Burt County, Nebraska

Burt County, Nebraska

County seat: Tekamah · Created: November 23, 1854 · Named for: Francis Burt, first governor of Nebraska Territory · License plate prefix: 31 · Population: 6,722 (2020 census) · Area: 492 sq mi of land

About Burt County

Burt County is one of the eight counties proclaimed by acting Governor Thomas Cuming on November 23, 1854. It is named for Francis Burt of South Carolina, the territory's first governor, who died days after taking office. Tekamah was claimed in October 1854 and made the county seat by the legislature on March 14, 1855; it has been the seat ever since. The present Beaux Arts courthouse was built in 1916–17. In 1879 the north line was moved about 8¼ miles north.

The Missouri River forms the eastern boundary, with wide bottomland below the bluffs; Logan Creek drains the rolling uplands to the west. The Omaha & North-Western railroad reached Tekamah in 1876, Oakland in 1879 and Lyons in 1880, and Craig grew up as a water stop in 1881; the lines were abandoned between 1963 and 1980. Swedish settlers made Oakland "the Swedish capital of Nebraska." Decatur, laid out in 1855, never got a railroad but has the only Missouri River bridge in the county. The county has no hospital since Oakland's ended inpatient care in 2021. The population peaked at 13,062 in 1930.

Towns of Burt County

Travel Corridors

US Highway 75 — north–south along the bluffs from Herman through Tekamah to Decatur and Macy. US 75 Corridor →

US Highway 77 — north–south up the Logan Creek valley from Uehling through Oakland and Lyons to Rosalie and Walthill.

NE 32 — east–west from West Point through Oakland and Craig to its end at US 75 in Tekamah. NE 51 — from US 77 north of Lyons east to Decatur and across the Missouri River to Onawa, Iowa, on the 1955 Burt County Missouri River Bridge, the county's only river crossing.

Burt County Business Directory

Businesses within 20 miles of: Tekamah · Oakland · Lyons · Decatur · Craig · All listings →

Adjacent Counties

Thurston County (north) · Cuming County (west) · Dodge County (southwest) · Washington County (south) · Monona and Harrison counties, Iowa (east, across the Missouri River)

Events

Decatur Riverfront Days is held in June, the Burt County Fair in Oakland in mid-July (July 17–21 in 2026), and Tekamah's Sweet Corn Festival in late July or early August. The Burt County Museum's Fantasy of Trees runs from late November through December.

Outdoors — Camping, RV, Hunting & Fishing

Burt County has two state recreation areas, town campgrounds in each of its cities and Decatur, and public access to the Missouri River at Decatur and Pelican Point. A Nebraska park permit is required at the state areas.

State recreation areas

Summit Lake State Recreation Area, 2787 County Road G, west of Tekamah: a 190-acre lake on 345 acres with 43 electric and 25 basic campsites, showers, a dump station, two boat ramps (5 mph limit), a beach, an archery range, 2 miles of hike-bike trail and the 10-mile Centennial equestrian trail. Reservations 1-844-637-2757.

Pelican Point State Recreation Area, 4699 County Road KL, on the Missouri River northeast of Tekamah: 36 acres, six primitive campsites, a boat ramp and dock, vault toilets, no drinking water. Phone 402-468-5611.

Town campgrounds

Beck Memorial Park, Decatur, on the Missouri: about 25 water and electric sites (some 50-amp), showers and a dump station, April–October. Island Park Campground, Lyons, on Logan Creek: electric sites, showers and a dump station, no reservations. Tekamah Memorial Park: eight 30-amp sites with a dump station nearby. Oakland City Park also has camping.

Missouri River and wildlife areas

Boats can be launched at Decatur and Pelican Point. Middle Decatur Bend (939 acres) and Little Sioux Bend (190 acres), owned by the Corps of Engineers, lie on the Iowa side of the river channel and are reached by boat. Check current Game and Parks rules and the river level before going.

Golf

Northridge Country Club, 3398 County Road H, Tekamah: 18 holes, par 72, public. Oakland Golf Club, 100 N. Parsons Ave.: 18 holes, par 72, semi-private.

Burt County at a Glance

Burt County, Nebraska — one of the eight original counties of Nebraska Territory, created November 23, 1854, on the Missouri River north of Omaha. County seat Tekamah.

Getting there: US 75 serves Tekamah and Decatur; US 77 serves Oakland and Lyons; NE 32 links Oakland, Craig and Tekamah; NE 51 crosses the Missouri at Decatur to Onawa, Iowa.

For visitors: the Swedish Heritage Center in Oakland, the Burt County Museum in Tekamah, camping and boating at Summit Lake and Pelican Point, and the Burt County Fair in Oakland each July. The nearest hospitals are in Blair, West Point, Pender and Onawa, Iowa.