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Town Overview
Davey is a village of 135 on 0.15 square miles at an elevation of about 1,296 feet, roughly 12 miles north of Lincoln. Population has held near flat: 153 in 2000, 154 in 2010, 135 in 2020.
The village was established in 1886 when the Fremont, Elkhorn and Missouri Valley Railroad extended into the Rock Creek area, and named for Michael Davey, a pioneer citizen. Growth was quick at first — by 1891 Davey had a livery barn, an ice house, a meat market and a barber shop among other businesses — but a major fire in 1919 set the village back.
Davey Hall, built as a WPA project in the 1930s, still stands. The last train ran in 1981, and the tracks have since been converted to a hiking trail.
Adjacent Counties & Nearby Towns
Lancaster County is Nebraska's second most populous county, with 322,608 residents in 2020 across 846 square miles, and its seat is Lincoln, the state capital. It borders Saunders County to the north, Cass County to the northeast, Otoe County and Johnson County to the southeast, Gage County to the south, Saline County to the southwest, and Seward County and Butler County to the northwest.
Nearest towns. Raymond is about 6 miles west, Waverly about 9 miles southeast and Malcolm about 12 miles west-southwest. Ceresco and Valparaiso, both in the same school district, lie north over the Saunders County line. Downtown Lincoln is about 12 miles south. Distances given here are straight-line measurements.
Points of Interest & Events
The rail trail. The Fremont, Elkhorn and Missouri Valley line that created Davey in 1886 carried its last train in 1981; the right-of-way has been converted to a hiking trail, so the thing that built the village now serves it as recreation.
Davey Hall — A Works Progress Administration project from the 1930s and one of the more tangible pieces of New Deal building still in use in this part of Lancaster County.
Events. No recurring town-wide celebration could be independently verified for Davey at the time of writing, so none is claimed here.
Education & Health
Schools. Davey is part of Raymond Central Public Schools, a Class C-2 district formed by consolidation in 1967 covering about 169 square miles north of Lincoln and serving Davey, Raymond, Ceresco, Valparaiso and Agnew. Buildings are in Ceresco (K–5), Valparaiso (K–6) and near Agnew Road (7–12).
Health care. There is no hospital in Davey. Lincoln, about 12 miles south, has the region's full range of hospital care.
Highway Access
Davey lies on the county road network north of Lincoln, close to the Nebraska Highway 79 corridor that runs north out of the city.
The nearest interstate is Interstate 80, which passes to the south on the north side of Lincoln. Lincoln Airport is the nearest commercial airport, about 12 miles south.
Davey is a village of 135 about 12 miles north of Lincoln, established in 1886 when the Fremont, Elkhorn and Missouri Valley Railroad reached the Rock Creek area and named for pioneer Michael Davey. A fire in 1919 checked its early growth. Davey Hall, a 1930s WPA project, still stands, and the railbed — last train 1981 — is now a hiking trail. It is part of Raymond Central Public Schools.
Navigate & Explore Davey
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