One of the oldest communities in Nebraska, the old landing at Ponca State Park marked historic Ponca as a major river town during steamboat days.
Discover its historical past via a walking tour of historical buildings that were built when the town was settled.
Don’t miss the museum and Cook Blacksmith Shop, listed in the National Historical Register.
The totem pole in the city park is unique.
Annual events are Days of ’56 and Rodeo the last weekend in June and Nifty Fifty Day the first Saturday in August.
Just north of Ponca is Ponca State Park, a beautiful park nestled in the bluffs of the Missouri River.
At the Wild River Lookout, you can view the river as Lewis and Clark saw it on August 22, 1804.
Should you choose to go farther on Highway 23, you will pass the famed site of the Ionia Volcano.
As they pass the bluffs just north of the town’s present site, Lewis and Clark noted one particular bluff which appeared to be on fire and was still very hot.
Later, fur traders also noticed dense smoke and fire in the region.
Although proven not to be volcanic in nature, but rather simple decomposition of iron pyrite beds as they came in contact with water, early settlers in the region continued to fear the Ionia Volcano until the Missouri River washed the base of the bluff away in 1878.
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