Rushville Nebraska - Nebraska Directory

RUSHVILLE WEATHER

City · Sheridan County · County seat · Population 816 (2020 census) · ZIP 69360 · Founded 1885 · Peak population 1,266 (1950)

About Rushville

Rushville is a city of 816 (2020) and the seat of Sheridan County, on Rush Creek at about 3,740 feet. US 20, the Bridges to Buttes Byway, runs through town as 2nd Street. NE 87 comes in with US 20 from Hay Springs and turns north here to Whiteclay and the South Dakota line, and NE 250 starts here and runs about 49 miles south across the Niobrara River and the Sandhills to Lakeside. The western segment of the Cowboy Trail follows the old railroad grade 16 miles east through Clinton to Gordon. Rushville is on Mountain Time.

History

Settlers founded Rush Valley in 1884 about 2 miles north of the present town, in the meadows along Rush Creek, which was named for its rushes. When the Fremont, Elkhorn & Missouri Valley Railroad, later the Chicago & North Western, built west in 1885 and missed it, the merchants moved to the railroad, and the new town was incorporated on October 9, 1885. Frank Sprague was the first postmaster. Rushville was the temporary county seat in 1885. In the November 1885 election Hay Springs won on the official count after a precinct's padded vote for Rushville was thrown out; Rushville went to court, and the Nebraska Supreme Court confirmed it as the seat in 1888.

The county rented offices until the courthouse was built in 1904. David Gourley, who also brought electricity to town, built his opera house in 1914; it became the Plains Theatre in 1938. Modisett Ball Park, built in 1940, was home to a Milwaukee Braves baseball school and tryout camp for ten years from 1954. The population peaked at 1,266 in 1950. The railroad was abandoned in 2006–07, and part of its grade is now the Cowboy Trail. Rushville people include publisher John Gottschalk, NFL quarterback Kelly Stouffer and the painter and dancer Hubert Stowitts.

Highways and trails through Rushville

Route	One way	Other way
US 20The Bridges to Buttes Byway, 2nd Street through town	West to Hay Springs and Chadron	East to Clinton, Gordon and Valentine
NE 87Runs with US 20 west to Hay Springs	North to Whiteclay and Pine Ridge, South Dakota	South through Hay Springs to Alliance
NE 250Begins at US 20 in Rushville	South across the Niobrara past Smith Lake to Lakeside and NE 2	North end at US 20

Nearby towns

Clinton	about 7 mi east-northeast	US 20
Hay Springs	about 12 mi west	US 20
Gordon	about 15 mi east-northeast	US 20
Whiteclay	about 20 mi north-northwest	NE 87
Pine Ridge, South Dakota	about 22 mi north-northwest	NE 87
Chadron	about 28 mi west-northwest	US 20
Lakeside	about 45 mi south	NE 250
Alliance	about 47 mi south-southwest	NE 87

Things to see

the 1904 Sheridan County Courthouse, 301 E. 2nd St. (National Register) · the Plains Theatre, Gourley's Opera House of 1914, at 208 E. 2nd St. (National Register), home of the Sheridan County Players · the Sheridan County Historical Museum and Armstrong House, 438 US 20, with the first Rushville post office, art by Andrew Standing Soldier and the Benschoter Library (summer weekdays; (308) 360-0299) · the Rushville historical marker and Wall of History in Main Street Park, US 20 and S. Main St. · the indoor Modisett Swimming Pool (summer) and Modisett Ball Park · Sand Ridge Golf Course, 9 holes on Golf Course Ln. on the south side of town · the Cowboy Trail, 16 miles east to Gordon on the old railroad grade · Smith Lake WMA, 23 miles south on NE 250, and Walgren Lake State Recreation Area, about 12 miles west

Schools and health care

Schools: Gordon-Rushville Public Schools (district office 810 N. Oak St., Gordon, (308) 282-1323): Gordon-Rushville Elementary–Rushville (PK–5), 401 Sprague St., and Gordon-Rushville Middle School (6–8), 310 Sprague St., (308) 327-2491; the high school is in Gordon

Health care: Rushville Medical Clinic (Gordon Memorial), 309 W. 3rd St., (308) 327-2757; Parkview Lodge assisted living, 307 Conrad St.; nearest hospital Gordon Memorial, about 15 mi

Sources: U.S. Census; Wikipedia; Who's Who in Nebraska, Sheridan County (1940); NEGenWeb Sheridan County (Evans and Manion accounts, Perkey data); Nebraska State Gazetteer (1890); Fitzpatrick, Nebraska Place-Names; History Nebraska and its markers; National Register nominations; Nebraska Game and Parks; Nebraska Department of Transportation; Nebraska Emergency Management Agency; U.S. Bureau of Reclamation; Sheridan County; Sheridan County Historical Society; Visit Sheridan County; Visit Nebraska; Gordon-Rushville Public Schools; Hay Springs Public Schools; Sheridan County Journal Star; Nebraska Examiner; Nebraska Public Media; Clint D. Andersen, Potash (2003). Distances marked "about" are straight-line estimates.