South Bend Nebraska - Nebraska Directory

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Village · Cass County · Population 92 (2020 census) · ZIP 68058 · Founded 1857 · Peak population 232 (1880)

About South Bend

South Bend is a village of 92 on NE 66 at a bend of the Platte River in northern Cass County, about 4 miles east of I-80 exit 426. The exit-426 attractions—Mahoney State Park, the SAC & Aerospace Museum and the Wildlife Safari—are in Cass County though they use Ashland mailing addresses, and South Bend is the nearest Cass County town.

History

T. W. Fountain and W. D. Hill settled near here in 1856, speculators platted the town in 1857, and Henry Keyes built the first house in 1860. The Burlington & Missouri River Railroad built a grain house here in 1870 that served as the depot, and the post office opened about 1872. A wagon bridge to Sarpy County, built in 1879, washed out in the spring of 1881 and was replaced by a ferry.

In 1881 South Bend had two elevators, three general stores, three drugstores and two hotels, shipped 353 carloads of corn and organized a Congregational church; the 1880 census counted 232 people, its highest. The BNSF main line still runs through town. The former Rock Island trestle east of town became the Lied Platte River Bridge trail in 2002.

Highways and trails through South Bend

Route	One way	Other way
NE 66 (Park Hwy.)Through the village	West to I-80 exit 426 and Mahoney State Park (about 4 mi)	East to Louisville and NE 50 (about 5 mi)
I-80Exit 426 (NE 66)	East across the Platte to Gretna and Omaha	West to Greenwood (exit 420) and Lincoln

Nearby towns

Louisville	about 4.7 mi east	NE 66
Murdock	about 5 mi south-southwest	County roads
Ashland	about 7 mi west-northwest	NE 66 and I-80
Manley	about 7 mi southeast	County roads
Springfield	about 8 mi northeast	MoPac Trail
Cedar Creek	about 8 mi east-northeast	NE 66
Wabash	about 8 mi south	County roads
Gretna	about 10 mi north	I-80
Greenwood	about 10 mi west-southwest	I-80

Things to see

Lied Platte River Bridge, about 1 mi east: a 1,714-foot trail bridge to Springfield's MoPac Trail · Eugene T. Mahoney State Park, about 4 mi west-northwest: 673 acres with a lodge, cabins, camping and a 70-foot tower (the aquatic center was closed in 2026) · Strategic Air Command & Aerospace Museum, 28210 W. Park Hwy.: an SR-71, a B-36 and a B-52 among its aircraft (adults $18) · Lee G. Simmons Wildlife Safari, a 4-mile drive-through park near exit 426 · Platte River State Park, about 2.3 mi east-southeast · Quarry Oaks Golf Club, 18 holes on NE 66 · Round the Bend Steakhouse on NE 66 · the Platte River Rest Area on eastbound I-80

Schools and health care

Schools: No school in South Bend

Health care: No hospital in South Bend

Sources: U.S. Census; Wikipedia; Andreas, History of the State of Nebraska (1882); History Nebraska; National Register of Historic Places; Nebraska Game and Parks; Nebraska Department of Transportation; Cass County and village websites; school district, library and museum websites. Distances marked "about" are straight-line estimates.