Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-07-03
LOST TOWNS OF NEBRASKA.
Three Hundred Settlements Have
Disappeared From the Map.
Cleveland Leader.

From the Cleveland Leader.
Nebraska is the state of lost towns
Since the time of it's settlement. sixty
years ago. more than 800 Of them have
disappeared.
Some went into the NAV Of the shift
ing Missouri river. Others were the vic
tins of hard luck of one kind and an
other. The shifting OF county seats
brought doom on some of them. Not a
few were left stranded when the rail-
| roads they expected decided to take other
routes.
Perhaps the history of Archer is as in
teresting as that Of any of these almost
forgotten communities. The first terri
tOrial legislature, which met in 1850,
made Archer the seat of Richardson
county. Among its earliest settlers was
a party of French. They married Indian
Curiously enough. it was this fact that
wiped Archer off the map. When the
government put into effect the reserva-
ton method of dealing with the Indians,
it found itself confronted with the prob
lem arising out of the presence of SO
many French half-breeds. AS solu-
ton of it the commissioners decided to
set aside a special reservation in Rich
ardson county for these families.
When the survey was made it was
cluded in the reservation. The army post
was abandoned, the capital was located
elsewhere. the railroads passed it by, it
dwindled into mere hamlet, and the
university closed its doors. Its prosper
ity lasted seven years. and although
Archer men sought to have the govern
ment change its lines. they were unsuc-
cessful and within a few months there
was nothing left of the town.
Fort Calhoun. the site Of the Lewis and
Clark treaty with the Indians in 1904,
was in the early SOS town of 100 per-
sons. due. in part, to the proximity 10
the military post. 1t was then the county
seat Of Washington county, and strong
contender for choice the capital when
the whites decided that they would not
live in a reservation town or retain it a.
county seat.
Fontenelle, another Washington county
town, now a hamlet, had a college once
did much trading with the Indians and
freighters,' and was the county seat of
Dodge county. The politicians changed
the county lines at a legislative session
when Fontenelle wasn't looking and
threw it into Washington county. which
caused it to be overshadowed and speed
lily killed.
Bellevue and Florence. both located
near Omaha, the one south and the other
north along the Missouri were each at
one time much larger than Omaha. Flor
ence once had 5000 people; now il has
less than 600. 1t was the winter quar-
camped there while on their way to
Utah in the late 4Os and early sos
Later it was the westernmost point of
heavy immigration. For time it was
doubtful whether Omaha or Florence
would win in the race between the two
cities, but when the scales turned in ia
vor Of Omaha by favor of the Union Pa
cific railroad Florence became almost
deserted village.
Omadi. one of the popuous towns of
territorial days, was located on the Mis-
souri, river almost opposite the present
town of Sioux City. Iowa. The Missouri
changed its channel one night and the
townspeople woke the next morning TO
find the swift current rapidly undermn-
ing the townsite. They moved their
houses out to farms in the upiands or
else abandoned them. Within a year the
river had complete possession of the
townsite.
Decatur. Burt county, was another vic
tim Of the river. 1t was once seriously
considered as the point of crossing for
the Union Pacific railroad. but the Mis-
souri, showed signs of eating up the
townsite, and Omaha was chosen instead.
Most of the town lots have been dropped
off into the stream.
Logan is another Dakota county town
that was wiped out by the Missouri river.