The site for Stromsburg was selected in 1870 by Lewis Headstrom, a member of a townsite company from Galva, Illinois. In 1872 the town was platted and named Stromsburg, combining the last syllable of Headstrom’s name with burg, a Swedish word meaning village on the hill. Headstrom built the first house and store, and businesses grew around a central square reserved for a city park. Stromsburg welcomed the Omaha and Republican Railroad in 1879, and after a fire in 1887 destroyed most businesses on the west side of the square, a volunteer fire department was organized and a standpipe was erected in 1889. When the population reached 1,000 in 1888, Stromsburg was incorporated as a second class city with Lewis Headstrom as mayor. In 1912 Buckley Park, a gift from Mr. and Mrs. John Buckley, became part of the town. Many of Stromsburg’s citizens trace their ancestry to Sweden, and in 1966 Governor Frank Morrison declared it the Swede Capital of Nebraska; its centennial celebration in 1972 and annual Swedish Festival reflect that heritage and pride.