A name you remember. A building you pass. A story you want to know. Explore our growing collection of Hooper history.
61 published stories · 20 tour stops · 748 source references · Growing with every discovery
Matching passages and citation notes from our published collection.
Hooper marks its 150th anniversary in 2026, counting from 1876. But people were living on the town site a decade before that, and the streets were drawn on paper five years before it. Depending on which moment you treat as the beginning, Hooper was founded in 1866, in 1871, or in 1876 — and all three have a legitimate claim.
In “A town organized around the railroad”
Railroad names changed over the life of the station. The centennial history describes Hooper’s connection with the Fremont, Elkhorn and Missouri Valley, and later with the Chicago & North Western. The depot photographs preserve that later North Western setting. These are successive parts of Hooper’s railroad history. The broader story of the town’s settlement and plat is covered in When Was Hooper Founded?
Hooper had two distinct banking histories: the Dodge County Bank line began with Lyman and Heimrich in 1882, while the private bank founded in 1886 became the State Bank of Hooper in 1899 and First National Bank in 1900. Their substantial buildings opened in 1900 and 1914, respectively.
A church name in an old Hooper obituary may not appear on a sign today. Zion and Grace became Redeemer. Three congregations came together as Faith United Methodist. The former Faith building now houses Spirit of Peace. Following those names reveals how families built places to worship, teach children and gather with their neighbors—and how those places changed as the community changed.
