Elm Creek Township
Location Bottom row, 1st on
west border
115 Road north border
Platte River south border
Apache Road (Dawson Co.) west border
No road on east border (mile east of
Cessna Road; a mile west of Dunbar Road)
More than the 6 section x 6 section
township because of the river which extends the section roughly 2 miles
south
One of three remaining townships to
still maintain some of its roads
Towns Elm Creek only town or
community in middle of township, east/west
Name of Township
1. Western Precinct April 9,
1877 tax assessors report
2. Elm Creek Township
[probably in 1883 when township system was established]
Probably named for town
Elm Creek name
Named for red elms along shore;
Trees used for fuel for the trains
Geography Platte River is
south border.
All streams flow south and empty into the
Platte
Buffalo Creek flows west to east, joins Elm Creek to empty into the
Platte
Parallel to Platte a mile or so north
Elm Creek a ½ mile west of present town sites west edge
Turkey Creek comes out of hills, crosses north side of town as it flows
east, then south to Platte
Platte valley on south, rolling hills to north out of valley
Transportation Routes
East/West
Mormon Trail
Union Pacific Railroad - 1866-67 Railroad completed through county
Station at Elm Creek D. C. Bond,
agent
Eating house Charles Davis,
proprietor
20 minute stop for meals - Tea story
Lincoln Highway/Highway 30
I-80
North/South
183 goes north to Miller & south to
I-80 and beyond to Texas
Interesting road north/south parallel to 183 about Ό mile west on
the other side of Turkey Creek,
winds through hills.
Kearney Canal
Head gates of Kearney Canal are located in
Elm Creek Township
First proposed by George Milbourn
[settled in 1871]
About 1875 Mr. D. T. Hood [his
neighbor] and myself went before the County Commissioners
and advocated the building of
an irrigation ditch to Kearney from West, and from that the project
was finally put through."
Homesteaders [more settled
here, bought railroad land]
1871 4
1872 14 including Fanny Nevius
1873 5 including D. C. Bond, station agent
1874 11 including Charles Davis, eating house proprietor [more below]
1875 7 including George Miller [more below]
1876 2
18771
1878 4
1879 14
1877 Tax Assessment
11 land owners listed 8 homesteaded, 3 purchased their land
43 had filed for homesteads from 1871-76
Grouped around Elm Creek
Land & Personal Property items of note including a total of 10 dogs
John Daul 287
acres south of Elm Creek , 70 cattle [later owned up to 500 acres]
Charles Davis 1 section total land in east half of
present town
Merchandise - $50; 9 horses; 33 cattle; 17 swine;
Household furniture - $150; 1 dog
George Miller 3 quarter sections south of town,
north of Daul, 85cattle
Came in 1871, started by purchasing a timber claim
[later owned 1784 acres of land, 1054 in Elm Creek Township,
rest north in Logan Township]
4 sons grew to adulthood, all working on fathers land
W. C. T. Kurth No land but merchandise - $250
[did he have a general store? Listed as a gardener in 1880]
U.P.R.R.
Depot, Section house, tank - $800
Elm Creek (the town)
Elm Creek original location one mile west on bank of Elm Creek
1872 June 10 Dist. 9 organized
1872 June 19, Post Office
Moved to present site in 1883 because thats where the depot was
1-12-1887 Incorporated
1906 Fire on Front Street burned 14 buildings
1907 Elm Creek Volunteer Fire Department
1907 water works in Elm Creek
Steel 40,000
gal. tank 120 feet up, supplied by 5 wells, 35 feet deep,
20 blocks of mains with 65 hook ups and 16 hydrants
Elmcreek was one word until 1947
1975 Chevyland started
Schools
4 country schools 2 north, 1 east, 1
southeast
Dist. 9 in Elm Creek
1872 June 10, District 9 organized
1873 School census, 40 school age children in Dist. 9
Frame schoolhouse built 1 mile west of present city.
UP hauled lumber from Omaha free
Later moved into the village.
When a larger one was built, the old one was bought by the Episcopal
Church.
That church did not last long. By 1916 it was used as a chapel by A.
Reeves, undertaker
High School - Typing added to curriculum 1923 2 typewriters
Churches
in Elm Creek
Catholic Church first service in station house 1871 or 1872.
Built a small church in 1878.
First, or one of first priests came once a month from Lexington.
Methodist Church Dec. 1872 funeral the first service.
Revival meetings & then a class
organized Feb. 1873.
Met in schoolhouse till 1883
Asbury Collins served this church at
one time.
Christian Church 1910
Cemeteries -
Elm Creek & Elm Creek Catholic on
northwest edge of town
Newspapers
1888, June 2 (or 1886) 1st
newspaper Elm Creek Sun
Other newspapers
Elm Creek Pilot
Elm Creek
Times
Beacon
began 1897, March
Elm Creek
Beacon, 1906 Former Buffalo County Beacon at Gibbon
Elm Creek Township in the News
May 25, 1894 O Hawkinson of Galesburg, Illinois, was in town to pay
property taxes on the thousand acres of land he owns in Elm Creek Township.
July 2, 1894 Board of Supervisors gave permission for the township
to hold a special election on Aug 14 for approval of $10,000 bond to
irrigation in the township.
Oct. 17, 1895 12 miles of irrigation ditch had been constructed and
there was interest in extending it to 20 miles long to end north of Odessa.
It would irrigate 20,000 acres of land.
Frequent news about events in Daul Hall in Elm Creek
Daul road south and mostly east of Elm Creek. John Daul lived southeast of
town.
June 12, 1899 [another building moved] W. E. Jakeway, Kearney
businessman, bough a building in Elm Creek and was moving it to Odessa to
use as a general store.
June 6, 1902 Ernest Bearse from north of Kearney was moving Daul
Hall from Elmcreek to Odessa to use as a general store.
Story 1932 news clipping Going for Rhubarb
Mr. Reeves was going to get rhubarb from
a farm near Elmcreek
Accompanied by wife of man who worked for his brother
Car stalled when crossing the track 2 miles west of town
No. 9 train was coming
He tried to push it off
Either the brakes had locked or perhaps he left it in gear
Lady finally persuaded him to stop trying to push the car off the tracks
They were still running away from the tracks when the train hit the car
Train hit the car with such force it carried the car ½ mile or more down
the track.
They had to hook a chain to the car and the track, then the train backed
up to get the car off
There was some damage to the locomotive
The car went to the junk pile
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