About Du Bois
Du Bois is a village in the south-east corner of Pawnee County, in south-east Nebraska. It covers about 0.46 square miles and sits at an elevation of 1,050 feet. The 2020 census counted 124 residents. It lies roughly eleven miles south-east of Pawnee City. Locally the name is said do-boys.
History
Du Bois was platted in 1886, when the railroad was extended to that point. It was named for Captain Charles J. DuBois, chief engineer for the Rock Island Railroad. The post office opened in 1887, and rural mail delivery began in 1904. At the line's peak, eight trains a day passed through. A log schoolhouse gave way to a brick building by 1921, and the last high school class graduated in 1954. Two churches were organised, the United Brethren in Christ in 1887 and the United Methodist in 1889, and the two merged in 1945.
Around town
The village has a community centre, a park with playground and picnic space, a bank branch, a grain elevator, a service station, a tavern, a cafe and a welding business. Iron Horse Lake and several wildlife management areas are nearby, along with a restored ZCBJ Czech hall.
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Du Bois was platted in 1886 when the Rock Island Railroad was extended to the site, named for Captain Charles J. DuBois, the railroad's chief engineer, who platted the community himself. A predecessor settlement called Cincinnati had existed about a mile south since the 1850s, and when the railroad bypassed it, its businesses and buildings relocated to the new Du Bois townsite. The village grew to support eight daily trains and peaked at 339 residents in 1910. Du Bois is home to the Rad Jan Kollar cis 101 Z.C.B.J. hall, a Baroque Revival Czech fraternal meeting hall built in 1920-21 and individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places, reflecting the area's Czech immigrant heritage.
Du Bois, platted in 1886 and named for railroad engineer Charles J. DuBois, is home to a National Register-listed Czech fraternal hall.
Navigate & Explore Du Bois
Get directions: search "Du Bois Nebraska" in Waze or Google Maps
Road Conditions: Nebraska 511 — 511.nebraska.gov
Pawnee County Cameras: View Pawnee County cameras