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Wandermore in Nebraska, Newman Grove, NE (2026)

10/26/2026

The last time Eliese and I enjoyed a getaway at Arbor Day Farm, we both walked away with a fiancée! This time around, we returned to Nebraska City’s historic Arbor Lodge Mansion for a spooky Halloween Candlelight Tour…as a husband-and-wife duo to take it all in again once more! 😉🎃

During our recent visit, we had the opportunity to tour Arbor Lodge again. Built in 1855 as a four-room home for J. Sterling and Caroline Morton, it eventually grew into the incredible 52-room mansion visitors can explore today. J. Sterling founded Arbor Day, while their son Joy founded Morton Salt and expanded the home into a grand summer retreat. It’s a little bizarre to think the container of salt on our counters and the trees surrounding our homes are connected to this place! 🧂🌳

Nowadays, the mansion preserves furnishings and artifacts that help tell the Morton family’s story. In addition to its murder mystery events and regular history tours, Arbor Lodge also hosts Halloween Candlelight Tours. And ours was spooooky! But rest assured, this isn’t your typical ghost-hunting tour. Instead, our guide blended history with accounts of supernatural experiences staff have reported over the years. Green and purple lighting washed over the ornate wallpaper, portraits, and grand staircase, while Halloween decorations filled the rooms—including a dining table set for a rather spooky gathering! With candles in hand, we followed our guide through the mansion, stopping to hear stories and explore displays about Halloween traditions, palm reading, and fortune-telling. Definitely a different way to experience the Morton family home!! 🎃

For anyone unfamiliar with the names, Arbor Lodge is the historic Morton mansion, whereas Lied Lodge is the gorgeous hotel we fell in love with during our 2024 engagement trip. Back then, we enjoyed Timbers restaurant at the hotel, relaxed at the spa, explored the property, and took a Discovery Ride through the orchards. We returned to Timbers on this latest visit, too, for salmon en papillote and succulent grilled lamb skewers! Beyond dinner, we focused on the mansion tour this time, but our earlier experiences are a big reason we keep telling folks they need to come explore Nebraska City for themselves.

Between the overnight accommodations, seasonal experiences, history, dining, and Tree Adventure, there are SO many ways to build your own getaway. Come spend an evening at the mansion, stay for a Nebraska City weekend, and leave yourself something to discover next time!! Check the comments for the event calendar and upcoming tour availability. Next up on our list is a mystery dinner…but that’ll have to wait until we're back in town! 😉

Arbor Lodge Mansion
2600 Arbor Ave
Nebraska City, NE 68410

10/26/2026

Town Spotlight: Hooper, Nebraska
Population: 857
County: Dodge
Town: 50/531
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The first settlers on the future townsite of Hooper were A. Y. Sutton and his wife, who established a homestead overlooking the Elkhorn River in 1866. The Fremont, Elkhorn & Missouri Valley Railroad reached this portion of the valley a few years later, providing the transportation link that ultimately gave rise to the community. Railroad financier John I. Blair formally platted Hooper in February 1871. The town was named for Samuel Hooper of Boston, Massachusetts, a prominent banker and U.S. congressman who served throughout the Civil War era. O. A. Himebaugh became one of the first businessmen at the new railroad station, constructing a home and grain elevator and handling the first grain shipped from Hooper. A hotel, blacksmith shop, post office, stores, elevators, and other businesses quickly followed as the community became an agricultural trading center for the surrounding Elkhorn Valley. Hooper officially incorporated as a village on October 16, 1876, when it had grown to roughly 200 residents. Several major fires swept through its business district during the 1880s, prompting merchants to rebuild in brick and helping give downtown Hooper much of its distinctive historic appearance. The threat of fire also helped spur the completion of a municipal waterworks system in 1890. Hooper reached a population of 1,014 in the 1920 census, the highest recorded population in its history. Its historic downtown, filled largely with late-nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century commercial buildings, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.
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These photos of Hooper were primarily taken on May 2, 2020. Communities are always changing, so some businesses, buildings, signs, and other features may look different today. Our town spotlights are not intended to be comprehensive directories of every business, attraction, landmark, or point of interest. We’re often first-time visitors, so we simply photograph and share a selection of what we encounter along the way. Some local favorites will inevitably be missed! We voluntarily research, photograph, and share these spotlights here on Facebook free of charge, and we always welcome locals to add their own photos, memories, recommendations, and stories in the comments. We hope you enjoyed our spotlight on town! ❤️ Want to see more? Our Wandermore books include additional history, travel information, and photos—including images that couldn’t fit within Facebook’s 100-photo limit. Wandermore in Nebraska covers all 531 incorporated communities: wandermorepublishing.com/shop/p/nebraska

10/25/2026

Town Spotlight: Winslow, Nebraska
Population: 19
County: Dodge
Town: 49/531
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The Great Northern Railroad Company named Winslow, but the origin of its name has yet to be discovered. The Fremont, Elkhorn & Missouri Valley Railroad was in place as early as 1871, but the community came about when a second railroad extended its right-of-way through the county, and the Sioux City & Ashland Development Company platted the town in 1906. By 1910, it had the full line of businesses one would have expected to find at that time: a post office (started in 1895), grain elevators, hardware and implement stores, general merchandising storefronts, a pool hall, and a barber shop, a millinery store, a furniture store, a bank and a hotel, a saloon, a blacksmith, and a cement and block company. In the 1920s, two church edifices were built: St. Paul's Lutheran Church and Zion's Evangelical Church. The Decennial Census counts for Winslow ranged from 99 people at its first census to 156 just before the Great Depression. The population stayed constant until a catastrophic flood in March 2019 that destroyed the entire town. From there, it plummeted from 103 people (2010) to 19, a decrease of 81.6%.
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These photos of Winslow were primarily taken on May 2, 2020 & December 23, 2021. Communities are always changing, so some businesses, buildings, signs, and other features may look different today. Our town spotlights are not intended to be comprehensive directories of every business, attraction, landmark, or point of interest. We’re often first-time visitors, so we simply photograph and share a selection of what we encounter along the way. Some local favorites will inevitably be missed! We voluntarily research, photograph, and share these spotlights here on Facebook free of charge, and we always welcome locals to add their own photos, memories, recommendations, and stories in the comments. We hope you enjoyed our spotlight on town! ❤️ Want to see more? Our Wandermore books include additional history, travel information, and photos—including images that couldn’t fit within Facebook’s 100-photo limit. Wandermore in Nebraska covers all 531 incorporated communities: wandermorepublishing.com/shop/p/nebraska

10/25/2026

Town Spotlight: Nickerson, Nebraska
Population: 312
County: Dodge
Town: 48/531
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Either Frederick or Reynolds K. Nickerson is the namesake of this town, which began in 1871 when the Fremont, Elkhorn & Missouri Valley Railroad was extended into the area. The eventual townsite dates to the 1850s, when Michael, Rosanna, and George Herman moved from Wisconsin and built a log cabin. A decade and some change passed before the railroad mogul John I. Blair platted the townsite on January 13, 1871, on the land formerly owned by Henry Depew. A post office, a grain elevator, Adam Niece's blacksmith shop, and O. B. Rippy's general store highlighted the early lines of business. Rippy's responsibilities doubled as the first postmaster. The railroad also brought more enterprises, including the R. M. Havens hotel, a saloon, and a lumber company. Still, Nickerson became best known in the region as the site of the Dodge County Poor Farm. From 1872 to 1942, it served as a "welfare farm" for the sick and needy and supported those who could not support themselves unless they paid their dues by caring for the farm's livestock and gardens. A second railroad line, the Sioux City & Ashland Railroad (later annexed by the Burlington Northern), arrived in 1906, ultimately leading to its incorporation as a village in 1910. Its first official census reported 141 people in 1920, but by the turn of the twenty-first century, that number had peaked at 431.
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These photos of Nickerson were primarily taken on May 2, 2020. Communities are always changing, so some businesses, buildings, signs, and other features may look different today. Our town spotlights are not intended to be comprehensive directories of every business, attraction, landmark, or point of interest. We’re often first-time visitors, so we simply photograph and share a selection of what we encounter along the way. Some local favorites will inevitably be missed! We voluntarily research, photograph, and share these spotlights here on Facebook free of charge, and we always welcome locals to add their own photos, memories, recommendations, and stories in the comments. We hope you enjoyed our spotlight on town! ❤️ Want to see more? Our Wandermore books include additional history, travel information, and photos—including images that couldn’t fit within Facebook’s 100-photo limit. Wandermore in Nebraska covers all 531 incorporated communities: wandermorepublishing.com/shop/p/nebraska

10/24/2026

Town Spotlight: Dwight, Nebraska
Population: 229
County: Butler
Town: 45/531
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Originally named "Lone Star," the name Dwight was chosen in 1887 with the advent of the Fremont, Elkhorn & Missouri Valley Railroad. The change was made due to the large proportion of early settlers who were natives of Dwight, Illinois. Dwight's first pioneers can be traced to a diary entry by J. P. Dunlap, who passed through here circa 1866 near the home of Clinton Lattin. Dunlap eventually settled here with his family and established a post office in 1871. The railroad's arrival spurred several entrepreneurs and firms to establish themselves, seeking to take advantage of the new economic opportunities. General stores, drug stores, elevators, banks, liveries, and hotels were erected, but the town's greatest accomplishment began on March 1, 1896, when Czech immigrants started The Assumption Catholic Church parish. After celebrating Mass at the Public School and an earlier building, they completed the larger yellow-brick, Gothic-style edifice on September 22, 1915, which still stands today. A parochial school building was founded in 1921, and in 1934, grottoes were built with Carrara marble, onyx, red granite, quartz, and other gorgeous rocks and minerals. They were all added to the National Register of Historic Places on December 4, 2008. The public and private schools closed in 1953 and 1961 (respectively), and in 1962, the Chicago & Northwestern tracks were abandoned between Platte River Junction and Seward, Nebraska. Ad Liska, a former MLB pitcher; Medal of Honor recipient Ernest R. Kouma; and the Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Paranaguá in Brazil from 1987 to 2006 were all born here.
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These photos of Dwight were primarily taken on April 30, 2020. Communities are always changing, so some businesses, buildings, signs, and other features may look different today. Our town spotlights are not intended to be comprehensive directories of every business, attraction, landmark, or point of interest. We’re often first-time visitors, so we simply photograph and share a selection of what we encounter along the way. Some local favorites will inevitably be missed! We voluntarily research, photograph, and share these spotlights here on Facebook free of charge, and we always welcome locals to add their own photos, memories, recommendations, and stories in the comments. We hope you enjoyed our spotlight on town! ❤️ Want to see more? Our Wandermore books include additional history, travel information, and photos—including images that couldn’t fit within Facebook’s 100-photo limit. Wandermore in Nebraska covers all 531 incorporated communities: wandermorepublishing.com/shop/p/nebraska

10/22/2026

On July 19, 1804, William Clark climbed a hill near what would eventually become Nebraska City, Nebraska, and was absolutely awestruck by what lay before him. Emerging from a narrow strip of woodland, he suddenly found himself gazing across a seemingly endless sea of prairie that stretched farther than his eyes could see. In fact, the scenery was so breathtaking that Clark claims in his journal he temporarily forgot why he'd left his boat in the first place! 🌾

More than two centuries later, after J. Sterling Morton arrived, more than ONE MILLION trees were planted across Nebraska on the first Arbor Day, and an internationally recognized holiday was established; the landscape around Nebraska City looks considerably different from what Clark beheld all those years ago. But overlooking the very same Missouri River corridor is something extraordinary: a three-story, 12,000-square-foot museum dedicated to the story of two of America's greatest “wanderers,” Meriwether Lewis and William Clark! Missouri River Basin Lewis & Clark Visitor Center

I remember visiting this museum back in elementary school on a field trip in 2010, but coming back with Eliese to experience it all these years later was a completely different experience. Executive Director Doug Friedli welcomed us into the Missouri River Basin Lewis & Clark Visitor Center, which opened in 2004, to admire some of the most gorgeous views of the Missouri River in all of Nebraska and showcase what the center was all about: primarily the plants, animals, birds, fish, medical practices, and other scientific discoveries documented by Lewis and Clark during their expedition from 1804 to 1806!

We spent much more time here than we anticipated…to the point where we actually ran out of time! We started by climbing aboard a 55-foot-long, 8-foot-wide replica of the expedition's famous keelboat, then headed inside to try our hand at rowing a 32-foot model of the expedition's white pirogue. With the help of an interactive simulation, we pushed the oars and tried our best to navigate the dangerous waters of the Missouri River as they appeared in 1804. Spoiler alert: it was HARD! Outside, we explored a replica of a traditional Plains Indian earth lodge, and Doug even dressed me up in blacksmithing gear and gave me a few shots at an anvil with a hammer. Spoiler alert again: I'm much better suited to being a writer! We wrapped up our visit with a brief hundred-yard hike down to a lookout point over the Missouri, where we could take in the sights and sounds of the river and a quieter part of the Nebraska landscape. The property has about 2.5 miles of trails for nature enthusiasts to enjoy!

And while you probably won't see me or Eliese donning a blacksmith's apron anytime soon, the center DOES host living-history programs at its reconstructed expedition fort throughout the year! Events like Living History Days for Students and “Saturday with a Soldier,” held on the second Saturday of each month from April through October, feature costumed interpreters, historical demonstrations, and hands-on opportunities to experience life more than two centuries ago.

There's all kinds of cool stuff to check out at the Missouri River Basin Lewis & Clark Visitor Center, and you might just learn a thing or two that you didn't know about the famous expedition…like the time Clark enjoyed roasted deer ribs and coffee for breakfast on July 19, 1804, before the expedition used the last of its butter later that day! In fact, he even named a small island in the Missouri River “Butter Island” to commemorate the occasion! 🧈

Unlike Clark all those years ago, you certainly won’t forget why you stepped away from your vehicle to explore this little Nebraska City gem! 😉

Lewis & Clark Interpretive Trails and Visitor Center (Missouri River Basin)
100 Valmont Dr
Nebraska City, NE 68410

10/22/2026

Town Spotlight: Ulysses, Nebraska
Population: 196
County: Butler
Town: 44/531
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Situated on the south bank of the Big Blue River, the first settlers of this future Burlington & Missouri River Railroad town were Soloman Garfield and James Blair, who arrived in 1858. Six years later, during the American Civil War, Joseph Shields moved his family here. More homesteaders moved into the vicinity over the next several years. The townsite was finally laid out in June 1868, when George McCarty and Robert Reed established a general store. When it came time to name the town and organize a post office, Reverend Abraham Towner suggested "Ulysses" in honor of Ulysses S. Grant, the 18th President of the United States. By 1890, some fifty-odd businesses remained despite a devastating fire that wiped out an entire section of the town square. This blaze came during Ulysses's heyday, when the town had 621 people. Three elevators, three drug stores, two brickyards, two newspapers, a ketchup factory, a hotel, professional offices, lumberyards, blacksmith shops, liveries, and general stores highlighted the early institutions. Five churches provided weekly sermons: the Methodists and the Catholics (established in the 1870s) and the Congregationalists, Christians, and Episcopalians (founded in the 1880s). Chester Hardy Aldrich, the 16th Governor of Nebraska, and George E. Waldo, a U.S. Congressman from New York who served from 1905 to 1909, have ties to the small Butler County village.
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These photos of Ulysses were primarily taken on April 30, 2020 and November 22, 2022. Communities are always changing, so some businesses, buildings, signs, and other features may look different today. Our town spotlights are not intended to be comprehensive directories of every business, attraction, landmark, or point of interest. We’re often first-time visitors, so we simply photograph and share a selection of what we encounter along the way. Some local favorites will inevitably be missed! We voluntarily research, photograph, and share these spotlights here on Facebook free of charge, and we always welcome locals to add their own photos, memories, recommendations, and stories in the comments. We hope you enjoyed our spotlight on town! ❤️ Want to see more? Our Wandermore books include additional history, travel information, and photos—including images that couldn’t fit within Facebook’s 100-photo limit. Wandermore in Nebraska covers all 531 incorporated communities: wandermorepublishing.com/shop/p/nebraska

10/21/2026

Town Spotlight: Bee, Nebraska
Population: 171
County: Seward
Town: 43/531
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Located in Seward County, Bee was named for its location in Township 51 of the B township. The county is divided into sixteen townships, which are lettered alphabetically from A to P. The spelling was chosen to be unique, as only a small handful of towns have been named after an insect. The Fremont, Elkhorn & Missouri Valley Railroad is primarily to thank for the town's existence, as it platted the townsite. English and Czech settlers brought the means and the men to build everything from two grain elevators and shops to a hotel, creamery, lumberyard, bank, school, and a post office. One building in particular, the States Ballroom (a 1939 WPA project), served as the site of the annual Fireman's Picnic and as an event center for weddings and dances. Its 1940 dedication ceremony included concerts, a dance, and even an indoor baseball game. Bee was widely known throughout the area for its Friday-night fish fries at the tavern, which for many years was called "Lou & Mary Ann's Bar."
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These photos of Bee were primarily taken on April 30, 2020. Communities are always changing, so some businesses, buildings, signs, and other features may look different today. Our town spotlights are not intended to be comprehensive directories of every business, attraction, landmark, or point of interest. We’re often first-time visitors, so we simply photograph and share a selection of what we encounter along the way. Some local favorites will inevitably be missed! We voluntarily research, photograph, and share these spotlights here on Facebook free of charge, and we always welcome locals to add their own photos, memories, recommendations, and stories in the comments. We hope you enjoyed our spotlight on town! ❤️ Want to see more? Our Wandermore books include additional history, travel information, and photos—including images that couldn’t fit within Facebook’s 100-photo limit. Wandermore in Nebraska covers all 531 incorporated communities: wandermorepublishing.com/shop/p/nebraska

10/20/2026

Town Spotlight: Staplehurst, Nebraska
Population: 236
County: Seward
Town: 42/531
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Staplehurst, the only town in the United States with such a name, was named after Ebenezer Jull and his family's hometown (Staplehurst, England). They moved onto the land along Lincoln Creek, which would ultimately become the townsite in 1873. A post office was organized in 1876 under the name Staplehurst. Another settlement farther down the creek was called Marysville and later Lone Tree after the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad was extended to that point in 1879. The Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad later annexed this line. Over the decades, many improvements were made, including a mill, a schoolhouse, a ball diamond, and a fire department. Early firms surrounded a public square, most notably a town hall, a bank, the post office, and shops and stores. The Evangelical Danish Lutheran Church (est. 1877), the Presbyterian Church (est. 1882), and the German Lutheran Church (est. 1888) were founded to meet the community's religious needs. Actress Coleen Gray, most notable for her role in Stanley Kubrick's The Killing (1956), was born in 1922 in Staplehurst. Since the first Decennial Census in 1900, Staplehurst's population has stayed between 211 residents (1900) and 306 residents (306).
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These photos of Staplehurst were primarily taken on April 30, 2020. Communities are always changing, so some businesses, buildings, signs, and other features may look different today. Our town spotlights are not intended to be comprehensive directories of every business, attraction, landmark, or point of interest. We’re often first-time visitors, so we simply photograph and share a selection of what we encounter along the way. Some local favorites will inevitably be missed! We voluntarily research, photograph, and share these spotlights here on Facebook free of charge, and we always welcome locals to add their own photos, memories, recommendations, and stories in the comments. We hope you enjoyed our spotlight on town! ❤️ Want to see more? Our Wandermore books include additional history, travel information, and photos—including images that couldn’t fit within Facebook’s 100-photo limit. Wandermore in Nebraska covers all 531 incorporated communities: wandermorepublishing.com/shop/p/nebraska

10/19/2026

Town Spotlight: Seward, Nebraska
Population: 7,643
County: Seward (County Seat)
Town: 41/531
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Seward, the county seat of Seward County—represented by the prefix 16 in Nebraska's license plate system—was named after the county it serves. Originally organized as Greene County in 1855, the county was renamed Seward County in 1862 in honor of William H. Seward, the United States Secretary of State under Presidents Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Johnson. The community of Seward was platted in 1868 near the confluence of the Big Blue River, Plum Creek, and Lincoln Creek. After a lengthy fight over the county seat's location, Seward officially became the county seat in 1871. The arrival of the Midland Pacific Railroad in 1874 accelerated the community's growth and connected local farmers and businesses with larger markets. German and Czech immigrants arrived in significant numbers in the late nineteenth century, greatly adding to the cultural makeup of the young community. The historic Seward County Courthouse, constructed between 1904 and 1906, now anchors a downtown historic district filled with buildings dating from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Seward is best known for its Fourth of July celebration, a community tradition dating back to 1868. Governor J. James Exon officially proclaimed Seward "Nebraska's Fourth of July City" in 1973, and the community received national recognition as "National Fourth of July City – Small Town U.S.A." in 1979. Roughly 40,000 people flock to Seward each year to enjoy the festivities, swelling the population of this otherwise small Nebraska city several times over. Concordia University, a private Lutheran university established here in 1894, is also home to the Bartels Museum, with more than 75 displays of minerals, agates, fossils, and rocks, as well as the Marxhausen Gallery of Art and its rotating and permanent collections. The Nebraska National Guard Museum also operates in Seward, preserving artifacts and stories connected to the history of Nebraska's citizen-soldiers and airmen. Another of Seward's most unusual attractions is Harold Davisson's "World's Largest Time Capsule," a massive concrete vault filled with more than 5,000 items—including a brand-new 1975 Chevrolet Vega and Kawasaki motorcycle—that was opened after 50 years in the summer of 2025. A few of Seward's notable figures of past and present include Sam Koch, a 2015 Pro Bowler and 16-year punter for the Baltimore Ravens; filmmaker Seth Christian; singer-songwriter Andrea von Kampen; rapper and singer Qveen Herby, born Amy Renee Heidemann; Lutheran author and theologian Joel D. Heck; and John T. Folda, who served as rector of St. Gregory the Great Seminary in Seward before becoming Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Fargo, North Dakota. The community also has connections to professional athletes Thad Weber, who pitched in Major League Baseball; Bub Weller, an All-American at Nebraska who played six seasons of early professional football; and Seward-born Quentin Neujahr, who appeared in 62 NFL games as a center during the 1990s and early 2000s.
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These photos of Seward were primarily taken on April 30, 2020 and December 30, 2023. Communities are always changing, so some businesses, buildings, signs, and other features may look different today. Our town spotlights are not intended to be comprehensive directories of every business, attraction, landmark, or point of interest. We’re often first-time visitors, so we simply photograph and share a selection of what we encounter along the way. Some local favorites will inevitably be missed! We voluntarily research, photograph, and share these spotlights here on Facebook free of charge, and we always welcome locals to add their own photos, memories, recommendations, and stories in the comments. We hope you enjoyed our spotlight on town! ❤️ Want to see more? Our Wandermore books include additional history, travel information, and photos—including images that couldn’t fit within Facebook’s 100-photo limit. Wandermore in Nebraska covers all 531 incorporated communities: wandermorepublishing.com/shop/p/nebraska

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