Boone County, Nebraska

Boone County, Nebraska

County seat: Albion · Created: March 1, 1871; organized July 28, 1871 · Named for: frontiersman Daniel Boone · License plates: prefix 23 · Population: 5,379 (2020 census); peak 14,738 in 1930 · Area: 687 sq mi · Time zone: Central

About Boone County

Boone County lies in the farm country of east-central Nebraska, drained by Beaver Creek and the Cedar River, both flowing southeast toward the Loup. It has two cities, Albion, the county seat, and St. Edward; three villages, Cedar Rapids, Petersburg and Primrose; and the small communities of Loretto and Raeville. Akron is a former town. The county borders Antelope County on the north, Madison on the northeast, Platte on the southeast, Nance on the south, Greeley on the southwest and Wheeler on the northwest.

The county was created on March 1, 1871, and organized on July 28, 1871, when its first commissioners took office. Albion won the county seat from the rival town of Boone in October 1872, 67 to 21, and the seat was fixed there in 1873. The Union Pacific reached Albion in 1880 and built branches to Cedar Rapids in 1884 and through St. Edward in 1883; the Chicago & North Western’s line through Petersburg followed in 1886–87. Wheat came first, then corn and oats. The county peaked at 14,738 people in 1930. Its Catholic parishes left landmarks such as the twin-towered St. Bonaventure Church at Raeville. The Omaha leader Logan Fontenelle was killed by a Sioux war party near present Petersburg in July 1855.

Towns of Boone County

Travel Corridors

NE 14 — north–south through the middle of the county, from Fullerton through Albion, Loretto and Petersburg to Elgin and Neligh. Highway 14 Corridor →

NE 91 — east–west from Spalding and US 281 through Albion toward NE 45 at the Platte County line. Highway 91 Corridor →

NE 39 runs from Genoa through St. Edward to NE 14 near Albion; NE 56 runs from US 281 near Greeley through Cedar Rapids to St. Edward; NE 52 runs from Fullerton through Cedar Rapids and Primrose to NE 91; and NE 32 begins at Petersburg. No US highway or Interstate crosses the county.

Cameras: View Boone County cameras → · Road conditions: Nebraska 511

Things to See

The St. Bonaventure Church Complex at Raeville (National Register), dedicated in 1919, with twin 100-foot towers and 21 stained-glass windows; the Boone County Historical Society Museum in Albion; the Logan Fontenelle markers at Petersburg; Highway 14 Brewing in Albion; and the National Register Carnegie library and post office in Albion, city hall and St. Anthony’s Church in Cedar Rapids, and the Petersburg Jail.

Outdoors

Boone County has no state park or state recreation area. Beaver Bend WMA, 27 acres just northwest of St. Edward, is the county’s public hunting area; most hunting is on private land and Open Fields and Waters walk-in tracts. City campgrounds: Fuller Park in Albion (hookups, showers, aquatic center), Mel’s Landing and the East Campground on the Cedar River at Cedar Rapids, and the Petersburg city park. Paddlers and anglers use the Cedar River and Beaver Creek.

Boone County Business Directory

Businesses within 20 miles of: Albion · St. Edward · Cedar Rapids · Petersburg · All listings →

Adjacent Counties

Antelope County (north) · Madison County (northeast) · Platte County (southeast) · Nance County (south) · Greeley County (southwest) · Wheeler County (northwest).

Events

Each year: the Boone County Fair at Albion in mid-July, and the Rae Valley Old Threshers Reunion and antique tractor and horse plowing bee near Petersburg on the last full weekend of August.