St. Deroin History
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The village of St. Deroin was the first town site in Nemaha
County. St. Derion was located on the Missouri River in the Half-breed tract of
land set aside by the Treaty of Prairie du Chien in 1830. In the
early 1840's, an Otoe halfbreed chief named Joseph Deroin moved to
the area, opening a trading post and serving the population of
232.
St. Deroin School House, now at Indian
Cave State Park
The town site was laid out by Joseph Deroin, Robert
Hawke and others in 1853. In 1865, the town was resurveyed by E.W. Pierce
and Co. Judge Andrew J. Ritter who opened a general merchandise store in
1859. The store was ran with his son, Andrew, Jr.
A
ferryboat was operated first by James L. Overman in 1858, later by Dr.
Lorenz Rice, and in 1871 a Captain Mullett was the operator of a
side-wheel ferry. This ferry crossing made St. Deroin a landing
point in Nebraska for many pioneers. Through the efforts of Judge
Ritter a post office was opened in 1861. The government's official
date is March 23, 1864 with Andrew J. Ritter, Sr. as first
postmaster. The post office was discontinued April 15, 1910.
In 1866,
George Foutch was a busy carpenter and wagon maker. The St.
Deroin Baseball Club was organized and played in uniform at the
Nemaha County Fair in 1869. In 1870 A.J. Ritter was a dealer in
general merchandise, grain, fruit and vegetables. He also had a
large warehouse near the river for storing grain, and within a few
years built another one. George Foutch had taken a partner by the
name of McCauley in the carpenter trade. Several doctors set up
practices: Dr. Oliver P. Faulkner. Dr. John Crim and Dr. Lorcnz Rice
was a notary public.
The St. Deroin Steam Grist and Saw Mill was
supplying grain, flour and had "all kinds of native lumber for
sale." W.H. Murphy was the miller. The flour mill was run by
G.W. Barnes in 1882. In the St. Deroin Mill was listed as one of the largest in the state.
A hotel, a Templars Lodge,
and a brick schoolhouse, later moved to higher ground, were built in
1871. A Mr. Foot was mining for coal in 1871. St. Deroin was a
stopping place for steamboats to pick up grain and fruit and for
fueling. By 1900, the village had a population of about 300 people.
The flood of 1911 washed most of the town away.
Today, St. Deroin "lives" as part of the history at
Indian Cave State Park.
Extracted from the Nemaha County History from information Submitted by Bill Coulter.
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