Webster County Historical Museum
category : Museums
Housed in a beautiful classical revival style mansion, the Museum located on West Highway 136, depicts the rich heritage of the early settlers of the county during the late 1800's and into the early 1900's.This 21-room, stately home built in 1907 by Dr. Damerell and enlarged by its second owner William Auld, is itself a special attraction with its cream colored brick, mammoth wooden pillars on the red tile terrace, and leaded cut glass windows.
Today the museum features the house and a farm implement pavilion which is situated on spacious grounds. The estate's two-story carriage house serves as the maintenance shop.
From the basement to the third floor ballroom you will find exhibits and settings covering a wide range of history; a post office, a country school, general store, church, and a small but excellent display of the animal and bird life native to this region.
A 1900 Rumely steam engine and a 1910 Case threshing machine, along with many other early farming tools and machinery, are shown in the Farm Implement Building.
When visiting the Webster County Historical Museum, you will not want to miss the excellent exhibit, "Creating the Plains Community" which is housed in the Exhibit Hall on museum grounds. Historical photographs, graphic art, and material culture present a new and enlightening look at small Nebraska towns. By viewing this exhibit, some of the things you will learn are:
* what Yankee settlers thought about towns
* why small Plains towns look the way they do
* what small town merchants did for settlers
* how Plains settlers formed new communities
* how railroads redesigned the Plains landscape and how they helped settlers maintain family ties
* and how various factors have altered communities on the Plains.
A genealogy study room is open year round.
Admission: $1.50 adults, $1.00 seniors, $0.75 high school, $0.50 1st-8th grade.
Hours: Open daily, 1-5 p.m., April 1-Oct. 31 and all year by appointment.
Phone: 402-746-2873
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