Blair man gets 10-16 years on attempted sexual assault charge

Gary Banner's goal on Blair City Council: balanced growth

Boettcher's hearing continued to Aug. 12th

Visitors relax in the shade and listen to a concert by re-enactors at Fort Atkinson State Historical Park during its Fourth of July Living History weekend.

A special Living History Weekend

Evie Fullner, 8, rides her bike Saturday during the Arlington Summer Sizzle celebration.

Ideas already coming together for Arlington's 2026 Summer Sizzle

Local News

Bob Volk and friend in the pasture (date unknown).

MULTI-GENERATIONAL FARM FAMILIES: The Volks

"This is all grown out to be an overgrown 4-H project, if you want to call it that," says Jay Volk. For more than 40 years, Jay, with his brother Clark, have co-owned J&C Simmentals, raising …

The Potadles grow corn, soybeans and hay on more than 40 locations in Washington and Burt counties.

MULTI-GENERATIONAL FARM FAMILIES: The Potadles

Gilbert and Leona Potadle were grocers in eastern Nebraska before they were farmers, at one time running five stores. But during the Great Depression, they made the decision that there was more …

Blair City Council implements conduct policy for public pool

The Blair City Council approved a code of conduct policy at its June 24 th meeting for those using the city pool. The seven highlights of the new policy are: Respectful behavior: …

Laney Hoier of Herman competes in the breakaway roping during the 2024 Washington County Fair Rodeo in Arlington.

3 Washington County cowgirls set sights on NHSFR

With a productive fall of high school rodeo in her rearview mirror, Herman cowgirl Laney Hoier started spring on the Nebraska circuit strong, too. That is until she broke her collarbone during …

Hundreds turn out for City of Blair's Fourth of July fireworks display

Hundreds of residents packed the land surrounding the former Dana College football stadium to watch the City of Blair's fireworks display on the Fourth of July.

More News

Weekly poll

What kind of teen hangout does Washington County need?

View results

This week's E-Edition

07.11.2025 ENT

View this issue

Browse other issues

See more ads

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Hailey Roewert (May 29, 2025)

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Whitney Wollberg (May 24, 2025)

Follow Sports on Twitter

Fort Calhoun Senior Legion base runner AJ Duros, right, heads home Monday, leaving Blair third baseman Andrew Smutny behind at Vets Field. Post 348 topped Post 154, advancing onto the second round of the Eastern Nebraska Baseball League Tournament.

Local sports

'Spicier than normal'

With a wall of storm clouds rolling into Washington County from beyond the outfield fence Monday night, the Fort Calhoun Senior Legion baseball team closed out an Eastern Nebraska Baseball League …

The Blair Cubs age 8 and younger baseball team won a Bronze Bracket state tournament last weekend.

Youth Sports Roundup (July 11, 2025)

Cubs, Pioneers earn wins at AAA State Tourney Youth baseball teams from Blair and Fort Calhoun picked up victories last weekend during the Nebraska USSSA AAA State Tournament. The age 12 and younger …

Nik Hamm, left, beats Dylan Keyser to the bag for an out Saturday during the Arlington Summer Sizzle softball tournament.

Zam Driver Turned Writer: Sizzle brings athletes out to the diamond

Another Arlington Summer Sizzle has come and gone. How'd you enjoy last Saturday's festivities? The Fourth of July-adjacent celebration is a favorite of mine. I, No. 1, always like to see a bustling …

The Blair Junior Legion baseball team watches the game before their's Monday at Omaha Creighton Prep. Post 154 begins Area Tournament play today in Plattsmouth.

Blair, Calhoun play Junior Legion regular season finales

Both the Blair and Fort Calhoun Junior Legion baseball teams capped their regular season schedules Monday evening. Post 154 earned an 8-7 win on turf at Omaha Creighton Prep, while the Zig Drywall …

Arlington Legion teams drop pair of walk-offs

A Sunday afternoon road trip ended in two walk-off losses for the Arlington Legion baseball teams. “Although the final scores did not go our way, there was a lot to be happy about at the same …

The Arlington Junior Legion baseball team won the Class B state title in 1976. Front row, from left: Terry Marquardt, Steve Kollars, Bob Becher, Ed Menking, Doug Klotz, Wayne Knell and Charley Meyer. Back row: Coach Bill Becher, Joe Horvatich, Tim Stork, Jeff Jacob, Bryan Nelson, Ken Misfeldt and coach Paul Menking.

Times Gone By: Arlington Legion team wins 1976 Class B title

Editor's Note: “A Look at Times Gone By” is an in-depth look at weekly Times Gone By entries compiled since 2015. These articles represent the history of Washington County sports. The …

Arlington Spartans pick up 1st DCBL win

The Arlington Spartans town team earned its first win of the Dodge County Baseball League season Sunday in North Bend. The Spartans topped the Benders 3-1, snapping a six-game losing streak to start …

Obituaries

David Samuel Barner, 80

David Samuel Barner, age 80 of Blair, passed away peacefully on June 30, 2025, at Memorial Community Hospital & Health System.

Liela Ann Matzen, 78

Liela Ann Matzen, age 78 of Blair, passed away June 30, 2025, at her home in Blair. Memorial services will be held Monday, July 7, 2025, at 10 a.m. at First United Methodist Church in Blair. Visitation will be held Sunday, July 6, 2025, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Campbell Aman Funeral Home in Blair.

Kevin Lee Tilson, 67

Kevin Lee Tilson was born in Blair, Nebraska on 25 August 1957. Kevin was a ringbearer for his sister Carolyne Tilson Nelson's wedding in 1960. Kevin was raised in Herman and Tekamah, Nebraska …

Richard K. Schlenker, 90

Richard Schlenker passed away Monday, June 23, 2025, in Fremont.

Charles E. “Mac” McMahan, 89

Charles E. “Mac” McMahan, age 89 of Omaha, NE (formerly of Fort Calhoun, NE). Born: September 10, 1935, Pomona, MO. Died: June 24, 2025, Omaha, NE. Preceded in death by: …

Richard K. Schlenker, 90

Richard K. Schlenker, 90 years, of Kennard, NE, passed away Monday, June 23, 2025 at Methodist Fremont Health in Fremont, NE. Funeral service will be 10:30 a.m., Monday, June 30, 2025 at …

More Obits

Letters

Blair BOE responds to comments at Oct. 14 board meetimg

Letter to the Editor: The Blair Community Schools Board of Education would like to address the concerns and comments raised at the October 14th Board Meeting, including those shared by Mr. Tim …

Letter to the editor

Imagine you are a parent struggling to make ends meet, to pay for housing, clothing and food for your family. We all know, first hand, how expensive groceries are these days. Putting food on the …

Letter to the editor

My letter is not written to address politics over the war between Israel and Palestine. This letter addresses gun ownership and the dangers of government gun control and gun confiscation. Prior to …

Letter to the editor

Gov. Pillen/Sen. Linehan pushed LB 753 through this spring — it provides tax credits to wealthy donors who give to private schools. While this sounds good, what the public needs to realize is …

Letter to the editor

Thank you so much for your story on the Cook Family and their legacy of service. My maiden name is Cook, so the story caught my eye. I did a little research on Family Search.org and found that …

Read more letters

Columnists

He stills the storms

America has been rocked by an extraordinary number of devastating tornadoes and storms with hurricane-force wind gusts. This spring produced the second-most tornadoes to date since records began in …

All about peat bogs

Peat bogs are found mainly in the boreal and temperate parts of the Northern Hemisphere. They are especially found in Europe, Canada, Alaska, Scandinavia and Russia where there is a regular …

Appreciate Dad for showing up

A few years ago on the TV show "Modern Family," a stepfather did something unexpected but kind in order to save the reputation of his stepson's biological father. Cancelling his own plans, he …

The history of toilet paper

There have been at least two times in human history when toilet paper might have been a big topic of conversation at coffee gatherings. The first might have been when toilet paper first appeared …

More Columns

Editorials

- Editorial: Sad day for Blair following rejection of sales-tax increase
  
  Gateway Development Corp. tried to tie together the fate of the two ballot questions facing Blair voters in Tuesday’s statewide primary …
- Editorial: Washington County’s recovery ultimately will come down to neighbors helping neighbors
  
  In the days to come, more and more data related to last Friday’s tornado outbreak will become available. But consider these numbers for …
- Editorial: Post-prom parties alive and well in Washington County
  
  In some parts of the country, the high school rite of passage known as the post-prom party is no more. A victim of the COVID closure culture and …
- Editorial: Park supporters can’t lose focus before Blair’s crown jewel is finished
  
  The recreational opportunities soon to be available in the city of Blair took a big step forward last week when the Blair City Council …
- Editorial: Eppley Airfield project is important for Wash. Co.
  
  So Eppley Airfield is getting a $950 million renovation. That’s Omaha. Why should we care? For starters, most of us fly. And many of …

More Editorials