In 1879 construction of tracks connecting the Union Pacific's
main line at Grand Island with the
St. Joseph and Western Railroad at Hastings provided a key link
in a railroad empire controlled
by New York financier, Jay Gould. The link freed the Union Pacific
from the competition of
connecting lines at its eastern terminus in Omaha by providing
a route bypassing Iowa.
Like other railroads built throughout Nebraska in the 1880s, the
St. Joe contributed to local
settlement and development. In 1879 local pioneer William J. Burger
platted the town of
Doniphan midway between Grand Island and Hastings. The village
and township were named
after Col. John Doniphan of St. Joseph, Missouri, an attorney
for the railroad.
After completion of the Grand Island line, the railroad was
reorganized as the St. Joseph and
Grand Island Railroad and for most of its history was part of
the Union Pacific system.
Construction of a Hastings to Gibbon cutoff in 1914 provided a
shorter route to the Union Pacific
main line, and use of the line through Doniphan gradually declined.
It was abandoned in 1989.
Hall County Historical Society
Nebraska State Historical Society
Village of Doniphan, Doniphan Township
Nebraska Department of Roads
U.S. 34/U.S. 281, Village of Doniphan, Pine Street
Hall County
Marker 387