Loup City Nebraska

About Loup City

Loup City is the county seat of Sherman County, in central Nebraska. The city covers about 0.94 square miles and had a population of 1,053 at the 2020 census. It sits in the valley of the Middle Loup River, roughly five miles from Sherman Reservoir. The name comes from the Loup valley. Loup is the French word for wolf, a translation of the Pawnee name Skidi.

History

The first settlement here was made in the mid 1860s. Sherman County was organized in 1873, and Loup City was its county seat. The first courthouse was built in 1878 at a cost of 5,000 dollars. It burned the same day the commissioners accepted the bid, and rebuilding took four years. Work on the present tan brick courthouse began in 1920, and the building was dedicated on 8 October 1921. Irrigation in the valley began in 1895, with a ditch drawing water from the Loup River between Arcadia and Loup City.

Polish heritage

Loup City has long described itself as the Polish capital of Nebraska. Saint Josaphat's Church holds stained glass windows from the early 1900s commemorating area families, most of them with Polish names. A Polish Days celebration is held the first weekend of June.

The 1934 clash

In June 1934, during the Great Depression, Loup City was the site of a clash between leftist activists and area residents, following an effort by Communist organizers to unionise workers at a local poultry processing plant.

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