Loomis Nebraska - Nebraska Directory

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Village · Phelps County · Population 391 (2020 census) · ZIP 68958 · Founded 1885 · Peak population 447 (1980)

About Loomis

Loomis is a village of 391 people (2020) in Phelps County, on NE 23 at 2,425 feet, about 7 miles west-northwest of Holdrege and 7 miles east-southeast of Bertrand. It has Loomis Public Schools, a bank, churches and a volunteer fire and rescue service. Loomis is on Central Time.

History

Swedish settlers took up land here from 1876. Loomis began as a Burlington siding between Holdrege and Bertrand; a town-site company organized it in 1885, and it was named in 1886 for Nelson H. Loomis, a railroad attorney. The post office opened on January 21, 1886, the year the first bank, school and church were founded. About 300 people lived here around 1900. A fire in November 1914 destroyed nine businesses, and the Farmers State Bank rebuilt in brick in 1915; the bank closed in 1929–30, and the building, with its original interior, is on the National Register. In 2007 BusinessWeek ranked Loomis No. 39 on its list of the best places to raise children.

Highways and trails through Loomis

Route	One way	Other way
NE 23Through the village	East to Holdrege	West to Bertrand and Elwood

Nearby towns

Holdrege	about 7 mi east-southeast	NE 23
Bertrand	about 7 mi west-northwest	NE 23
Atlanta	about 8 mi south-southeast	County roads
Funk	about 14 mi east	NE 23 and US 6/34
Smithfield	about 14 mi west-northwest	NE 23
Elm Creek	about 18 mi north-northeast	County roads
Overton	about 18 mi north	County roads
Elwood	about 20 mi west-northwest	NE 23
Lexington	about 24 mi north-northwest	County roads and US 283

Things to see

the Farmers State Bank building (1915, National Register), 307 Commercial St.

Schools and health care

Schools: Loomis Public Schools, 101 Bryan St., (308) 876-2111: Loomis Elementary School (PK–6) and Loomis Secondary School (7–12)

Health care: Nearest hospital: Phelps Memorial Health Center, Holdrege, about 7 mi

Sources: U.S. Census; Wikipedia; Phelps County (phelpscounty.ne.gov); City of Holdrege; History Nebraska markers (Phelps County, Camp Atlanta, Funk, Holdrege silt loam); HMdb; Andreas, History of the State of Nebraska (1882); NEGenWeb Phelps County (post offices); National Register (NPGallery); Nebraska Game and Parks; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; Rainwater Basin Joint Venture; KRVN; Central Nebraska Today; Federal Judicial Center; SchoolDigger. Distances marked "about" are straight-line estimates.