Butler County, Nebraska
Historic newspapers, landmarks, and county history layers for genealogists and local historians.
At a glance
SummaryThe National Register of Historic Places includes 13 listed properties in the county, first listed in 1972. Most listings are in or near David City, Bellwood, Surprise.
Summary generated automatically from the source data on this page.
Newspapers
Library of CongressNewspaper directory data for Nebraska is not yet loaded on this site. Browse Butler titles at the Library of Congress.
National Register of Historic Places
NPS NRHP7 of 13 listings mapped; some locations are restricted by NPS to protect sensitive sites.
13 listed properties
| Property | City | Listed |
|---|---|---|
| Barcal Site | Abie | 1972 |
| Bellwood Archeological Site | Bellwood | 1974 |
| Big Blue River Bridge | Surprise | 1992 |
| Butler County District No. 10 School | Linwood | 2011 |
| Clear Creek Bridge | Bellwood | 1992 |
| David City Park and Municipal Auditorium | David City | 2000 |
| Fremont, Elkhorn and Missouri Valley Railroad Depot | Dwight | 1979 |
| Linwood Site | Linwood | 1972 |
| St. Mary of the Assumption Catholic Church, School and Grottoes | Dwight | 2008 |
| Surprise Opera House | Surprise | 1988 |
| Taylor, Chauncey S., House | David City | 1982 |
| Thorpe's Opera House | David City | 1988 |
| Upper Oak Creek Descent Ruts of the Woodbury Cutoff, Ox Bow Trail of the California Road | Brainard | 1992 |
Source: National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Property links open NRHP nomination files at the National Archives.
County formation
Newberry AHCBButler was formed in 1856 (1856-01-26) from Greene, LOUP (original, extinct), York.
BUTLER created by Nebraska Territory from GREENE (now SEWARD), LOUP (original, extinct), and YORK.
Source: Newberry Library, Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
Population by decade
CensusButler County population from 1860 to 2020 (Census historical series).
| 1860 | 1880 | 1900 | 1920 | 1940 | 1950 | 1960 | 1980 | 2000 | 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 27 | 9,194 | 15,703 | 14,606 | 13,106 | 11,432 | 10,312 | 9,330 | 8,767 | 8,369 |
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau historical county population (Forstall 1790–1990) and public-domain / CC0 county population series through 2020.
Cemeteries & historical places
USGS GNIS30 cemeteries and 0 historical populated places (ghost towns / former settlements) recorded in USGS GNIS for this county.
Cemeteries — 30 of 30 listed
| Name |
|---|
| Assumption Catholic Cemetery |
| Bellwood Cemetery |
| Blue Valley Cemetery |
| Bohemian Cemetery |
| Bohemian Cemetery |
| Catholic Cemetery |
| Circle Mound Cemetery |
| David City Cemetery |
| Dawson Cemetery |
| Fairview Cemetery |
| Fricke Cemetery |
| Grim Cemetery |
| Holy Trinity Cemetery |
| Knauber Cemetery |
| Linwood Hill Cemetery |
| Loma Cemetery |
| Nimburg Cemetery |
| Pleasant Hill Cemetery |
| Pleasant View Cemetery |
| Rising Sun Cemetery |
| Saint Anthony Cemetery |
| Saint Joseph Cemetery |
| Saint Joseph Cemetery |
| Saint Marys Cemetery |
| Saint Marys Cemetery |
| Saint Marys Cemetery |
| Saints Peter and Paul Cemetery |
| Ulysses Cemetery |
| Union Cemetery |
| Ware Cemetery |
Source: USGS Geographic Names Information System (public domain). Cemeteries from the 2021 NationalFile archive; historical places from GNIS HistoricalFeatures topical extract.
Historical markers
HMdb linkMarker text and photos from the Historical Marker Database (HMdb) are not embedded here. HMdb allows non-commercial reuse with attribution, but commercial/compensated use needs written permission; this is a commercial site, so we only link out.
Search HMdb for Butler County, Nebraska
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