Arapahoe Nebraska - Nebraska Directory

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City · Furnas County · Population 1,002 (2020 census) · ZIP 68922 · Founded 1871 · Peak population 1,226 (1950)

About Arapahoe

Arapahoe is a city of 1,002 in northern Furnas County, on the bottomland north of the Republican River between Elk and Muddy creeks, where US 6/34 crosses US 283. It has Arapahoe Public Schools, a Tri Valley clinic, the county historical museum and a nine-hole golf course.

History

A town company formed at Plattsmouth in early 1871 under Capt. E. B. Murphy chose the site; its settlers arrived on July 6, 1871, surveyed the town on July 18 and named it for the Arapaho people. A "first homestead" marker dated May 1, 1871, stands on West Street. The post office opened in 1872, with George W. Love as postmaster. Arapahoe's returns arrived on time after the county's organizing election of April 8, 1873, while a snowstorm held up Beaver City's, so Arapahoe was certified as county seat; Beaver City won the October 1873 election, and after about three years in the courts the seat stayed there.

Regular trains on the Burlington's Republican Valley line began in the spring of 1880, and Arapahoe became the principal grain market of the county, with about 600 people in 1882. The Arapahoe Public Mirror, founded in 1882, still publishes. Arno B. Cammerer was born here on July 31, 1883; he directed the National Park Service from 1933 to 1940. A WPA project in the 1930s built the city pool and solarium. The 1935 flood reached the railroad tracks, and its high-water line still shows on the old light-plant wall south of town. The population peaked at 1,226 in 1950.

Highways and trails through Arapahoe

Route	One way	Other way
US 6 / US 34East–west through town on Chestnut Street	East past the US 136 junction toward Holdrege	West to Holbrook (about 6 mi) and Cambridge
US 283North–south through town on Nebraska Avenue	North to Elwood and I-80 at Lexington	South past NE 89 into Kansas (Norton)

Nearby towns

Holbrook	about 6 mi west	US 6/34
Edison	about 7 mi east-southeast	US 6/34 and US 136
Beaver City	about 12 mi south-southeast	US 283 and NE 89
Hendley	about 13 mi south-southwest	US 283 and NE 89
Cambridge	about 14 mi west	US 6/34
Oxford	about 14 mi east-southeast	US 6/34 and US 136
Elwood	about 20 mi north	US 283

Things to see

The Furnas-Gosper Historical Society Museum, 401 Nebraska Ave., weekends May–September · the Marking First Homestead in Furnas County marker at West and Vine streets · Arapahoe City Park, 507 7th St., with the heated pool called The Plunge and a splash pad · St. Germanus Catholic Church and its Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima · Long Dogs Distilling, brandy and whiskey from Nebraska fruit and grain · Arapahoe Municipal Golf Course & Country Club, 9 holes about 3 mi south · Arapahoe Public Library, 306 Nebraska Ave. · Prairie Pioneer Days in July, with one of the biggest fireworks shows in southwest Nebraska

Schools and health care

Schools: Arapahoe Public Schools (district 33-0018): Arapahoe Elementary (PK–6) and Arapahoe High School (7–12), 610 Walnut St.

Health care: Arapahoe Medical Clinic (Tri Valley), 305 Nebraska Ave., Arapahoe, (308) 962-8495; hospital: Tri Valley Health System (Cambridge Memorial Hospital), 1305 US 6 & 34, Cambridge, (308) 697-3329, about 14 mi

Sources: U.S. Census; Wikipedia; Andreas, History of the State of Nebraska (1882); Nebraska State Gazetteer (1890); Who's Who in Nebraska, Furnas County (1940); Fitzpatrick, Nebraska Place-Names (1925); Southwest Nebraska Genealogical Society and NEGenWeb Furnas County; Furnas County website and 2025 Comprehensive Plan; History Nebraska and its historical markers; National Register of Historic Places; Nebraska Game and Parks; U.S. Bureau of Reclamation; Nebraska Department of Transportation; Nebraska Department of Revenue; Nebraska Library Commission; school, hospital and city websites. Distances marked "about" are straight-line estimates.