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Our Genealogy Helper

Introduction ...

We have a couple of goals for our Gazetteer:

  • That it be a tool which helps us with planning our trips.
  • We're trying to shape our Gazetteer as a tool to help us understand the community in which our ancestors lived, the community that was part of their daily lives.
  • On our trips, we try to visit those places where our ancestors left their footprints.

By learning about Nebraska City (and the surrounding area) during the time that our ancestors lived, we hope to have a better understanding of both their community and its relationship to their lifes. We hope that this tool helps to give us an insight into their world.

As we add data and organize our Gazetteer to help with our family research, we will be adding to this our Genealogical Helper for Nebraska City. While we don't have information that is specific to any given person or family, we intend to expand our understanding about where and how people lived.

Neighboring Counties ...

When searching for family records, we have frequently made the mistake of not checking the neighboring counties.

For example, we have great-grandparents who lived in the northwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors were in the next county to the west. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the north.

So when searching for records, we had our best success by looking in neighboring counties instead of the county in which they lived:  their home county contained property and probate records; the county to the west contained birth and death records; the county to the north contained their burial records. If we hadn't included the neighboring counties, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.

If you're in a similar situation, we hope that the following information helps.

Nebraska City is located in Otoe County and is the County Seat.

To see how the shape of Nebraska's counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Otoe County: Fremont (IA), Atchison (MO), Cass, Gage, Johnson, Lancaster & Nemaha.

Below are the counties that are near Nebraska City. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Nebraska City:

  • Otoe County     (The home county of Nebraska City)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Nebraska City, with the one closest to Nebraska City listed first.
    • Wyoming
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Dunbar
      (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dunbar have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunbar
      • Dunbar is located in Otoe County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 192 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Dunbar <2>
    • Lorton
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Talmage
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Otoe
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Otoe have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Otoe
      • Otoe is located in Otoe County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 177 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Otoe <2>
    • Syracuse
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Unadilla
      (21 miles [33.8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Unadilla have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Unadilla
      • Unadilla is located in Otoe County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 320 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Unadilla <2>
    • Burr
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Burr have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burr
      • Burr is located in Otoe County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 59 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Burr <2>
    • Palmyra
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Palmyra have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Palmyra
      • Palmyra is located in Otoe County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 575 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Palmyra <2>
    • Douglas
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
  • Cass County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Nebraska City, with the one closest to Nebraska City listed first.
    • Union
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Nehawka
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Avoca
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Avoca have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Avoca
      • Avoca is located in Cass County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 253 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Avoca <2>
    • Murray
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Rock Bluff
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the north)
    • Weeping Water
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Weeping Water have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weeping Water
      • Weeping Water is located in Cass County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,094 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Weeping Water <2>
    • Mynard
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
    • Plattsmouth
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Plattsmouth have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plattsmouth
      • Plattsmouth is located in Cass County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 6,416 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Plattsmouth <2>
    • Manley
      (23 miles [37 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Manley have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manley
      • Manley is located in Cass County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 171 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Manley <2>
    • Elmwood
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Elmwood have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elmwood
      • Elmwood is located in Cass County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 659 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Elmwood <2>
    • Wabash
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Cullom
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Cullom. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cullom
      • Cullom is located in Cass County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Cullom
      • From Nebraska City to Cullom
    • Louisville
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Johnson County
  • Nemaha County
  • Richardson County
  • Sarpy County
  • Fremont County (IA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Nebraska City, with the one closest to Nebraska City listed first.
    • Payne
      (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Payne. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Payne
      • Payne is located in Fremont County (IA)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Payne
      • From Nebraska City to Payne
    • Percival
      (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Percival have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Percival
      • Percival is located in Fremont County (IA)
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Percival <2>
    • McPaul
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
    • Thurman
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Hamburg
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Sidney
      (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Bartlett
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the north)
    • Riverton
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Riverton have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverton
      • Riverton is located in Fremont County (IA)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 270 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Riverton <2>
    • Anderson
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)
    • Tabor
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
    • Farragut
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Farragut have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farragut
      • Farragut is located in Fremont County (IA)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 437 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Farragut <2>
    • Randolph
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the northeast)
    • High Creek
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the east)
  • Mills County (IA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Nebraska City, with the one closest to Nebraska City listed first.
    • Pacific Junction
      (23 miles [37 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pacific Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pacific Junction
      • Pacific Junction is located in Mills County (IA)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 332 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pacific Junction <2>
    • Mills
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the north)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Mills. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mills
      • Mills is located in Mills County (IA)
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Mills
      • From Nebraska City to Mills
    • Pacific City
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pacific City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pacific City
      • Pacific City is located in Mills County (IA)
    • Glenwood
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the north)
    • Malvern
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Hastings
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hastings have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hastings
      • Hastings is located in Mills County (IA)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 149 people
  • Page County (IA)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Nebraska City, with the one closest to Nebraska City listed first.
    • Shenandoah
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shenandoah have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shenandoah
      • Shenandoah is located in Page County (IA)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,783 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Shenandoah <2>
    • Essex
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Essex have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Essex
      • Essex is located in Page County (IA)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 737 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Essex <2>
    • Northboro
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the east)
  • Atchison County (MO)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Nebraska City, with the one closest to Nebraska City listed first.
    • Watson
      (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
    • Farmers City
      (23 miles [37 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Farmers City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farmers City
      • Farmers City is located in Atchison County (MO)
    • Phelps City
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Phelps City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Phelps City
      • Phelps City is located in Atchison County (MO)
    • Rock Port
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Westboro
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Westboro have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Westboro
      • Westboro is located in Atchison County (MO)
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 126 people
    • Tarkio
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the southeast)

For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Nebraska City, see our County-by-County Page for Nebraska City.

Cemeteries Near Nebraska City ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Nebraska City.

This is a new section and is likely to have errors. If you find an error, such as a missing cemetery or we have the wrong name, please let us know. If you know of them, we would also appreciate learning about previous or alternate names.

If you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our selection of Genealogy Websites (see below).

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Nebraska City covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Nebraska City, with the one closest to Nebraska City listed first.

Nearby Communities in 1895 ...

We've built the following list with information that came from an Atlas published by Rand McNally in 1895. The Atlas had details such as the population of the community (which appears to have come from the 1890 Census) and whether there was a post office and/or railroad service available. We also indicate if the community no longer exists and is now historic.<6>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Nebraska City had a population of 11,494 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service. In 2020, Nebraska City had a population of 7,252 people.

These communities are listed based on their distance from Nebraska City, with the one closest to Nebraska City listed first.

  • Paul
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Paul have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paul
    • Paul is located in Otoe County
  • Payne
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Payne. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Payne
    • Payne is located in Fremont County (IA)
    • Google driving directions:
    • From your current location to Payne
    • From Nebraska City to Payne
  • Percival
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Percival have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Percival
    • Percival is located in Fremont County (IA)
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Percival <2>
  • Wyoming
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • Minersville
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Minersville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minersville
    • Minersville is located in Otoe County
  • Dunbar
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dunbar have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dunbar
    • Dunbar is located in Otoe County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 192 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Dunbar <2>
  • Lorton
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
  • Julian
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
  • Union
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
  • McPaul
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)
  • Hamburg
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
  • Thurman
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Continue List   (14 more) ...

We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Nebraska City. See our List of 1890's Communities around Nebraska City.

Newspapers Published in the Vicinity of Nebraska City ...

An ongoing effort between the Library of Congress and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) has resulted in the National Digital Newspaper Program (NDNP).

To share their results, the partnership has created the Chronicling America website. The goal of this partnership is to assemble a database about the current and historic newspapers of the United States. This includes a growing collection of scanned images from selected papers. All of it available to the public on their website.

Using information that we've taken from the Chronicling America website, we've identified 211 newspapers that have been published in the area around Nebraska City.

We have organized these newspapers into two lists:

  • A Local Newspaper List - focusing on the papers published in the immediate area of Nebraska City. There are actually two parts to this list - papers printed in the immediate area of Nebraska City and those printed in the larger area surrounding Nebraska City.
  • An Extended Newspaper List - a longer list, sorted by paper name and containing those papers published within 30 miles [48.3 km]<5> of Nebraska City.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we start with the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These professional and volunteer websites offer the information directly or else point to where you can find it. Their information is open to everyone.

To help you get started, the following links will take you to the pages that are relevant to Nebraska City:

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Nebraska City. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for Otoe County: www.co.otoe.ne.us/

The official website for State of Nebraska: https://www.nebraska.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<4>The Find-a-Grave website is an excellent research tool with information about a cemetery's location and interments. They also offer a forum for their members which can provide additional help. More information about Find-a-Grave can be found on their website: findagrave.com.
<5>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Nebraska City) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Nebraska City. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 40.6766, Longitude: -95.8589    
<6>We use the term 'Historic' broadly and it generally means that the community no longer exists. However, it can also mean that the community might still exist, but was significantly larger or had a more 'official' existence in the past than it does now. Unfortunately our sources of data have proven to be unreliable. If you can provide us with more specific information about Nebraska City, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025