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History
of Western
When the Saline County Village of Western was laid out in
1872, there were 39 people and few businesses.
Building included a schoolhouse, post office, blacksmith
shop, grocery store and a few sod houses.
It was small, but just enough to make a community.
The town post office was established in 1871, although
settlers arrived in the area from Wisconsin
as early as 1860. The families, mostly
of German decent, settled a few miles east of the town, living in covered
wagons until sod or log houses could be built.
In 1880, the village was incorporated and four years later,
it became a station on the Burlington Railroad line going through the
county. The population quickly grew to
more than 400 residents, peaking at 511 by 1930 and dropping back to 430 in the
‘50’s.
Today, Western is home to approximately 250 residents of
predominantly Czech and German ancestry.
Western has always had a school, first in a sod house and
then in another structure in town.
In the 1880’s, a two-story building site and the present
schoolhouse was built in 1913 with an auditorium added in 1950.
Western
High School closed in
1968, leaving a kindergarten through eighth grade program with about 35
students.
Western students attend Meridian
High School in Daykin or Tri County
High School in DeWitt.
Western’s business district is still small but strong,
including two funeral homes, a library, grain elevator, vacuum service shop,
beauty salon, lumberyard, grocery store, computer business, two bars, a gas
station/oil company, auto repair shop, two construction companies and two auto
body shops.
The Western Post Office occupies an old bank building listed
on the National Register of Historical Places.
There are two churches in town, the United
Methodist Church
and St. John’s United Church
of Christ.
Many residents belong to the Western Volunteer Fire Department
and the American Legion Club and auxiliary.
A handi-bus provides transportation for the elderly to
appointments and on out-of-town excursions, and a senior center in town
provides programs and social activities.
A beautification committee keeps village property in check,
including tree maintenance, painting and letting neighbors know when they need
to clean up their yards. A Community
Club sponsors various activities for the town, including raffles, pancake feeds
and Easter egg hunts.
A City
Park with new equipment
and a campground provides entertainment.
The Community Club is in charge of the annual Old Settler’s
Picnic, which has been held every July since 1897.
The story of old-time Western is told in a mural on a wall
of the Legion Club. The mural depicts a
parade on Main Street
at the beginning of the 20th Century.
Erin Hefner
Each week, Crossroads takes a quick glimpse of the history
of a Nebraska Town.
This weeks sources are an article written by Laurn Gillespie in
“Nebraska Our Towns.” Taylor Publishing Company, Dallas, 1991, and an interview with Assistant
Postmaster Lois Kotas.
Crossroads: Western
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