Village of Steinauer

The brothers left a parish as well as a name. The Diocese of Lincoln dates St. Anthony parish to 1856, when Joseph, Nicholas and Anthony Steinauer brought the Catholic faith to nearby families. Anthony gave the land for the first church, built in 1882 for $300, and that site is still the cemetery. A $3,000 church followed in 1889 about a mile west, and the present Romanesque church, begun under Father Dowd in 1926, was dedicated in 1927 at a cost of $104,000. Swiss director Karl Saurer's 1997 documentary Steinauer Nebraska follows the brothers' rise and their descendants' losses.

What the plaque says

Village of Steinauer Warnings to avoid "bloody Kansas" prompted the Steinauer brothers, Anton, Nicholas, and Joseph, to settle here in Pawnee County. They arrived in Sep- tember, 1856, only two years after the creation of Nebraska Territory. Famine and depression had forced them to leave their native Switzerland in 1852. Although the brothers were among the first to claim land in this area, other immigrants of Swiss, German, Austrian and Bohemian descent soon settled nearby. Nebraska City became their chief social and trading center. Indians, including the Oto, hunted and trapped in the region. Turkey Creek and Linden were early popular desig- nations for the site which became Steinauer post office in 1874. After the Chicago, Rock Island, and Pacific Railway reached Steinauer in 1887, the village grew steadily and incorporation followed in March 1893. With railroad development, St. Joseph, Missouri became the chief urban market for the agricultural products of Steinauer and the surrounding area. By 1910, the village's peak population of 248 had been achieved. Over the years, the pronunciation of the name evolved to "Steener" though the original spelling has been retained. Today, Steinauer is a quiet community which remains rooted in the history and traditions of its pioneer settlers. Steinauer Historical Society Nebraska State Historical Society

Where it stands

More markers nearby

• Pawnee City — 6.7 mi
• Tecumseh — 11 mi
• Humboldt Commercial Historic District — 13 mi
• Cook — 21 mi