Oconto Moving forward

Est. 1887, current population 153

The village of Oconto may have a population of 153, however, for one weekend a year in early June, the number of people in town soars to well over a thousand.

That weekend is the annual Blowin’ the Doors Off BBQ when people come from near and far for an evening of BBQ and music. Competitors cook beef, chicken and pork through the night to win bragging rights for best BBQ, best side dish, best sauce and other titles. The evening is capped with live music.

Another weekend that draws people to the town is Oconto

Fun Days. The three-day event in July features a parade with firetrucks cooling off the crowd, a free hamburger meal, games, fireworks and an alumni banquet. “We have a really good turnout for Fun Days,” Dan Eggleston said. “It keeps the old Oconto High School spirit going.

Eggleston is owner and operator of Eggleston Oil and Service in Oconto and is a proud 1969 graduate of Oconto High School. The last high school graduation was May 14, 1978 and the elementary school closed in 2010, however, anyone who attended Oconto Public Schools, even if they finished their education elsewhere, is considered an Oconto Tiger.

School was first established in Oconto in the 1890s. A brick school house was built in 1938 for a cost of $40,000 ($18,000 WPA grant and a $22,000 bond). The town itself was platted in 1887 and the village incorporated in 1906. The railroad arrived in 1890 and the last train passed through the town in 1985. Oconto’s Union Pacific Depot was moved to the Stuhr Museum in

Grand Island in 1966.

Oconto reached its peak of population in 1920 with 272 residents. In 1918, it was a bustling town with its own weekly paper, two drug stores, two banks, two restaurants, two lumber yards, three garages, three general stores, two blacksmiths, two implement dealers, two grain elevators, an opera house and more.

Originally established in 1880, the post office went through three names - Oconto, Lomax and Olax - before returning to the name Oconto after Oconto, Wisc. The word means “place of the pickerel” with the Menominee Indians. In 2013, management of the post office was transferred to the Broken Bow Post Office.

The town is home to several businesses. “For a small town, we have a good business base,” Eggleston said. He named several that call Oconto home – Custer County Feeders, Rock’s Underground, Badgley Well Service, Evans Feed branch location, Big Jim’s Bar and Pizza, Jim Myers Construction, Sleicher Heating & Air and Devine Insurance. And, of course, there’s Eggleston

Oil. The service station has been owned and operated by the Egglestons since 1965. It serves as a community hub where folks can grab a cup of coffee and visit while filling a tank of gas, getting an oil change or having new tires put on.

Volunteers are what make events like the BBQ and Oconto Fun Days a success. Eggleston gives a lot of credit to his wife, Sandy, for the Fun Days. “She’s the social director,” he said. “She’s really behind Fun Days.” It’s the volunteer spirit that keeps these events going year after year.

Drive through Oconto and you will see Barn Quilts displayed on many buildings In 2019, the town was a stop on the Nebraska Passport. Visitors were encouraged to tour the Barn Quilt Trail and visit the Sculpture Garden.

“The Sculpture Garden is a really big draw,” Eggleston said. “It’s neat for the community. It’s even on YouTube.” The garden is a collection of sculptures made of scrap iron and farm equipment parts. There’s everything from horses and elephants to windmills and angels. Car license plates from a least 30 states have been recorded as stopping to see the creatures and critters. The sculptures were made by the late Charles Horn of rural Oconto.

The community may be small but it’s mighty when it comes to taking care of itself. In 2021, through donations and grants, a new ambulance was purchased. The fire department, established in 1960, is kept up-to-date with funds from the annual Blowin’ the Doors Off BBQ. First held in 2001, the BBQ was named for the tornado that struck the town on Oct. 31, 2000, destroying the library and community building, damaging homes and taking down trees and, yes, blowing the doors off the fire station. After the storm, while new doors were on order, the vintage velvet stage curtains of the old community center hung at the front of the station. No one was injured in the storm, however, the children at a Halloween party in the community building took shelter under the stage. When first responders freed them, the children emerged to see the building flattened around them.

A modern and spacious community building was completed in 2003. It hosts dinners, weddings, receptions, town events, family reunions, funerals and more. The building also holds the library and senior center. “We have an excellent community center, it’s wonderful,” Eggleston said. “It‘s probably one of the better ones for small town Nebraska.”

The tornado of 2000 isn’t the only challenge the town has overcome. In 1914, a fire caused $50,000 worth of damage. Another fire in 1928 at the power plant left the town without electricity for a short time. There was a flood in 1920, a reported 8 to 12 inches in one hour, and another tornado in July, 1969 that damaged the grain elevator. The town’s water tower suffered some damage in the 2000 tornado but was quickly repaired. Oconto has a complete commercial sewer and water system, meaning residents do not have to maintain septic tanks. Eggleston pointed out the town received a completely new water system through USDA grants in 2017. “All the mains and drops, it’s all new,” he said.

For recreation, the town has RV parking and Martha D.

Berry park with playground equipment. For further recreation, Pressey Wildlife Management Area is only four miles north on Hwy 21, excellent for camping, hiking, kayaking, hunting, fishing and cooling off in the South Loup River.

The easily drivable distance to Broken Bow (21 miles) Callaway (14 miles) and Lexington (25 miles), makes small-town living in Oconto at the junction of Hwys 21 and 40 attractive. As Oconto looks to the future, it will be welcoming to new businesses and residents and continue to host events that show the small town at its best.