First settlers in Platte county--Isaac Albertson and E. W. Toncray; first house built--Old Company house on Brewery Block 178; first store kept--Becher's, in the cabin still standing opposite Kummer's residence, unless Kummer's little chebang on the river bank could be called a store; first postmaster, John Rickly--first mail came July 4th, 1857, during a celebration--Hewitt, orator--had a military parade and a turkey stuffed with dried applies--consequence a bursted turkey.

First boy brought into the county, Jacob Ernst, Jr.; first girl brought into the county, Rosa Rickly; first boy born in the county, Lewis Erb, on Shell Creek; first girl born in the county, Mary Wolfel, Columbus; first wedding, John Will and Marie Rickert; that is, this was the first infantry wedding; first cavalry wedding, J. E. North and Nellie Arnold, married on horseback in the streets of Columbus.   First blacksmith, Jacob Ernst; first house builders, Wolfel and Becker; first carpenter of all trades, M. Weaver; first shoemaker, Louis Phillippe; first landlord and lady, Frank Becher and his sisters; first doctor, C. B. Stillman; first lawyers, L. Gerrard and A. B. Pattison; first school teacher, G. W. Stevens; first Catholic Priest, Rev. Father Fourmont; first Protestant minister in charge, Rev. R. Gaylord; first death and burial, J. M. Becker

First herd law ever passed for any part of Nebraska drawn by L. Gerrard, of the 3d House, and passed for only Platte and Monroe counties; first batch of criminals, J. Rickly, M. Weaver, Pat Gleason, R. Corson, J. L. Martin, F. G. Becher, H. J. Hudson, Isaac Albertson, V. Kummer, H. M. Kemp, C. A. Speice. For they were Grand Jurors of the first Court, May 8, 1860, and they indicted each other for various crimes, chiefly for selling whisky.


(FOOT NOTE: The above mentioned court case was eventually dissolved since had they found each other guilty, they would have all gone to jail.)