Nebraska

1854

Nebraska Territory

1854

Nebraska Territory

The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 organized the Nebraska Territory and opened it to settleme...

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1862

Homestead Act

1862

Homestead Act

The Homestead Act of 1862 opened millions of acres of public land in Nebraska and across t...

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1867

Nebraska Statehood

1867

Nebraska Statehood

Nebraska was admitted to the Union on March 1, 1867, as the 37th state. Settlement had gro...

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1869

Transcontinental Railroad

1869

Transcontinental Railroad

The completion of the First Transcontinental Railroad in 1869 transformed Nebraska's econo...

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1870s

Great Plains Settlement

1870s

Great Plains Settlement

The 1870s brought waves of homesteaders to Nebraska's vast grasslands, drawn by free land...

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1887

Buffalo Bill's Wild West

1887

Buffalo Bill's Wild West

William "Buffalo Bill" Cody, born in Iowa but raised in Nebraska, created his legendary Wi...

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1930s

Dust Bowl

1930s

Dust Bowl

Nebraska was among the states hard hit by the Dust Bowl of the 1930s, when years of drough...

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1948

Strategic Air Command

1948

Strategic Air Command

Offutt Air Force Base near Omaha was designated as the headquarters of the Strategic Air C...

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1970s

Center Pivot Irrigation

1970s

Center Pivot Irrigation

The widespread adoption of center pivot irrigation systems during the 1970s transformed Ne...

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Modern Era

Agriculture and Defense

Modern Era

Agriculture and Defense

Today, Nebraska is one of the nation's leading producers of corn, beef, soybeans, and othe...

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