About Clarkson
Clarkson is a city in Colfax County, in north-east Nebraska, about three miles west of where Highways 15 and 91 meet. Norfolk is roughly 35 miles north-west and Columbus roughly 35 miles south-west. The elevation is 1,526 feet and the city covers about eight tenths of a square mile. The 2020 census counted 641 residents, down from 658 in 2010 and 685 in 2000. The town has an opera house, a public library, a historical museum and Memorial Park.
History
Joseph N. Rudersdorf put up the first building and was made postmaster on 24 January 1882. The building served as his residence, a store and the post office at once. When the railroad came, his building and Henry Renner's blacksmith shop were both moved to the present site, and the Rudersdorf place became the Maple Valley House hotel. The town was platted in October 1886 and the first train arrived that December. The name honours T. S. Clarkson, who helped establish the town. Population went from about 20 residents in 1884 to nearly 300 by 1887, when Clarkson incorporated, and passed 900 by 1930.
Czech heritage
The farmland around Clarkson was settled mainly by families of Bohemian descent, alongside German immigrants. The town calls itself the Center of Czechland. It keeps a Bohemian National Garden and holds Czech Days each summer.
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Clarkson is a city in Colfax County, Nebraska, settled in 1882, platted in 1886, and incorporated as a city in July 1887. It was named for T.S. Clarkson, a Schuyler postmaster who helped establish the town. Clarkson developed a strong Bohemian and Czech heritage, reflected today in its Bohemian National Garden and its Z.C.B.J. Opera House and Zion Presbyterian Church, both listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The city is also home to Bluebird Nursery, the largest bedding-plant producer in Nebraska. As of the 2020 census, Clarkson had a population of 641.
Clarkson, settled in 1882 and incorporated in 1887, was named for Schuyler postmaster T.S. Clarkson. Known for its strong Bohemian/Czech heritage, it's home to Bluebird Nursery, the state's largest bedding-plant producer.