Centennial Hall and Museum

The bond issue to build the Valentine Public School was approved in February 1897. It was designed by
Omaha architect Charles F. Beindorff, and construction was completed in 1898. The two-story brick structure
was built for primary and secondary students of Cherry County School District 1. Listed on the National Historic Register, the building is Nebraska's oldest standing high school.

The building incorporates
Queen Anne and Romanesque Revival design elements with a native stone foundation and wrought iron fire escapes and a rich melange of materials and forms. It is owned by the Centennial Hall Corporation, a non-profit organization which uses it for community functions. It serves as a heritage museum of outstanding personal collections which are beautifully displayed.

The spacious rooms are filled with history exhibits ... of the way things were in the area; thus it continues as an institution of learning. The Hallock Bells Collection is housed in one of the rooms and features over 1,700 bells beautifully displayed; The Dukat Room has an outstanding collection of plates and family items. Also included is a Class Picture/Trophy Room, a Chapel, a One-Room School, a House of Yesteryear Room, a Military Room and a Western Heritage Room. Nine albums filled with early day photographs by an amateur photographer are priceless in the history they preserve.

Admission: Admission: $2.00 Adults and $1.00 for children kindergarten through 8th grade.
Hours: Hours: First Saturday in May through Labor Day, Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, 1:00 to 5:00 p.m., or by appointment.
Address: Third and Macomb Streets
Phone: (402) 376-2015
Handicap Accessible

Cherry County Courthouse - NHR

Although Cherry County is the largest county (in square miles) in Nebraska, early settlement did not occur until the late 1870s. By the early 1880s, however, settlement began to increase spurred on, in part, by the construction of the railroad. In 1883

Valentine, NE National Register

National Wildlife Refuges

One of the world's unique geological areas,k the 19,000-square-mile Sandhills in north-central Nebraska is a vast region of sand dunes blown in by winds about 8,000 years ago. The nearby unchartable maze of grass-covered dunes scared away early pioneers.

Valentine, NE Wildlife Refuges

Post Office Mural - NHR

The former Valentine United States Post Office, constructed in 1936-37, is a one-story, brick and limestone Modernistic style building. While the building retains a high degree of integrity, its national historical significance derives

Valentine, NE National Register

Walcott House - NHR

This one-and-one-half-story frame house, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is a simplified example of a Neo-Classical Revival dwelling, based upon earlier Greek Revival style houses in the eastern and mid-western states. F. M.

Valentine, NE National Register

Cowboy Trail

By the late 1800s, the United States saw railroad tracks stretched, like a giant web, across its entirety, carrying cargo and travelers towards settlement in the West. Long silenced, abandoned, and almost forgotten, a hundred years later the rails are beginning to see travelers once again. They'

Valentine, NE Recreation

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Attractions and Upcoming Events

Cherry County Courthouse - NHR

National Wildlife Refuges

Post Office Mural - NHR

Walcott House - NHR

Cowboy Trail

Things to do Museums near Valentine, NE

Sellers-Barton Museum

Coleman House Museum

Thomas County Historical Society Museum

Sandhills Museum

Keya Paha Historical Society Museum