50 States: Nebraska

NEBRASKA

www.pdclipart.org

We are past the midway point of our 50-state study.  In alphabetical order, Nebraska is 27, but it was actually the 37th state to join the union.  It did so on March 1, 1867.  Located in the Plains, it is the 16th largest state by area and is home to more than 1.7 million Nebraskans.  Many of these people earn their living by farming corn, soybeans, and wheat.  Nebraska is also known for its cattle and hog raising, but they are venturing into new areas with coal mining and oil drilling.

The capital of Nebraska is Lincoln.  This city was called Lancaster but was renamed in honor of President Lincoln since he was assassinated.  The capital of the Nebraska Territory had been Omaha, and it remains Nebraska's largest city.

Before being explored by Europeans, Nebraska was inhabited by the Arapaho, Cheyenne, Comanche, Dakota Sioux, Kansa, Kiowa, Missouri, Omaha, Oto, Pawnee, and Sauk.  There is some disparity between websites as to exactly which tribes were present, but these are some of the ones the sites had in agreement.  Europeans had been exploring the interior of North America since the late 1500s.  The French explorer, Sieur de La Salle, is said to have explored the Nebraska area in the late 1600s.  In 1724, the region was claimed for France and became part of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803.  Lewis and Clark traveled along the eastern edge of Nebraska in 1804.  Zebulon Pike explored southern Nebraska in 1806.  The Oregon Trail crossed through the central part of Nebraska, east to west, in the 1830s.  The Kansas-Nebraska Act in 1854 declared Nebraska a territory and allowed the area to decide for itself whether to allow slavery or not.  Two years after the Civil War, which ultimately decided the issue of slavery, Nebraska became a state.  A good site with an interactive timeline of Nebraska's history can be found here.

The symbols of Nebraska are:

State bird...Western meadowlark

State mammal...White-tailed deer

State fish...Channel catfish

State fossil...Mammoth

State insect...Honeybee

State flower...Goldenrod

State tree...Cottonwood

State beverage...Milk

State soft-drink...Kool-Aid

President Gerald Ford was born on July 14, 1913, in Omaha.  Other famous people include film stars Fred Astaire, Marlon Brando, Montgomery Clift, Henry Fonda, and Larry the Cable Guy.  Famous authors Nicholas Sparks hails from Omaha as well.  Entrepreneur Warren Buffet, Vice President Dick Cheney, Twitter co-founder Evan Williams, and civil rights activist Malcolm X are some others who were born here.

Museums, zoos, and parks abound in this Plains state.  Chimney Rock National Historic Site is touted as the most famous landmark on the Oregon Trail.  Ashfall Fossil Beds State Historical Park is an actual bed of fossils that has been left in place so that the public can view it.  Stuhr Museum in Grand Island is a hands-on living history museum that depicts the life of the early settlers.  Quilt lovers will enjoy the International Quilt Study Center & Museum in Lincoln.  It holds the largest public collection of quilts in the world.  There is also an air and space museum and many recreational areas throughout the state.

Two of Nebraska's nicknames are the Cornhusker State and the Tree Planters' State.  The motto is "Equality before the law."  The flag, adopted in 1925, displays the motto on a banner above a blacksmith working on an anvil, a cabin, wheat, a steamboat, the railroad, and mountains.

Play games online and learn more about Nebraska.

The following items can be found at christianbook.com.  I am an affiliate with christianbook.com.  If you choose to purchase any items through my blog, I will earn a commission.

Nebraska State History Lapbook Journal - PDF Download [Download] By Cyndi Kinney & Judy Trout / Knowledge Box Central

Sons of the River: A Nebraska Memoir By Norm Bomer / Canon Press Sons of the River is a stunning introduction to the psychological meaning of rural Nebraska. Every geography emanates from within its own peculiar power of place. The essence of the Elkhorn Valley in northeastern Nebraska is captured in this book. Rooted in the memory of a young boy, Sons of the River recounts the founding, growth and decline of Ewing in the Elkhorn Valley.

Nebraska My First Book, Grades K-8 By Carole Marsh / Gallopade International An "early bird" intro to basic state facts. Covers state basics such as state nickname, seal, song, bird, motto, flag, regions, industries, neighbors, and weather, plus an intro to state history, people and more. Includes: drawing, mazes, matching, coloring, and more! Reproducible. Available for all 50 states. Grades K-5; ages 5-10.

Let's Call The Whole Thing Off [Music Download] By Fred Astaire / Sony Classical/Legacy

The Choice - eBook By Nicholas Sparks / Grand Central Publishing Travis Parker has everything a man could want: a good job, loyal friends, even a waterfront home in small-town North Carolina. In full pursuit of the good life-boating, swimming, and regular barbecues with his close buddies-he holds the vague conviction that a serious relationship with a woman would only cramp his style. That is until Gabby Holland moves in next door.

The Autobiography of Malcolm X: As Told to Alex Haley By Malcolm X / Ballantine Books If there was any one man who articulated the anger, the struggle, and the beliefs of African Americans in the 1960s, that man was Malcolm X. His autobiography is now an established classic of modern America, a book that expresses like none other the crucial truth about our times.

Young Jerry Ford: Athlete and Citizen By Hendrik Booraem V / Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.