Funk, Nebraska
FUNK, NEBRASKA - 1887-1987
Civil War veteran P. C. Funk came to Divide
Township in Phelps County in 1877 and purchased
160 acres of land two miles north of the present
town. By 1883 the Nebraska-Colorado Railroad, now
the Burlington Northern, had extended its line
as far west as Holdrege. Through the efforts of
P. C. Funk, railroad officials were persuaded to
establish the Funk townsite along the railroad
between Axtell and holdrege.
The village was platted in May 1887 on land
purchased from August Anderson for $2,500. A
townsite committee consisted of J. S. Johnson,
William Johnson, Frank Johnson, George Johnson,
P. C. Funk, Alfred Johnson, Charles Skallberg,
Swan M. Milner, and C. F. Franzen.
The first grain elevator and house were built by
L. T. Brooking, who later became the town's first
postmaster and editor of the newspaper, the Funk
Enterprise. In 1910 the Fridhem Lutheran Church
moved to Funk. The town survived three serious
fires and faced difficult times during the drouth
and depression of the 1930s. Irrigation came to
the area in 1938 and improved the life of farmers
and villagers.
Funk Centennial Incorporated
Nebraska State Historical Society
Funk Harmony Park, Funk
Phelps County
Marker 323