it all →

Potter got its start in the year 1870, following construction of the railroad through the territory. It was named for General Potter, a railroad shareholder.

On July 6, 1928, Potter received the largest hailstone ever recorded, which measured approximately 17 inches (43.2 centimeters) in diameter and weighed approximately 1.5 pounds (680 grams). Another hailstone of that diameter measurement was recovered in Aurora, Nebraska on June 22, 2003.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Potter, decade by decade

Today4 recent
Potter, Nebraska from S2010Potter, Nebraska from SPotter, Nebraska Chestnut Street 22010Potter, Nebraska Chestnut Street 2Potter, Nebraska Chestnut Street 12010Potter, Nebraska Chestnut Street 1NEMap-doton-Potter2005NEMap-doton-Potter
On the map

Potter on the map, 1972 to 1985

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

Potter on the 1972 USGS mapPotter on the 1985 USGS map1972Potter 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 Potter.

People over time

Potter, census by census

0100200300400500600192019401960198020002020Peak: 554

Between 337 and 554 people in every census since 1920.

10 censuses, 1920–2020.

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Potter

Nobody well known was born in Potter itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Ken SailorsAmerican basketball player · b. 1921
D
Dan ChaonAmerican writer · b. 1964
K
Ken RamosAmerican baseball player · b. 1967
R
Rodney AndersonAmerican politician · b. 1931
R
Robert BrachtenbachAmerican politician · b. 1931
C
Carrie TolstedtBanking executive
Places that used to be

Old corners and places now gone

Potter’s post office has been open since 1885.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Ordville
Gone or out of use
Western Nebraska Community College Airportairport

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

Questions about Potter’s history

What year was Potter founded?

The Potter post office opened in 1885, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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 (4), 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.