Wilber is the seat of Saline County and had 1,937 residents at the 2020 census. It was platted in 1873 by C. D. Wilber and named for him, and it took the county seat from Pleasant Hill in 1878.
Czech settlement defines the town. More than 50,000 Czechs came to Nebraska between the 1850s and the First World War, many of them from Bohemia, and a good share of them settled in and around villages like Wilber. Nebraska Czechs, formed in 1962 to preserve that heritage, pressed for national recognition, and in 1987 President Ronald Reagan designated Wilber the Czech Capital of the United States. A state historical marker in town notes a separate designation by the governor as the Czech Capital of Nebraska.
The annual Czech festival dates to 1962 and is held on the first weekend of August, with a parade, costume contests, Czech food and the Miss Czech-Slovak US Pageant. Attendance has run around 30,000 in recent years. The Wilber Czech Museum on West Third Street fills three floors with rooms recreated from Czech settler life, from a dentist office to a meat market, and admission is free by appointment. Hotel Wilber, built in 1895 with a two story columned portico, has been listed in the National Register of Historic Places since 1978.
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Wilber is the county seat of Saline County, Nebraska, platted in 1873 by C. D. Wilber, for whom it is named. The county seat moved here from Pleasant Hill in 1878 following contested elections, in a dramatic records transfer that used roughly 300 people and 160 wagons.
With 1,937 residents at the 2020 Census, Wilber is officially designated the "Czech Capital of the USA," a title bestowed by President Reagan in 1987, and hosts the annual Czech Days festival each August celebrating its Czech immigrant heritage.
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Road Conditions: Nebraska 511 — 511.nebraska.gov
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