National Register of Historic Places

Dobytown

Kearney, Kearney County, Nebraska
Listed
December 16, 1974
Type
Site
Period
Listed
Ref No.
74001125

About this property

Dobytown is a ghost town in Kearney County, Nebraska, United States, three miles west of Fort Kearny. Officially named Kearney City, the community was established in 1859. The town was given the common name of Dobytown because it contained mostly adobe buildings. Although the community no longer exists, the site was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1974. The site is located at an altitude of 2,129 feet (649 m). As one of the most important stops for travelers between Independence, Missouri, and the West Coast, Dobytown evolved to meet the needs of the thousands of soldiers, traders, teamsters, and pioneers traveling west. Gambling, liquor, and prostitution were among its main attractions. Dobytown also served as the major outfitting point west of the Missouri River, the center of frontier transportation from 1860 to 1866. A Pony Express station was located in Dobytown, and it was the first county seat of Kearney County. One of Dobytown's most famous visitors, General William Tecumseh Sherman, described the horrible whiskey he was served there as tanglefoot. The completion of the Union Pacific Railroad in 1869 reduced the travel along the trail and by the fort. The U.S. Army issued an order for abandonment of Fort Kearny on 22 May 1871. This caused Dobytown to be abandoned.

Location

Kearney, Kearney County, Nebraska

Categories

COMMERCEHISTORIC - NON-ABORIGINALMILITARY
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Everything a full report reveals about Dobytown

This page lists Dobytown. A full Aubrey report for an address near it pulls together this listing alongside battlefield records, land patents, and every other historical record within a chosen radius:

Overview
An interactive map of the location with historic sites, battles and Native heritage plotted, and its full story era by era.
The Land
The historic sites and place names around the location, and how this land was settled and used.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back millions of years.
LiDAR Terrain
Laser-scanned terrain that reveals earthworks and old features hidden in the landscape.
Conflict & War
The battles, raids and skirmishes fought near here, across every era of American conflict.
The Civil War
The Civil War on this ground, 1861 to 1865: who held it, and the battles, camps and regiments nearby.
The Soldiers
The men who marched from here in the Civil War, named and traced where the record allows.
Native Heritage
The Native nations who held this land, mapped across time from before European contact to today.
Settlement
Who claimed and held this ground, from Indigenous homelands through the colonial powers to the United States.
The Community
How the town grew, who came, and what kind of place it became, traced through the census record.
Rivers & Rail
The rivers, canals and railroads that connected this place between 1830 and 1911.
Notable People
The people born, buried or genuinely tied to this exact place, with their stories.
Historical Maps
Historic maps of the location layered over how it looks today.
Finds & Access
Museum objects tied to the area, and the laws on searching, collecting and access here.
Literature
The old books, county histories and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Spotlight
A deep dive into the most remarkable, lesser-known history of the place, traced back to the record.
Points of Interest
The most significant historic sites and landmarks near the location, and why they matter.
Timeline
The whole story of the location told era by era, from first peoples to the present day.
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Questions about this property

When was Dobytown listed on the National Register?

Dobytown was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on December 16, 1974.

What type of historic resource is Dobytown?

Dobytown is classified as a site in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Dobytown?

The period of significance for Dobytown is recorded as the listed era.

Can I research the history near Dobytown?

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