The beginnings of the Plainsman Museum trace back to September 1, 1935 – the day the Hamilton County Historical Society was officially formed under the leadership of then-President Frank E. Edgerton and then-Secretary Joe. E Gunnerson. The museum collection began with a handful of donated artifacts housed in the basement of the Hamilton County Courthouse from 1935 to 1943. The museum was first curated by Joe E. Gunnerson.
By the 1940s, the museum’s collection began to exceed its allotted exhibition space within the courthouse. In 1943, the museum was moved to a large house in Aurora. At the time, the home was known as the T. E. Williams residence. In the present day, many locals know the property as the Otto House. For years, the museum’s artifacts remained on display in the house until, again, the volume of items in the collection exceeded the available space. If the museum wanted to remain viable, it would need its own larger building.
Wesley Huenefeld Agricultural Museum interior
In the summer of 1969, under the leadership of then-President Wesley Huenefeld, the Historical Society purchased four acres of land along Highway 14 to build the county museum. In 1973, construction began on the museum’s Main Building. On July 4, 1976, the Plainsman Museum was dedicated and opened to the public as part of America’s bicentennial celebration. In the years following, the museum’s campus would expand to six acres, and it would add an Agricultural Museum (opened in 1986), a one-room schoolhouse (moved to the museum in 1986), the Bates House (moved to the museum in 1998), and a blacksmith shop. Currently, the museum’s buildings house over 60,000 artifacts, and its archives hold extensive local records and photos.
The Plainsman Museum is dedicated specifically to the history of Hamilton County, NE, with a focus on the 1860s – 1950s. Our records, photos, and exhibits help us tell the stories of the people who have called this region home. This includes the Pawnee (the first recorded Native American tribe living in Hamilton County), the pioneers of European heritage, the Civil War veterans and their families who came here seeking a new life after the war, and freed slaves who became settlers in the area. As time marches on, we also continue to collect artifacts, photos, and records that tell the stories of Hamilton County beyond the 1950s.
Currently, the Plainsman Museum has two staff members. Tina Larson is the museum’s Executive Director, and Kathryn Larson is the Social Media Communications Coordinator. As the Executive Director, Tina is highly knowledgeable about the museum’s collection and the history of Hamilton County. Her work involves overseeing day-to-day operations, grant writing, community relations, and growing the vision of the museum.
Meanwhile, Kathryn’s position deals with the museum’s online presence and the graphic design of digital and printed materials. She also helps with research requests, exhibit design, and program organization.
Ever since its opening day, the backbone of the Plainsman Museum has been its volunteers. The success of our institution depends upon the generosity of our volunteers’ time, skills, and enthusiasm for our history. Presently, our volunteer efforts include building exhibits, repairing exhibits, cataloguing items, restoring artifacts, cleaning our galleries, organizing archive files, grounds keeping, and guiding tours. Every day, the museum staff is grateful for the hard work of our volunteers!
General Store Exhibit, Plainsman Museum
This year, one of our biggest projects has been the Hamilton County, Nebraska Celebrate America 250 campaign. This project is spearheaded by the Hamilton County, Nebraska Celebrate America 250 Committee, whose purpose is “to facilitate in cooperation with other community entities a commemoration of this historic event in our nation’s history.” Some of the ways we’ve begun to observe America’s 250th Anniversary have included: a commemorative cookbook with over 350 recipes; event banners for town lampposts in the county; custom-designed banners honoring various local organizations; merch items; a special history exhibition; and a digital video time capsule of Hamilton County in 2025-2026. We are also preparing to celebrate the Plainsman Museum’s 50th Anniversary on July 4, 2026. In addition to these projects, we are currently updating our exhibits with structural upgrades, as well as reorganizing artifacts and placing interactive QR codes for scavenger hunts, video tours, ambient sounds, and read-aloud first-hand accounts of pioneer life.
One of the most astounding things about our collection is that around 98% of it has been donated! We’ve had many generous donors over the years, and this has allowed us to feature artifacts, photographs, and records that present a highly detailed picture of what life was like for those in our county’s past. From old spice boxes to antique tractors; from jukeboxes to porcelain dolls; from Victorian portraits to vintage radios – we have so many pieces of the past for visitors to see!
It’s very hard for us to pick one story to share as we have thousands in our records! Between the stories behind our artifacts, to our newspapers going back to the 1870s, to our photographs and beyond, we have so many stories to tell about Hamilton County’s past. Everything from wartime stories to journeys on covered wagons; from schoolhouse days to life on the farm; from old telephone directories to scrapbook pages – stories both big and small are kept here at the Plainsman Museum.
Follow the Plainsman Museum on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. You can also find the Plainsman Museum online at https://www.plainsmanmuseum.org/. Located in Aurora, NE, they are open Tuesday to Friday from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm and Saturday from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm. The museum’s main building is open year-round, while its other buildings (the Ag Building, the Bates House, the one-room schoolhouse, and the blacksmith shop) are seasonally open from April to October. You can contact the Plainsman Museum by phone at 402-694-6531 or by email at plainsman@hamilton.net. Address: 210 16th Street, Aurora, NE 68818
