Nebraska
Nebraska is nicknamed the Cornhusker State. A cornhusker
is someone who harvested, or husked, corn by hand. Corn is an important crop in
Nebraska. Farmers had to harvest corn by hand before there was a machine to do
this work.
The University of Nebraska football team was called
the Cornhuskers before the state adopted the nickname in 1945. Lots of college
teams use their state’s nickname for their sports teams. In Nebraska, however,
the state took its nickname from the football team.
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Facts About Nebraska
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Capital
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Lincoln
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Population
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1,770,000
people
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Rank
among states in population
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38th
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Major
cities
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Omaha,
Lincoln
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Area
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77,400
square miles
200,000 square kilometers |
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Rank
among states in area
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16th
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Statehood
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March
1, 1867, the 37th state
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State
nickname
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The
Cornhusker State
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Name
for residents
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Nebraskans
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State
bird
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Western
Meadowlark
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State
flower
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Goldenrod
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State
tree
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Cottonwood
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Abbreviation
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NE
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THE TREE PLANTERS’ STATE
Until 1945, Nebraska was nicknamed the Tree
Planters’ State. When early pioneers came to Nebraska, they found hardly any
trees on the plains. The pioneers dug up chunks of sod (earth) to build
their houses because they had no wood. Sod became known as Nebraska marble.
Early settlers on the plains became known as sodbusters.
Settlers planted trees around their farms. Trees broke
up the fierce winds that howled across the prairie. Trees provided firewood and
fruit.
Nebraska was the first state to celebrate Arbor
Day, a holiday devoted to planting trees. In 1872, a Nebraska newspaper editor,
J. Sterling Morton, came up with the idea. More than a million trees were
planted in Nebraska on April 10, 1872, the first Arbor Day. In 1885, the date
of Arbor Day was changed to Morton’s birthday, April 22. Many other states also
adopted the holiday. Most states now observe Arbor Day on the last Friday in
April.
THE PLATTE RIVER—A ROUTE TO STATEHOOD
The Platte River flows east through Nebraska. It
empties into the Missouri River near Omaha, Nebraska. Native Americans living
near the Platte called it the Nebrathka, which means “flat water.” White
explorers soon began to call the entire region Nebraska.
The Platte River helped Nebraska become a state.
The Platte served as a westward route for pioneers. The Oregon Trail followed
the Platte River because the flat river valley was easy to travel. Two
landmarks in western Nebraska—Scotts Bluff and Chimney Rock—helped the wagon
trains find their way. You can still see ruts left by wagon wheels in the river
valley.
The Pony Express, the Union Pacific Railroad, and
the first paved highway across the United States (U.S. 30) followed the Platte.
Today the Platte valley still serves as an east-west transportation route. The
Platte is too shallow for ships, however. Early settlers said the river was “a
mile wide and an inch deep.”
Nebraska became the 37th state on March 1, 1867.
Its capital is Lincoln, named in honor of U.S. president Abraham Lincoln.
Omaha, the largest city in the state, lies on the Missouri River. Omaha grew in
importance when the Union Pacific Railroad was built westward from it.
BOYS TOWN
Boys Town, a place for troubled boys and
girls, is just west of Omaha. In 1917, Father Edward Joseph Flanagan started
the Home for Homeless Boys in Omaha. Father Flanagan was Roman Catholic, but
the home was for boys of all religions. The boys governed themselves by voting
on important issues. By 1921, the home had become too crowded. It moved to
Overlook Farm near Omaha. In 1926, the boys voted to rename the farm Boys Town.
It became a village of its own.
Boys Town continued to grow. In 1979, girls were
accepted into the program. Today, there are Girls and Boys Town homes in more
than a dozen states. Boys and girls with problems can go to these homes to live
and learn. The village of Boys Town remains the largest of these homes. Today
it’s a National Historic Landmark.
KOOL-AID
Did you know that Kool-Aid was invented in
Hastings, Nebraska? When Edwin Perkins was still a boy, he became interested in
chemistry and business. He developed a drink called Fruit Smack that was sold
in a bottle. It was expensive to ship, and sometimes the bottles broke. In
1927, Perkins found a way to remove the water from Fruit Smack. He packaged the
remaining powder in an envelope. He called the powdered mix Kool Ade. Later, he
changed the name to Kool-Aid.
SAND HILLS
About one-quarter of Nebraska is covered by the
Sand Hills. It’s easy to figure out how the area got its name. The soil is very
sandy. Grass grows on most of it, but occasionally you’ll find a sand dune.
Before Nebraska was settled, herds of bison fed on the long grasses found in
this area. Today, cattle graze in the Sand Hills.
Each spring, about half a million sandhill cranes
stop on the Platte River just south of the Sand Hills. The birds rest and feed
on their migration northward from their wintering grounds. Thousands of
birdwatchers flock to Nebraska to see this spectacular sight.
OGALLALA AQUIFER
An aquifer is an underground water source.
Nebraska sits over the huge Ogallala Aquifer. Much of Nebraska is too dry to
grow crops without irrigation. Nearly four-fifths of Nebraska’s irrigation
comes from this aquifer. Farmers pump water from deep wells. About 95 percent
of Nebraska’s land is used for farming or grazing cattle.
WILLA CATHER
American writer Willa Cather grew up in Red Cloud,
Nebraska. She wrote about Nebraska’s immigrant farm families in several of her
books. My Ántonia is considered the best of her Nebraska books. In Red
Cloud, you can visit Cather’s childhood home and the farm that she describes in
My Ántonia.
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