Paxton Nebraska - Nebraska Directory

Paxton Area Cameras

Village · Keith County · Population 516 (2020 census) · ZIP 69155 · Founded 1867 · Peak population 614 (2000)

About Paxton

Paxton is a village of 516 (2020) in eastern Keith County, on US 30 (the Lincoln Highway) and the Union Pacific main line, with I-80 exit 145 about a mile south across the South Platte. It has its own school district, a library and Ole's Big Game Steakhouse. Paxton is on Mountain Time; Lincoln County, just east, is on Central.

History

The Union Pacific built through in 1867 and named its siding here Alkali, for the alkaline soil; telegrapher Edwin Searle Sr. arrived that year and lived in a tent, and his son Edwin Jr., born in 1873, is said to have been the first white child born in Keith County. In 1885 the town was renamed for William A. Paxton, the Omaha cattleman and stockyards founder whose ranches spread across the area; the county's history says it was incorporated the same year. Methodists organized in 1886 and Catholics in 1887, and by 1890 the gazetteer counted about 150 people, the Bank of Paxton and some 35 businesses. The Overland stage and Pony Express station called Alkali (1859–67) was a different place, about 9 miles west near Roscoe.

Rosser O. "Ole" Herstedt opened Ole's tavern at 12:01 a.m. on August 9, 1933, as Prohibition ended in Nebraska, and filled it with more than 200 trophies from hunts on five continents, among them a polar bear taken in 1969. Paxton native Tim Holzfaster bought the business and the collection in 1988 to keep them in town. Paxton reached its largest census count, 614, in 2000. Singer-songwriter Josh Rouse spent his early childhood here.

Highways and trails through Paxton

Route	One way	Other way
US 30The Lincoln Highway, through the village	East to Sutherland (about 12 mi) and North Platte	West to Roscoe and Ogallala (about 19 mi)
I-80Exit 145, about 1 mi south by Link 51C	East to North Platte	West to Ogallala; the Paxton–Elsie Road runs south from the exit to Elsie

Nearby towns

Sutherland	about 12 mi east-northeast	US 30
Roscoe	about 12 mi west	US 30
Keystone	about 14 mi west-northwest	US 30 and county roads
Ogallala	about 19 mi west	US 30 or I-80
Elsie	about 19 mi south	Paxton–Elsie Road
Madrid	about 21 mi south-southwest	County roads

Things to see

Ole's Big Game Steakhouse & Lounge, 123 N. Oak St., open daily except Christmas · the Paxton Public Library, 110 N. Oak St. · the Alkali Station marker on US 30, about 9 mi west · Sarben, about 4 mi northeast, whose name comes from "Aksarben," Nebraska spelled backward · the Paxton Labor Day Celebration (September 5–7 in 2026)

Schools and health care

Schools: Paxton Consolidated Schools, 308 N. Elm St., (308) 239-4283: Paxton Elementary and Paxton High School (7–12)

Health care: Nearest hospital: Ogallala Community Hospital (Banner Health), 2601 N. Spruce St., Ogallala, (308) 284-4011, an 18-bed critical access hospital, about 19 mi

Sources: U.S. Census; Wikipedia; Lilian L. Fitzpatrick, Nebraska Place-Names (1925); Andreas, History of the State of Nebraska (1882); Nebraska State Gazetteer (1890–91); Keith County and City of Ogallala history pages; NEGenWeb Keith County (Keystone history); Newberry Library Atlas of Historical County Boundaries; History Nebraska and its markers; National Register nominations (Keystone Community Church, Brandhoefer Mansion, California Hill, Roscoe State Aid Bridge and others); Robert H. Mahnken, "Ogallala—Nebraska's Cowboy Capital" (Nebraska History, 1947); Andy Adams, The Log of a Cowboy (1903); Central Nebraska Public Power and Irrigation District; Nebraska Game and Parks; Nebraska Department of Transportation; Nebraska DHHS rosters; 2026 Keith County travel guide; news reports (KOLN, KSNB). Distances marked "about" are straight-line estimates.