The site of Purple Cane was settled in 1858 by Irish immigrant Edward Johnson.[6] Johnson constructed a dugout on the south bank of Maple Creek and resided there during the winter of 1858–59.[3] He was soon joined by his brother Michael Johnson and brother-in-law David Scott.[6] Between 1861 and 1867, five additional households were established in the area.[6] The rural community was officially named in 1872 when Samuel R. Mason applied for a post office permit for the area.[7] Mason chose to name the community after the Purple Cane raspberries that grew in his garden.[6] In the 1870s most of the land in the area was claimed.[3]
School
In 1867, School District #7 was established[6] next to the Old Fur Traders Trail.[3] A school house was erected with lumber brought from Fremont, Nebraska.[6] Thomas Spence, was the first teacher.[6] In 1875 the school was relocated to the nearby Hughes farm, and enlarged in 1894.[6] In 1904, the school was moved to land owned by George Thrush[6] and a new school building was erected.[8] In 1932, the school had an enrollment of 9 students.[9]
Post Office
Samuel R. Mason applied for a post office for the community in 1872.[7] The request was granted on April 15, 1872.[7] The post office was a box with a hinged lid that hung on the wall of the S. R. Mason Home.[7] Mail was delivered from nearby North Bend to Purple Cane twice weekly.[6] The post office was eventually moved to the home of Jane Avery[7] who acted as post master from 1886[10] to 1892 when the post office was closed.[11] A monument marking the site of the original Purple Cane post office was erected in 1928.[5]
Churches
The Purple Cane Methodist Episcopal Church was established in 1869.[3] Andrew Quigley donated land for the organization, and a church building was erected and dedicated in 1886.[3] The church was destroyed by fire in 1894, and rebuilt the same year.[6] In 1925 a large gymnasium was added to the property for community use.[6] By 1920, the church reported a membership of 160 people.[12] Declining membership caused the church to close in 1964.[3] The church and its contents were auctioned off on October 12, 1980.[13] The location of the church is marked by a stone marker.[3]
The Plymouth Presbyterian church was organized by Edward Johnson, John Ruff, and J. G. McVicker in September 1890[14] and built on the Edward Johnson property.[6] It was an active church until 1912.[6]
Cemetery
The first burial at Purple Cane cemetery was of Mrs. John McCarthy in 1873.[15] The Purple Cane Cemetery Association was organized in 1881 and property for the cemetery was purchased just south of the site for the Purple Cane Methodist Episcopal Church.[15] In 1916, Alexander Legge, then president of the International Harvester Corporation, gifted $1,000 to the Purple Cane Cemetery Association to assist with the establishment of a perpetual care fund for the cemetery.[16] Residents raised matching funds, and the cemetery was improved with sidewalks and a fence.[6]
^"Auctions". The Schuyler Sun. Schuyler, Nebraska. September 18, 1980. p. 21.
^"Local Brevities". Fremont Tribune. Fremont, Nebraska. September 24, 1890. p. 1.
^ abA 150 Year History of North Bend, Nebraska 1856-2006. Marceline, MO.: Walsworth Publishing Company, Inc. 2006. p. 460.
^"Gift for Purple Cane". Fremont Tribune. Fremont, Nebraska. August 19, 1916. p. 7.
^"Alexander Legge, President of the International Harvester Co., a Colfax County Farm Lad in His Youth, Died Sunday at His Home in Chicago". The Weekly Schuyler Sun. Schuyler, Nebraska. December 7, 1933. p. 1.