Halsey, NE

Halsey is a Thomas County village about a mile east of the Bessey Ranger District entrance, where Nebraska's Sandhills meet the world's largest hand-planted forest. The Bessey Nursery began near Halsey in 1903 as the first federal forest tree nursery, growing seedlings for the Nebraska National Forest. Today the forest corridor brings camping, river swimming, fishing, biking, and off-highway riding to the village edge, while Halsey's general store, restaurant/bar, hotel, and post office serve visitors and residents. Halsey's local map is inseparable from the nursery and the forest it helped create.