Nebraska

Indigenous peoples lived in the region of present-day Nebraska for thousands of years before European colonization. The historic tribes in the state included the Omaha, Missouria, Ponca, Pawnee, Otoe, and various branches of the Lakota (Sioux), some of which migrated from eastern areas into the region. When European exploration, trade, and settlement began, both Spain and France sought to control the region. In the 1690s, Spain established trade connections with the Apache, whose territory then included western Nebraska. By 1703, France had developed a regular trade with native peoples along the Missouri River in Nebraska, and by 1719 had signed treaties with several of these peoples. After war broke out between the two countries, Spain dispatched an armed expedition to Nebraska under Lieutenant General Pedro de Villasur in 1720. The party was attacked and destroyed near present-day Columbus by a large force of Pawnee and Otoe, both allied with the French. The massacre ended Spanish exploration of the area for the remainder of the 18th century.[17][18][19]

In 1762, during the Seven Years' War, France ceded the Louisiana territory to Spain. This left Britain and Spain competing for dominance along the Mississippi River; by 1773, the British were trading with the native peoples of Nebraska. Spain dispatched two trading expeditions up the Missouri River in 1794 and 1795; the second, under James Mackay, established the first European settlement in Nebraska near the mouth of the Platte River. Later that year, Mackay's party built a trading post, dubbed Fort Carlos IV (Fort Charles), near present-day Homer.[17][20][21]

In 1819, the United States established Fort Atkinson as the first U.S. Army post west of the Missouri River, just east of present-day Fort Calhoun. The army abandoned the fort in 1827 as migration moved further west. European-American settlement was scarce until 1848 and the California Gold Rush. On May 30, 1854, the US Congress created the Kansas and the Nebraska territories, divided by the Parallel 40° North, under the Kansas–Nebraska Act.[22] The Nebraska Territory included parts of the current states of Colorado, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, and Montana.[23] The territorial capital of Nebraska was Omaha.

Homesteaders in central Nebraska in 1888

In the 1860s, after the U.S. government forced many of the Native American tribes to cede their lands and settle on reservations, it opened large tracts of land to agricultural development by Europeans and Americans. Under the Homestead Act, thousands of settlers migrated into Nebraska to claim free land granted by the federal government. Because so few trees grew on the prairies, many of the first farming settlers built their homes of sod, as had Native Americans such as the Omaha. The first wave of settlement gave the territory a sufficient population to apply for statehood.[24] Nebraska became the 37th state on March 1, 1867, and the capital was moved from Omaha to the center at Lancaster, later renamed Lincoln after the recently assassinated President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln. The battle of Massacre Canyon, on August 5, 1873, was the last major battle between the Pawnee and the Sioux.[25]

During the 1870s to the 1880s, Nebraska experienced a large growth in population. Several factors contributed to attracting new residents. The first was that the vast prairie land was perfect for cattle grazing. This helped settlers to learn the unfamiliar geography of the area. The second factor was the invention of several farming technologies. New agricultural innovations such as barbed wire, windmills, and the steel plow, combined with fair weather, enabled settlers to transform Nebraska into prime farming land. By the 1880s, Nebraska's population had soared to more than 450,000 people.[26] The Arbor Day holiday was founded in Nebraska City by territorial governor J. Sterling Morton. The National Arbor Day Foundation is still headquartered in Nebraska City, with some offices in Lincoln.

In the late 19th century, African Americans migrated from the South to Nebraska as part of the Great Migration. Eventually, they lived primarily to Omaha which offered working-class jobs in meat packing, the railroads and other industries. Omaha has a long history of civil rights activism. Blacks encountered discrimination from other Americans in Omaha and especially from recent European immigrants, ethnic whites who were competing for the same jobs. In 1912, African Americans founded the Omaha chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People to work for improved conditions in the city and state.

Since the 1960s, Native American activism in the state has increased, both through open protest, activities to build alliances with state and local governments, and in the slower, more extensive work of building tribal institutions and infrastructure. Native Americans in federally recognized tribes have pressed for self-determination, sovereignty and recognition. They have created community schools to preserve their cultures, as well as tribal colleges and universities. Tribal politicians have also collaborated with state and county officials on regional issues.

Nebraska National Forest

Areas under the management of the National Park Service include:

• Agate Fossil Beds National Monument near Harrison
• California National Historic Trail
• Chimney Rock National Historic Site near Bayard
• Homestead National Monument of America in Beatrice
• Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail
• Missouri National Recreational River near Ponca
• Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail
• Niobrara National Scenic River near Valentine
• Oregon National Historic Trail
• Pony Express National Historic Trail
• Scotts Bluff National Monument at Gering

Areas under the management of the National Forest Service include:

• Nebraska National Forest
• Oglala National Grassland
• Samuel R. McKelvie National Forest

Köppen climate types of Nebraska, using 1991-2020 climate normals

Winter at Scotts Bluff National Monument

Two major climatic zones are represented in Nebraska. The eastern two-thirds of the state has a humid continental climate (Köppen Dfa), although the southwest of this region may be classed as a humid subtropical climate (Cfa) using the −3 °C or 26.6 °F boundary. The Panhandle and adjacent areas bordering Colorado have a semi-arid climate (Köppen BSk). The entire state experiences wide seasonal variations in both temperature and precipitation. Average temperatures are fairly uniform across Nebraska, with hot summers and generally cold winters. However, chinook winds from the Rocky Mountains provide a temporary moderating effect on temperatures in the state's western portion during the winter.[29][30] Thus, average January maximum temperatures are highest at around 43 °F or 6.1 °C in southwestern Dundy County, and lowest at about 30 °F or −1.1 °C around South Sioux City in the northeast.

Average annual precipitation decreases east to west from about 31.5 inches (800 mm) in the southeast corner of the state to about 13.8 inches (350 mm) in the Panhandle. Humidity also decreases significantly from east to west. Snowfall across the state is fairly even, with most of Nebraska receiving between 25 and 35 inches (0.64 and 0.89 m) of snow each year.[31] Nebraska's highest-recorded temperature was 118 °F (48 °C) in Minden on July 24, 1936. The state's lowest-recorded temperature was −47 °F (−44 °C) in Camp Clarke on February 12, 1899.

Nebraska is located in Tornado Alley. Thunderstorms are common during both the spring and the summer. Violent thunderstorms and tornadoes happen primarily during those two seasons, although they also can occur occasionally during the autumn.

Population density in Nebraska

Eighty-nine percent of the cities in Nebraska have fewer than 3,000 people. Nebraska shares this characteristic with five other Midwestern states: Kansas, Oklahoma, North Dakota and South Dakota, and Iowa. Hundreds of towns have a population of fewer than 1,000. Regional population declines have forced many rural schools to consolidate.

Fifty-three of Nebraska's 93 counties reported declining populations between 1990 and 2000, ranging from a 0.06% loss (Frontier County) to a 17.04% loss (Hitchcock County).

Omaha, Nebraska's largest city

More urbanized areas of the state have experienced substantial growth. In 2000, the city of Omaha had a population of 390,007; in 2005, the city's estimated population was 414,521 (427,872 including the recently annexed city of Elkhorn), a 6.3% increase over five years. The 2010 census showed that Omaha has a population of 408,958. The city of Lincoln had a 2000 population of 225,581 and a 2010 population of 258,379, a 14.5% increase.

As of the 2010 census, there were 530 cities and villages in the state of Nebraska. There are five classifications of cities and villages in Nebraska, which are based upon population. All population figures are 2017 Census Bureau estimates unless flagged by a reference number.

Metropolitan Class City (300,000 or more)

• Omaha 466,893[33]

Primary Class City (100,000–299,999)

• Lincoln 284,736[33]

First Class City (5,000–99,999)

Second Class Cities (800–4,999) and Villages (100–800) make up the rest of the communities in Nebraska. There are 116 second-class cities and 382 villages in the state.

Other areas

• Grand Island, Hastings and Kearney comprise the "Tri-Cities" area, with a combined population of 168,748
• The northeast corner of Nebraska is part of the Siouxland region.

Ethnic origins in Nebraska

The United States Census Bureau estimates that the population of Nebraska was 1,934,408 on July 1, 2019, a 5.92% increase since the 2010 United States census.[35] The center of population of Nebraska is in Polk County, in the city of Shelby.[36]

According to HUD's 2022 Annual Homeless Assessment Report, there were an estimated 2,246 homeless people in Nebraska.[37] [38]

The table below shows the racial composition of Nebraska's population as of 2016.

According to the 2016 American Community Survey, 10.2% of Nebraska's population were of Hispanic or Latino origin (of any race): Mexican (7.8%), Puerto Rican (0.2%), Cuban (0.2%), and other Hispanic or Latino origin (2.0%).[39] The largest ancestry groups were: German (36.1%), Irish (13.1%), English (7.8%), Czech (4.7%), Swedish (4.3%), and Polish (3.5%).[44]

Nebraska has the largest Czech American and non-Mormon Danish American population (as a percentage of the total population) in the nation. Nebraska is also home to the largest Polish American population in the Great Plains. German Americans are the largest ancestry group in most of the state, particularly in the eastern counties. Thurston County (made up entirely of the Omaha and Winnebago reservations) has an American Indian majority, and Butler County is one of only two counties in the nation with a Czech-American plurality.

In recent years, Nebraska has become home to many refugee communities. In 2016, it welcomed more refugees per capita than any other state.[45] Nebraska, and in particular Lincoln, is the largest home of Yazidis refugees and Yazidi Americans in the United States.[46][47][48]

Notably, Nebraska was the last of all 50 states to maintain a ban on the issuance of driver's licenses to adults who had entered the United States illegally as children (also known as Dreamers). The state legislature lifted the ban in December 2016.[49]

Mexico, India, China, Guatemala, and El Salvador are top countries of origin for Nebraska's immigrants.[50]

Map of counties in Nebraska by racial plurality, per the 2020 U.S. census

Legend

• Non-Hispanic White   40–50%   50–60%   60–70%   70–80%   80–90%   90%+

  Native American   60–70%

As of 2011, 31.0% of Nebraska's population younger than age one were minorities.[51]

Note: For 2013–2015, births in table don't add up, because Hispanics are counted both by their ethnicity and by their race, giving a higher overall number. Since 2016, data for births of White Hispanic origin are not collected, but included in one Hispanic group; persons of Hispanic origin may be of any race.

The religious affiliations of the people of Nebraska are predominantly Christian, according to a 2014 survey by the Pew Research Center. At the 2020 Public Religion Research Institute survey, 73% of the population identified as Christian.[62] At the 2014 Pew Research Center's survey, 20% of the population were religiously unaffiliated; in 2020, the Public Religion Research Institute determined 22% of the population became religiously unaffiliated.

The largest single denominations by number of adherents in 2010 were the Roman Catholic Church (372,838), the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod (112,585), the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (110,110) and the United Methodist Church (109,283).[63]

Kool-Aid was created in 1927 by Edwin Perkins in the city of Hastings, which celebrates the event the second weekend of every August with Kool-Aid Days,[71][72] and Kool-Aid is the official soft drink of Nebraska.[73][74] CliffsNotes were developed by Clifton Hillegass of Rising City. He adapted his pamphlets from the Canadian publications, Coles Notes.

Omaha is home to Berkshire Hathaway, whose chief executive officer (CEO), Warren Buffett, was ranked in March 2009 by Forbes magazine as the second-richest person in the world. The city is also home to Mutual of Omaha, InfoUSA, TD Ameritrade, West Corporation, Valmont Industries, Woodmen of the World, Kiewit Corporation, Union Pacific Railroad, and Gallup. Ameritas Life Insurance Corp., Nelnet, Sandhills Publishing Company, Duncan Aviation, and Hudl are based in Lincoln. The Buckle is based in Kearney. Sidney is the national headquarters for Cabela's, a specialty retailer of outdoor goods now owned by Bass Pro Shops. Grand Island is the headquarters of Hornady, a manufacturer of ammunition.

The world's largest train yard, Union Pacific's Bailey Yard, is in North Platte. The Vise-Grip was invented by William Petersen in 1924, and was manufactured in De Witt until the plant was closed and moved to China in late 2008.[75]

Lincoln's Kawasaki Motors Manufacturing is the only Kawasaki plant in the world to produce the Jet Ski, all-terrain vehicle (ATV), and MULE product lines. The facility employs more than 1,200 people.

The Spade Ranch, in the Sandhills, is one of Nebraska's oldest and largest beef cattle operations.

Nebraska has been the nation's second-largest producer of ethanol biofuels. It has few fossil-fuel resources except for crude oil from the Niobrara Formation which underlays a portion of the state's western region. It hosts one uranium leach mining operation near its northwest border with Wyoming. It has an abundance of renewable generation resources, including untapped biomass generation potential from its productive agriculture industry. It has been a top-ten state for per-capita energy consumption due in large part to its energy-intensive agriculture, meat packing, and food processing industries.[76]

Nebraska is the only state in the US where all electric utilities are publicly owned.[77] Half of its electricity is generated from coal and the fastest-growing source in recent years has been wind. Nebraska has no renewable portfolio standard while supporting net metering.[76]

The Union Pacific Railroad, headquartered in Omaha, was incorporated on July 1, 1862, in the wake of the Pacific Railway Act of 1862.[78][79] Bailey Yard, in North Platte, is the largest railroad classification yard in the world. The route of the original transcontinental railroad runs through the state.

Other major railroads with operations in the state are: Amtrak; BNSF Railway; Canadian National Railway; and Iowa Interstate Railroad.

• Lincoln StarTran
• Omaha Metro Transit
• Scottsbluff Tri-City Roadrunner
• Sioux City Transit

• Burlington Trailways
• Express Arrow
• Jefferson Lines
• Panhandle Trails

The head of the executive branch is Governor Jim Pillen (Republican).[82] The Governor of Nebraska is the head of government of the U.S. state of Nebraska as provided by the fourth article of the Constitution of Nebraska. Other elected officials in the executive branch[83] are Lieutenant Governor Joe Kelly,[84] Attorney General Mike Hilgers,[85] Secretary of State Bob Evnen,[86] State Treasurer John Murante,[87] and State Auditor Mike Foley.[88] All elected officials in the executive branch serve four-year terms. Nebraska's executive branch has X agencies, including 18 code agencies administered by the Governor.

Nebraska is the only state in the United States with a 'single-house' unicameral legislature.[89] Although this house is officially known simply as the "Legislature", and more commonly called the "Unicameral", its members call themselves "senators". Nebraska's Legislature is also the only state legislature in the United States that is officially nonpartisan. The senators are elected with no party affiliation next to their names on the ballot, and members of any party can be elected to the positions of speaker and committee chairs.[90] The Nebraska Legislature can also override the governor's veto with a three-fifths majority, in contrast to the two-thirds majority required in some other states.

When Nebraska became a state in 1867, its legislature consisted of two houses: a House of Representatives and a Senate. For years, U.S. Senator George Norris (Senator 1913–1943) and other Nebraskans encouraged the idea of a unicameral legislature and demanded the issue be decided in a referendum. Norris argued:[89]

The constitutions of our various states are built upon the idea that there is but one class. If this be true, there is no sense or reason in having the same thing done twice, especially if it is to be done by two bodies of men elected in the same way and having the same jurisdiction.

Unicameral supporters also argued that a bicameral legislature had a significant undemocratic feature in the committees that reconciled House and Senate legislation. Votes in these committees were secretive, and would sometimes add provisions to bills that neither house had approved.[91] Nebraska's unicameral legislature today has rules that bills can contain only one subject,[92] and must be given at least five days of consideration. In 1934, due in part to the budgetary pressure of the Great Depression, Nebraska citizens ran a state initiative to vote on a constitutional amendment creating a unicameral legislature, which was approved, which, in effect, abolished the House of Representatives (the lower house).[89]

The Legislature meets in the third Nebraska State Capitol building, built between 1922 and 1932. It was designed by Bertram G. Goodhue. Built from Indiana limestone, the capitol's base is a cross within a square. A 400-foot (122 m) domed tower rises from this base. The Sower, a 19-foot (5.8 m) bronze statue representing agriculture, crowns the building.

The judicial system in Nebraska is unified, with the Nebraska Supreme Court[93] having administrative authority over all the courts within the state.[94] Nebraska uses the Missouri Plan for the selection of judges at all levels, including county courts (as the lowest-level courts)[95] and twelve district courts,[96] which contain one or more counties. The Nebraska State Court of Appeals hears appeals from the district courts,[97] juvenile courts,[98] and workers' compensation courts,[99] and is the final court of appeal.

The Nebraska State Capitol in Lincoln

Nebraska is represented in the U.S. Senate by Republican Deb Fischer,[100] who was first elected in 2012.[101] Nebraska's other Senate seat is currently held by Pete Ricketts, who took office on January 23, 2023.[102]

Nebraska has three representative seats in the U.S. House of Representatives.[100] Until the next election, Nebraska's representatives are Mike Flood (R) of the 1st district,[103] Don Bacon (R) of the 2nd district,[104] and Adrian Smith (R) of the 3rd district.[105]

Nebraska is one of two states (Maine is the other) that allow for a split in the state's allocation of electoral votes in presidential elections.[106] Under a 1991 law, two of Nebraska's five votes are awarded to the winner of the statewide popular vote, while the other three go to the highest vote-getter in each of the state's three congressional districts.

For most of its history, Nebraska has been a solidly Republican state. Republicans have carried the state in all but one presidential election since 1940: the 1964 landslide election of Lyndon B. Johnson. In the 2004 presidential election, George W. Bush won the state's five electoral votes by a margin of 33 percentage points (making Nebraska's the fourth-strongest Republican vote among states) with 65.9% of the overall vote; only Thurston County, which is majority-Native American, voted for his Democratic challenger John Kerry. In 2008, the state split its electoral votes for the first time: Republican John McCain won the popular vote in Nebraska as a whole and two of its three congressional districts; the second district, which includes the city of Omaha, went for Democrat Barack Obama. Since then, the state has split its electoral vote once, with the second district going for Democrat Joe Biden in 2020.

Despite the current Republican domination of Nebraska politics, the state has a long tradition of electing centrist members of both parties to state and federal office; examples include George W. Norris (who served a few years in the Senate as an independent), J. James Exon, Bob Kerrey, and Chuck Hagel. Voters have tilted to the right in recent years, a trend evidenced when Hagel retired from the Senate in 2008 and was succeeded by conservative Republican Mike Johanns to the U.S. Senate, as well as with the 2006 re-election of Ben Nelson, who was considered the most conservative Democrat in the Senate until his retirement in 2013. Johanns retired in 2015 and was succeeded by Ben Sasse, while Nelson retired in 2013 and was succeeded by Deb Fischer, both conservative Republicans.

Though its politics are generally conservative, the state also has a history of progressive reform. Nebraska was the first US state to outlaw sexual assault within a marriage, in 1975.[107] In 1980 it became the first US state to divest from South Africa to protest the racist system of apartheid.[108]

Former President Gerald Ford was born in Nebraska but moved away shortly after birth. Illinois native William Jennings Bryan represented Nebraska in Congress, served as U.S. Secretary of State under President Woodrow Wilson, and unsuccessfully ran for president three times. Former Vice President Dick Cheney was born in Lincoln but moved to Casper.

Museums

• International Quilt Study Center & Museum, in Lincoln
• Stuhr Museum, in Grand Island
• Joslyn Art Museum, in Omaha
• University of Nebraska State Museum, in Lincoln
• Museum of Nebraska Art, in Kearney

Performing arts

• Lied Center for Performing Arts, in Lincoln
• Orpheum Theatre, in Omaha
• Holland Performing Arts Center, in Omaha
• Omaha Community Playhouse, in Omaha
• Rose Blumkin Performing Arts Center, in Omaha
• Blue Barn Theatre, in Omaha
• Omaha Symphony

Nebraska is currently home to seven member schools of the NCAA, eight of the NAIA, seven of the NJCAA, one of the NCCAA, and one independent school.

The College World Series has been held in Omaha since 1950. It was held at Rosenblatt Stadium from 1950 through 2010, and has been domiciled at Charles Schwab Field Omaha since 2011.