Talmage Nebraska - Nebraska Directory

Talmage Area Cameras

Village · Otoe County · Population 198 (2020 census) · ZIP 68448 · Founded 1882 · Peak population 525 (1920)

About Talmage

Talmage is a village of 198 in southern Otoe County, on a half-mile spur (S-66D) west of NE 67, about 13 miles southwest of Nebraska City. A state historical marker in the city park tells its story.

History

Settlers were farming here by the late 1850s. When the Missouri Pacific built its Kansas City–Omaha line in 1881, farmer and cattle feeder Clark Puffer gave a cornfield for the town site, declined to have it called Pufferville, and the town was platted on March 7, 1882; the first train came that month. It was named for Archibald A. Talmage, the railroad's superintendent. By 1892 Talmage was a junction, with a branch west to Crete.

Fires burned the business district in 1891 and 1894, and a 100-foot standpipe and a fire company followed. A creamery opened in 1888; its pond was later restored as Gritzka Pond. Zion Church began services in 1883. The population peaked at 525 in 1920. Talmage and Cook formed Nemaha Valley Schools in 1967, which joined Tecumseh as Johnson County Central in 2007. Actor Anthony Dexter, star of Valentino (1951), was born here in 1913. The town marked its centennial in 1982 with a caboose and a historical marker.

Highways and trails through Talmage

Route	One way	Other way
NE 67Just east of the village; spur S-66D leads in	North to Lorton, NE 128 and Dunbar	South into Nemaha County

Nearby towns

Lorton	about 4.5 mi north	NE 67
Brock	about 4.8 mi southeast	NE 67
Cook	about 7 mi west-southwest	County roads
Johnson	about 8 mi south	County roads
Dunbar	about 9 mi north	NE 67
Syracuse	about 12 mi northwest	NE 67 and NE 128
Nebraska City	about 13 mi northeast	NE 67 and NE 128
Auburn	about 14 mi southeast	County roads
Burr	about 14 mi west	County roads

Things to see

The Talmage historical marker (No. 277, 1982), on the west side of the city park on Market St. · the centennial caboose · Gritzka Pond, the old creamery pond · Zion UCC, 302 Carol St. (congregation from 1883) · Faith Lutheran Church, 108 Carol St. · St. John's Church and cemetery, 4403 O Rd., in the country about 3.7 mi north

Schools and health care

Schools: Johnson County Central Public Schools (buildings in Tecumseh and Cook)

Health care: No clinic in Talmage; the nearest hospitals are in Nebraska City, Syracuse, Tecumseh and Auburn

Sources: U.S. Census; Wikipedia; Andreas, History of the State of Nebraska (1882); Johnson, History of Nebraska (1880); History Nebraska; National Register of Historic Places; Nebraska Game and Parks; Nebraska Department of Transportation; Nebraska DHHS hospital roster; village, school, library and museum websites. Distances marked "about" are straight-line estimates.