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Regular military units are generally made up of men and women from different regions of the country. National Guard units are based in individual states. So, when a state’s National Guard unit distinquishes itself, it is often a source of pride for the entire ... Read more
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"Of course, there was the big ordnance (bombs and ammunition) plant in Grand Island and the one in Hastings . . . . I’ll never forget that because they had a lot of people working there. . . . There was something about the powder they worked in out there that turned their skin kind of yellowish-green, and their hair a kind of yellowish-green. . . . Some of the weirdest looking colored hairdos would come in there."
—Fred Merriman, Loup ... Read more
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"Ironically, at home, the soldier’s mothers, wives, and daughters were being told, ‘Go home to Mexico, where you came from.’"One mother is reported to have said, ‘Send my son home from Germany first.’ "
—From Our Treasures, A Celebration of Nebraska’s Mexican Heritage by Dr. Emilia González-Clements
In the early 1900s, Mexicans migrated to Nebraska in large numbers for many reasons. Some left Mexico to escape the Mexican Revolution. Some came here to better their economic condition. Nebraska offered work in the ... Read more
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Somewhere about a third of the way across Nebraska’s 430-mile expanse, there is an invisible line. On the eastward side of the line, people involved in cattle wear seed corn caps and boots with rounded toes. On the west, the caps yield to cowboy hats and the toes of the boots sharpen and the heels rise.
This line is imprecise and curvy. It does not coincide with other invisible lines: the one that divides Central Time from Mountain Time; the line ... Read more
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"It was something different to see minority people. . . . their presence was a little uncomfortable for some residents in the community."
—Elaine Hatten, Hastings, NE
Rick Wallace interviews Willie Trip about his experiences at the Hastings Naval Ammunition Depot during World War II. An NET Television’s THE WAR: NEBRASKA STORIES interstitial,excerpted from NET Television’s series, Next Exit. Courtesy 2007 NET Foundation for Television
Racism was a serious problem in World War II. The defense factories needed more workers than small towns ... 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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One horrible by-product of war is that crimes against humanity sometimes occur away from the battlefields. A very sad example was the creation of concentration camps by Adolph Hitler’s National Socialist political party. Racist, nationalistic, imperialistic, anti-communist, and militaristic, the "Nazis" claimed that Jewish people were members of an "inferior race".
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At first, SAC had airplanes with nuclear bombs. Their mission was to discourage another nation from attacking the U.S. by being ready to deliver a massive nuclear attack. But it was clear that rockets were the emerging weapon of the future.
The reason was speed. Bombers fly ... Read more
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By the summer of 1943, when German prisoners of war began to arrive in Nebraska, the agricultural work force in the state was severely depleted. Farmers needed workers. ... Read more
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"My Aunt Rose was listening to the radio, and I wasn’t paying much attention until they kept hearing the word ’war’. . . . I had never heard that word before, so finally I got up there and said, ’Well, what is it? What is it?’ They tried to explain to me what war was, and I was appalled! Because up until then, I thought all the grown-ups knew what they were doing, and I could not believe that grown-ups ... Read more
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The David City Bank failed in 1984. It was the 55th commercial bank in the United States to fail that year. In this case, the Nebraska State Banking Director declared that the bank was no longer solvent. The bank’s assets were turned over to the FDIC, which began to liquidate the assets of the loans.
Farmers in the surrounding area were facing a new crisis with the failure. Borrowers were sure that there would be foreclosures, and that farmers would be ... Read more
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Within days of the declaration of war, troops began to move across the country, on their way to the front lines. In many ... Read more
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"I remember once in a difficult part of the war that these MPs made the patients (German prisoners of war) think that they were not going to give them food from the carts. . . . I cried and said, ‘Oh, you can’t deprive them.’ This (guard) said, ‘Oh, we’re just kidding.’ But I know they weren’t. They were angry with the Germans."
—Barbara Gier, Seward, NE
Nurse, 203 General Hospital in Paris
World War II lasted over three and a half years ... Read more
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What was it like to fly a bomber with atomic weapons on board? What was it like to know your mission was to kill thousands and even hundreds of thousands of civilians?
Much is demanded of the SAC atom-bomber crews. Their lives are something new in military history. For the first time in peacetime, SAC bomber crews were prepared to fly their missions at a moment’s notice. SAC commanders had to be constantly available; before the era of cell phones, they ... Read more
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For most Nebraskans, the first sign or the war’s impact was the unprecedented rationing of more than 20 essential items. The first item to be rationed nationwide was sugar, which was soon followed by coffee and shoes. Nebraskans lined up at their local schools, where teachers issued ration ... Read more
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During the Cold War, military planners assumed that the Soviet Union might start a nuclear war at any time. Initially, the attack would have come from bombers flying over the North Pole, which is the shortest route between Russia and the U.S. SAC built a string of radar stations across Alaska, Canada and Scotland to provide about one hour of warning. Then ICBMs — Inter-Continental Ballistic Missiles that could fly from continent to continent in minutes — were developed, and ... Read more
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During World War II, there were shortages of many items across the U.S. because certain supplies were needed for the war. Civilians (people who were not in the military) had to do without some products.
Nebraska’s greatest contribution to winning the war was in food production. Even Nebraska families who did not live in rural areas got involved with the nationwide "Victory Garden" program. Nebraskans were encouraged to plant gardens to help ease the food shortage. Almost half of all vegetables ... Read more
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When Gen. Curtis E. LeMay became commander of the Strategic Air Command in 1948 he was appalled at the lack of professionalism in his bomber crews. LeMay rebuilt SAC and, in the process, presided over a huge change in the life of Omaha and Bellevue.
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Concerns about nuclear war also had an effect on government. There was a rush in the 1950s and 60s to provide shelters for governmental agencies and bodies.
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An auction in a rural community is a complex social, economic and even political event. It is also an emotional event. A farm auction usually means that the farmer is leaving — either by choice or because he or she can no longer make it financially. Neighbors gather to look through and bid on household items and equipment. In one moment, they’re looking for bargains. In another moment, they’re celebrating the life of their neighbor. They catch up on community ... Read more
