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The first rumblings of the 1980s’ farm crisis came in the 1970s. In the early years of the decade, prices for farm products were relatively high. In 1973, farmers across the nation had a total net income of $33 billion. By 1977, record crops had pushed prices down, and the cost of fuel, seed, pesticides and other farm costs had risen — net farm income dropped to $20 billion. In addition, the value of farm land — the "equity" or ... Read more
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The national United Service Organization (USO) was organized on April 17, 1941. It was created to serve the religious, spiritual, and educational needs of the men and women in the armed forces. USO clubs were to be financed by the public through voluntary contributions.
During the war, volunteers, mostly women, organized USO clubs throughout Nebraska. USO clubs sponsored a variety of activities for service personnel that included dances, sporting events, and dinners in the homes of local families.
The flag of the ... Read more
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The first groups of German POWs to arrive in Nebraska were well-disciplined, regular soldiers. Many were fanatical Nazis, and that was a source of conflict in the camps. These Nazis were more thoroughly indoctrinated in Nazi ideology than most later-arriving POWs.
Initially, Americans had little interest in the politics of the German POWs. Most Americans were politically ignorant or naïve about Nazism. This naïvete is illustrated by a conversation between Fort Robinson commander, Colonel Arthur Blaine, and his interpreter, John Neumaier:
– ... Read more
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Before Pearl Harbor, rumors were flying that Nebraska communities would be chosen as sites for government defense plants. Due to the efforts of Nebraska’s congressmen and senators, Mead, Hastings, Grand Island, and Sidney became the locations for ammunition manufacturing plants and storage facilities.
These defense industries created thousands of jobs for Nebraskans and brought additional workers to the state. But they also created severe housing shortages. Many farm families, whose lands were bought at seemingly unfair prices, were displaced.
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Through the years, a variety of laws were passed in Nebraska to limit the sale of alcoholic beverages. But until the second decade of the new century, these laws all fell short of outright prohibition.
Early in the fight, prohibitionists pushed for a "county option" law that would permit a counties — rather than local cities — to determine whether they would be wet or dry. It was just too hard to outlaw alcohol town by town. But, the bill was ... Read more
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Between 1825 and 1892 in Nebraska, there were a series of 18 different treaties between Native American tribes and the U.S. government in which Indians gave up their land. Nationally, there were hundreds of treaties. These treaties were important because each made it legally possible for the United States to make land available to settlers. The treaties of the early 1800s (and later) made the settlements of the 1870s possible.
The map below is linked to the actual text of the ... Read more
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Along with rationing, Nebraskans became well educated in the art of collecting scrap materials. These could be recycled into weapons and other equipment essential to the war effort. Scrap iron was the most obvious choice for collectors. Papers were the easiest to get and were reused for packaging weapons.
"Disposables" such as grease, were used to manufacture explosives and artificial rubber. Leftover food grease was used to manufacture ammunition.
Due to the shortage of metals during the war, major appliances were hard ... Read more
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In the 1880s, a new, more radical group attracted new members. The Farmers’ Alliance got off to a slow start. Their second state convention was planned to be held in August, 1882. But it was not well advertised and came in the midst of a harvest season. Only 15 people showed up.
But as hard times developed, the Alliance grew. By 1890, the Alliance claimed 1,500 local chapters and 50,000 members in Nebraska. At that ... Read more
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There was already a war going on in Europe. After Germany invaded the former Soviet Union in June 1941, the United States joined Great Britain, China, the Soviet Union, and several others to become the Allied Powers. We promised aid to the Soviet Union to resist Germany.
Germany was part of the enemy we called the Axis Powers, along with Italy, and later Japan. Together, they signed the Tripartite Pact ...
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In December of 2003, a dairy cow in Washington State was found to have bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). Because this illness may cause an animal to behave strangely and lose muscle control, consumers knew the disease by another disturbing nickname, "Mad Cow Disease." As of 2017, there have been no cases of Mad Cow Disease in cattle in Nebraska.
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) took a number of steps to insure the quality of American ... Read more
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There are very few people who have seen an atomic bomb explode — or who would want to. But in 1955, there were several Nebraskans who were among the 5,800 civilian and military witnesses to an atomic test blast. The civilians were there by choice, while most of the military observers had been ordered there. The experiment was known as Operation Cue.
Operation Cue was not the first attempt to test the effects an atomic explosion would have on buildings and ... Read more
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Between 1910 and 1920, the African American population of Omaha doubled from around 5,000 to 10,315. Those 10,000 blacks made up five percent of Omaha’s population. Blacks made up only around one percent of the population of the state. Even with these small numbers, the rate ... Read more
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At the same time that homesteaders were getting free land from the government, large tracts of land were granted to railroads by both the states and the federal government. The goal was to encourage the railroads to build their tracks where few people lived, and to help settle the country. The federal government was especially interested in creating a transportation system that would link the eastern and western coasts. Not only would a transcontinental railroad help populate the Great Plains, ... Read more
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Even before America entered the war, production for it had begun. In Omaha, for instance, the Martin Bomber Plant was commissioned in September 1940 — well over a year before Pearl Harbor. Other plants were commissioned across the country to build bombs, tanks, rifles, and other weapons, some for sale or "loan" to other countries and some for our own stockpiles.
Although many Americans felt that we were isolated from the war, ... Read more
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In 1992, Offutt Air Base faced massive changes. Tensions around the world quieted down, and it was a good time for the United States to reorganize its Air Force. After 46 years, SAC was deactivated on June 1, 1992. A new, united command, STRATCOM was activated. STRATCOM controlled the U.S. nuclear arsenal in case of another war. Offutt’s 55th Air Wing flew reconnaissance (observation) missions throughout the world. At the end of the 20th century, the 55th remained the largest ... Read more
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This is the full text of Article XII, Section 8 of the Nebraska Constitution. These provisions are more commonly known by the name, Initiative 300.
Sec. 8(1) No corporation or syndicate shall acquire, or otherwise obtain an interest, whether legal, beneficial, or otherwise, in any title to real estate used for farming or ranching in this state, or engage in farming or ranching.Corporation shall mean any corporation organized under the laws of any state of the United States or any country ... Read more
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Issues related to the environment, use of drugs and chemicals, and other problems shaped not only public policy, but consumer demand. In meeting these challenges, new and expanding niche markets for cattle grew.
Since the first days of cattle in Nebraska, producers have worked to keep up with the wishes of their consumers. Breeding and feeding technologies were developed to produce the tasty meat that Americans and people around the world wanted.
Most cattle in Nebraska belong to the Angus and Hereford ... Read more
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This tangle of economics resulted in a shortage of beef. That, in turn, created a lucrative black market for beef.
The black market avoided price controls at every level of production. Unscrupulous cattle buyers paid ranchers more for cattle that they bought straight from the fields, thus avoiding public sales and inevitable price ceilings. Packers bought the extra cattle, butchered them, and then offered them to meat markets with empty shelves. They asked for the ceiling price plus some extra money ... Read more
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In 1971, University of Nebraska State Museum paleontologist Michael Voorhies was walking with his wife Jane through a series gullies on Melvin Colson’s farm in northeastern Nebraska. What had attracted Voorhies to this area was that the Verdigre Creek and its tributaries had done a good job of eroding away the top layers of much of the land around the area. Voorhies had been searching the area since 1969 and had found a number of fragmentary fossils.
Eventually, they moved their ... Read more
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Arthur Kirk was a farmer who became a tragic symbol of the desperation in agriculture in 1984. Kirk farmed land near Cairo, Nebraska, that had been in his family for three generations. In the early ’80s, he owned about 2,000 acres, but over the years, he had lost all but 240 acres.
In 1984, he and his wife Deloris owed over $300,000 to Norwest Bank in nearby Grand Island. As in most farm loans, the money was "secured" by the value ... Read more
