Superior Nebraska - Nebraska Directory

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City · Nuckolls County · Population 1,825 (2020 census) · ZIP 68978 · Founded 1875 · Peak population 3,227 (1950)

About Superior

Superior is the largest city in Nuckolls County, 1,825 people on the bluffs above the Republican River, a few miles from the Kansas line. NE 14 runs through town and NE 8 begins here, and US 136 passes about 3 miles north. It has Brodstone Healthcare, Superior Public Schools, the Nuckolls County Museum and a downtown on the National Register of Historic Places; the Legislature has named it the "Victorian Capital of Nebraska."

History

William Loudon, an Ohio-born real-estate dealer who was the first postmaster here from 1872, bought the town site in 1874, had it surveyed in 1875 and filed the plat in June 1876. The name is said to come from the superior quality of the land around it. The Superior Guide began in April 1879, Superior organized as a village that August, and the Burlington's Republican Valley line arrived in 1880–81. The Missouri Pacific, the Fremont, Elkhorn & Missouri Valley (later the Chicago & North Western) and, in 1887, the Santa Fe followed, and BNSF still runs the old Santa Fe line. By 1887 the town had the Guthrie Brothers' roller mills, brick yards, and glove, wagon and windmill factories.

Evelene Brodstone, born in Monroe, Wisconsin, in 1875, grew up in Superior and rose from stenographer to a top executive of the Vestey cold-storage firm; in 1924 she married William Vestey, Lord Vestey. In 1927 she built Brodstone Memorial Hospital in memory of her mother, with a dedication written by Willa Cather, and after she died in London in 1941 her ashes were buried in Superior's Evergreen Cemetery. The city reached its largest population, 3,227, in 1950. Jim Kaat pitched for the Superior Senators in 1957, College Football Hall of Famer Ed Weir was born here in 1903, and Kansas congresswoman Jan Meyers grew up here.

Highways and trails through Superior

Route	One way	Other way
NE 14Into town from the Kansas line, then north	North, with US 136 for 4 mi, to Nelson (about 12 mi) and Clay Center	South across the Republican River into Kansas as K-14
NE 8Begins at NE 14 in Superior	East toward Byron and US 81 at Chester	West end in Superior
US 136About 3 mi north of town	East past Nora and Ruskin to Deshler and Hebron	West to Guide Rock and Red Cloud

Nearby towns

Bostwick	about 7 mi west-northwest	County roads
Cadams	about 6 mi north-northeast	NE 14 and county roads
Hardy	about 7 mi east	NE 8
Nora	about 11 mi north-northeast	NE 14 and US 136
Nelson	about 12 mi north	NE 14
Ruskin	about 13 mi northeast	US 136
Guide Rock	about 15 mi west-northwest	US 136
Byron	about 16 mi east	NE 8
Deshler	about 20 mi east-northeast	US 136
Red Cloud	about 25 mi west	US 136

Things to see

The Superior Downtown Historic District, along Central and Commercial Aves. from 3rd to 5th Sts. (National Register) · the 1937 City Hall and Auditorium, 450 N. Commercial Ave. (National Register) · the 1898 Kendall House, 412 E. 7th St. (National Register; a private home, often open during the Victorian Festival) · the Nuckolls County Museum, 612 E. 6th St., with the log-cabin first post office, the county's oldest church building and about 3,000 hand-built model airplanes · Lady Vestey's grave in Evergreen Cemetery, north of town · Lincoln Park, 840 W. 4th St., with about 20 free campsites with electric and water (donations asked), disc golf and a pond · the municipal swimming pool · Superior Country Club (9 holes) · Superior Estates Winery, 200 W. 15th St. · the Victorian Festival on Memorial Day weekend

Events in Superior

Victorian Festival of Superior
Victorian Festival of Superior is held in Superior, Nebraska, on Memorial Day weekend.

Know of another event here? Tell us about it.

Schools and health care

Schools: Superior Public Schools: Superior Elementary (PK–5), Superior Middle School (6–8) and Superior Senior High School (9–12), all at 601 W. 8th St., Superior

Health care: Brodstone Healthcare (Brodstone Memorial Hospital), 520 E. 10th St., Superior, a 25-bed critical access hospital, with the Brodstone Family Medical Center, 525 E. 11th St.

Sources: U.S. Census; Wikipedia; Andreas, History of the State of Nebraska (1882); Fitzpatrick, Nebraska Place-Names (1925); Nebraska State Gazetteer (1890); Who's Who in Nebraska, Nuckolls County (1940); NEGenWeb Nuckolls County; History Nebraska and its historical markers; National Park Service; National Register of Historic Places; Nebraska Game and Parks; Little Blue NRD; Nebraska Department of Transportation; city, school, diocese and hospital websites. Distances marked "about" are straight-line estimates.