Stapleton Nebraska - Nebraska Directory

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Village · Logan County · County seat · Population 267 (2020 census) · ZIP 69163 · Founded 1912 · Peak population 431 (1930)

About Stapleton

Stapleton is a village of 267 people (2020) and the seat of Logan County, at about 2,900 feet on the southern edge of the Sandhills. US 83 and NE 92 meet here: US 83 runs north about 35 miles to NE 2 at Thedford, and with NE 92 east for about 4 miles before turning south to North Platte; NE 92 continues east to Arnold and west to Tryon. Stapleton has the county courthouse, Stapleton Public Schools, Henderson State Bank, a community-owned grocery, Frey’s General Store, the weekly Stapleton Enterprise, a nine-hole golf course and two campgrounds with RV hookups. There is no clinic; the nearest hospital is in North Platte. Stapleton is on Central Time.

History

Stapleton was laid out in 1911–12 as the end of a new Union Pacific branch extended west from Callaway; residents raised money for the right-of-way in 1911, track reached the site in May 1912, and regular trains began that July. It was named for a Mr. Stapleton, a friend of one of the townsite officials, whose donation helped start the town. Businesses and both banks moved in from Gandy, the county seat 3 miles east, and the Presbyterian church building was moved over in 1912; the Catholic church followed in 1913. Stapleton won the county seat in a special election on May 2, 1929, and after a year in court the records came from Gandy on February 24, 1930, into the converted Nicholas Hotel. That building burned on March 13, 1962, and the present courthouse was built in 1962–63. The village reached 431 people in 1930. Federal appeals judge C. Arlen Beam (1930–2025) was born here and grew up on a nearby ranch.

Highways and trails through Stapleton

Route	One way	Other way
US 83Through town	North to Thedford and NE 2	East with NE 92, then south to North Platte
NE 92Through town	West to Tryon	East past Gandy to Arnold

Nearby towns

Gandy	about 3 mi east-southeast	NE 92
Hoagland	about 8 mi east-northeast	NE 92
Arnold	about 17 mi east-southeast	NE 92
Tryon	about 24 mi west-northwest	NE 92
North Platte	about 27 mi south-southwest	US 83
Maxwell	about 28 mi south	US 83 and I-80
Halsey	about 32 mi north-northeast	US 83 and NE 2
Dunning	about 32 mi northeast	County roads and NE 2
Brady	about 33 mi south-southeast	US 83 and I-80
Callaway	about 33 mi east-southeast	NE 92 and NE 40
Thedford	about 35 mi north	US 83
Gothenburg	about 43 mi south-southeast	NE 92 and NE 47

Things to see

Frey’s General Store on Main Street, in an old hardware building with wood floors and a tin ceiling · the Stapleton Cooperative Market & Deli, a community-owned grocery opened in 2017 · the Stapleton Enterprise and Herbie’s Speakeasy, published here since 1912, in one building · Augusta Wind Golf Course on US 83 · Stapleton City Park campground and Milliron Campground · the Logan County Fair & Rodeo each summer

Events in Stapleton

Logan County Fair & Rodeo
Annual county fair and rodeo celebrating Logan County's agricultural heritage with livestock shows, entertainment, and community events.

Know of another event here? Tell us about it.

Schools and health care

Schools: Stapleton Public Schools, 702 6th St., (308) 636-2252: Stapleton Elementary (PK–6) and Stapleton High School (7–12)

Health care: Nearest hospital: Great Plains Health, 601 W. Leota St., North Platte, (308) 568-8000, about 27 mi; Callaway District Hospital, about 33 mi

Sources: U.S. Census; Wikipedia; Logan County (logancounty.ne.gov); NEGenWeb Logan County (Logan County History 1885–1985; Dudley; Fablinger; county firsts); 1890–91 Nebraska State Gazetteer; 1926 Nebraska Blue Book; Courthouses.co; Nebraska Judicial Branch; Nebraska DMV; Nebraska 211; SchoolDigger; Federal Judicial Center; Nebraska Examiner; Nebraska Public Media; Nieman Lab; KOLN 10/11; Campendium; AllStays; USDA Rural Development. Distances marked "about" are straight-line estimates.