Dakota County Towns of Yesterday

Omadi

The pioneers of Dakota County created too many town sites. At one time ten towns were founded along the river from Blyburg to Ponca. The first of the extinct towns was Omadi. This town was located five miles south of Dakota City and was founded by George Woods, Chauncey Horr and Moses Kreps who crossed the river in 1855 and built the first log cabin in Dakota County.

In the spring of 1856 settlers began to arrive and the town began to thrive until around four hundred inhabitants arrived. The usual community buildings and services soon sprang up, a hotel, stores, newspaper and post office. The school was built in 1857.

Around 1862 the Missouri river washed away a portion of the town and decay went on until 1865 when every house was removed, some to Dakota City and others to surrounding farms.

Logan

Located by Crystal Lake, Logan grew very rapidly and soon became a rival to Omadi.  By 1858 it reached its height of prosperity containing more than twenty-five homes.  When the Missouri River began to destroy the northern portion, the residents of Logan moved to Dakota City. By 1860 the town was completely deserted.

Goodwin

The village of Goodwin was laid out by Cornelius Duggan in 1889 on a tract of land which was part of his farm.  The town was located ten miles southwest of Jackson.  Cornelius built a general store and later a train depot was constructed in Goodwin.  By 1919 businesses included a bank, school, saloon, elevator and blacksmith shop.

For over forty years the village flourished and held its own during the depression years.  In 1940 the post office was closed and Goodwin soon became a Ghost Town.

Coburn Junction

Coburn Junction consisted of a train depot with outside rest rooms, a dug well with good water, stock yards, a loading chute, two side tracks, a pumping station and an elevated water tank for supplying the steam engines with water.  Coburn was a busy station handling freight and passengers.

In 1919 the original depot burned and a new one was constructed.  Eventually the use of automobiles and trucks eliminated the need for a depot agent.  Coburn gradually faded out of the picture in 1940. 

The extinct town information on this page is from the Nebraska Centennial 1867-1967 book by Mrs. Mildred Moseman.

Other Towns

St. John's was surveyed and platted in 1856 and incorporated in 1857.  It was soon vacated in 1866.  Pacific City, platted October 18, 1856, was situated about where South Sioux City is now.  In 1857 it had about ten good frame buildings, but the residents were becoming discontented and all moved away.  In September of 1856, Blyburg was surveyed and founded in the extreme southeastern part of the county.  In 1858 Franklin City and Verona were incorporated but never contained a single house.  The were other towns of Randolph (1877), Lodi (1874) and Lodi (1874).  Emmett was located in the northern part of the county and discontinued in 1873 and Nacora was located seven miles southwest of Hubbard