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History · Belle

Belle’s history is
mostly unwritten

The public archives hold no old photos of Belle. The rest are in attics, shoeboxes and the historical society. Help start the collection.

0old images & papers
0recent photos

The story so far

from Wikipedia & the U.S. Census

Belle Township is one of thirty-seven townships in Holt County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 38 at the 2020 census. A 2023 estimate placed the township's population at 38.

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 40 to 48 (+20%). Half of its homes were built before 1972.

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Belle yet — the old photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Intro from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Population and housing: U.S. Census Bureau.

Be one of the first

Start Belle’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Belle’s history is told.

0 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Famous people from BelleWriters, athletes, leaders and more who were born in Belle.Meet them →
By decade

Belle, decade by decade

Before
2000
No old photos in the archives yetWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
📷 Add from your album
National Register of Historic Places

Nothing in Belle is on the National Register yet

That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Belle has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Brantly Sturdevant House in Atkinson, 11.3 miles away.

Belle and the nearest listed places

Dashed line = Belle. Tap a dot.
Brantly Sturdevant HouseRouse RanchSt. Patrick’s Catholic ChurchUS Post Office-O'NeillHolt County CourthouseOld Nebraska State Bank Building

Closest to Belle

Brantly Sturdevant HouseAtkinson · Building11.3miRouse RanchPaddock · District12.9miSt. Patrick’s Catholic ChurchO'Neill · Building17miUS Post Office-O'NeillO'Neill · Building17.1miHolt County CourthouseO'Neill · Building17.1mi

How a place gets listed

1Talk to the stateEvery nomination goes through the State Historic Preservation Office. Owners, towns and historical societies can start one.
2Try a local or state list firstMany states keep their own register with a shorter form, a common first step for old barns, halls and schoolhouses.
3Write it upA nomination covers the history, photos and a map. Brantly Sturdevant House’s page links to a real one.
Know an old place in Belle?A mill, a schoolhouse, a cellar hole, a church: add a photo of it to Belle’s story, or a memory of it.
📷 Add a photo of an old place
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places · photos from Wikimedia Commons

Then & now

When neighbors add old photos, retakes from the same spot appear here side by side.

Stories next door

nearby towns’ history
📜 Rock Falls📜 Pleasant View📜 Sand Creek📜 Saratoga
We left the porch light on

Where to, neighbor?

You’re in Belle, NEHolt CountyView boundary

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/15 · 2025-01-01
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