Most of Nebraska consists of expansive prairie farmland veined by rivers flowing in a generally southeast direction, but in the north-central part of the state, the Sand Hills are an area of rolling dunes covered by grass. The panhandle consists of rugged sandstone bluffs. The state is bisected into north and south by the Platte River.
The Pawnee, Omaha, Sioux and other Plains tribes occupied portions of Nebraska before European encroachment. Two magnificent animals helped to shape the lives and cultures of the Plains tribes: The great herds of buffalo that once roamed the plains provided food and the raw materials for clothing, shelter and tools; and horses, introduced in the 1700s, dramatically changed the way the people hunted, traveled and fought. Although Spain and then France claimed the region, few people of European descent lived in Nebraska before the 1803 Louisiana Purchase. The Lewis and Clark expedition passed through the area the following year, and trading posts and settlements were established over the next few decades. Gradually, the Platte Valley became a known route for fur traders heading west, and pioneers began following the same path across the Great Plains. Both the Oregon Trail and the Mormon Trail (to Utah) passed through the valley.
Two factors accelerated Nebraska's growth: the desire for a railroad that would stretch from sea to shining sea and the Homestead Act that allowed thousands of pioneers to claim free land. By 1862, the Pacific Railroad Act was law, and construction began on the railroad in Omaha in 1863 (while the Civil War raged on). Nebraska's future as a state was all but secured as immigrants poured in to work and to make new homes on the prairie. The good news for the immigrants was tragedy for Native Americans, who were forced off their ancestral homelands. Warriors of the Cheyenne, Pawnee and Sioux nations put up a spirited resistance, but ultimately were no match for the combined force of the U.S. Army and the buffalo hunters.
Nebraska became a state in 1867. Farming and cattle ranching have been the backbone of Nebraska's economy since that time, and its fortunes have risen and fallen with changes in the weather and the agribusiness economy. The drought and Depression of the 1930s were especially tough on Nebraskans. Today, manufacturing and service industries are the major employers within the state.
Nebraska's foremost attractions are the Old West, Scotts Bluff National Monument, Buffalo Bill Ranch, outdoor recreation, Lincoln, the immense breadth of the prairie, Omaha, museums, rodeos, Fort Robinson State Park, the Oregon Trail, historic structures and friendly people.
Travelers who want an atypical vacation to see a less traveled part of the U.S. and who are interested in the history of the western U.S. will enjoy the state. Those who seek the rapid pace and diversity of large cities and those who object to long drives between attractions will find Nebraska less to their liking.
Kool-Aid was invented in Hastings, Nebraska.
Looking for a mountain in Nebraska? There's a miniature version in Sidney. It's 45 ft/15 m tall and is populated with 550 real—though no longer living—animals, including elk, timber wolves, geese, big-horn sheep and a lion. You'll find it at Cabela's, a hunting and fishing equipment company.
Early Nebraska pioneers constructed their homes out of sod. You can visit one at the Sod House Museum in Gothenburg.
The state's name comes from the Otoe Indian word nebrathka, which means "flat water."
Nebraska's Native American tribes, the Winnebago, Omaha, Ponca and Santee Sioux, sponsor annual powwows on their reservations that attract many visitors.
At Ashfall Fossil Beds, a state historical park, scientists are excavating skeletons of hundreds of rhinos, camels and other animals that were literally buried in their tracks by volcanic ash 12 million years ago.
Nebraska is one of the top 10 producers of honey in the U.S. The state insect is the honey bee.
The entire world population of wild whooping cranes (fewer than 200) passes through the Platte Valley in the spring and fall.
Nebraska is the only state in the nation with a nonpartisan, one-house legislature.
The world's only tractor-testing lab is located on the University of Nebraska campus in Lincoln.
Famous Nebraskans: William Jennings Bryan, Gerald R. Ford, Father Edward Flanagan, Malcolm X, Standing Bear, Buffalo Bill Cody, Henry Fonda, Fred Astaire, Marlon Brando, Johnny Carson and Dick Cavett.
Arbor Day was established by J. Sterling Morton, who built a palatial home among the apple orchards of Nebraska City. Arbor Lodge State Historical Park is a memorial to him.
Some 15,000 people and nearly 100 chickens annually attend the Chicken Show, held in Wayne in July. Events include the National Chicken Cluck-Off, the Hard-boiled Egg Eating and Best Chicken Legs contest and Chicken Flying, where a plumber's plunger is used to (gently) push chickens out of a mailbox mounted on a tall pole. The bird flying farthest from the mailbox wins.
