NU@150: 12 Events that Shaped the University of Nebraska
Kay Logan-Peters, architectural librarian and author of the book, “The University of Nebraska-Lincoln” will identify twelve key events that formed Nebraska’s largest educational institution. Learn how the University’s location was determined; why there are two campuses in Lincoln; and who were the decision makers who facilitated the course of “Dear Old Nebraska U.”
Sessions with the Senator: Tom Vickers on his "political hero" George Norris
Join us at 2:00pm on Saturday January 19th at the Norris home for a talk from Tom Vickers, a former Nebraska State Senator from Farnam, who proclaims George Norris as his "political hero." Vickers will be speaking about Norris' influence on the Nebraska Unicameral and Nebraska Public Power.
The George Norris Home is located at 706 Norris Avenue in McCook, Nebraska.
Free Family Fun Day: Celebrating Black History Month
Join us at the Nebraska History Museum for an afternoon celebrating and recognizing the history of Black Americans in Nebraska and Lincoln. Featuring kid-friendly hands-on activities, a scavenger hunt, read-aloud sessions, and a great artistic performance.
Funding for this event is provided in part by Humanities Nebraska and the Nebraska Cultural Endowment
Nebraska: Crossroads of the Western Fur Trade
Join us at Chimney Rock for the first in our 2019 Sunday Afternoons at The Rock series.
Darrel Draper will be presenting an entertaining and amusing history of the fur trade, including trading companies, personalities and the achievements of the fur traders and mountain men who lived in or passed through Nebraska.
This tabloid-style review of the oddities and ironies of the
industry will be presented been in a fun and stylized way but is backed up with thorough research. It recounts some of the bizarre events that resulted in the most important discoveries of land and routes enabling the U.S. to claim and populate the West.
Film Screening: Greased Lightning
Join us at the Nebraska History Museum for a special screening of Greased Lightning and a lecture exploring a history of Black American men breaking through racial barriers.
The lecture will be presented by Dr. Kwakiutl Dreher, Associate Professor of English and Ethnic Studies at UNL.
Greased Lightning is a 1977 biopic starring Richard Pryor based on the life of Wendell Scott member of the NASCAR Hall of Fame and first black driver to win a race at NASCAR's premier level.
Funding for this event is provided in part by Humanities Nebraska and the Nebraska Cultural Endowment
Sunday at the Rock: Our Plains Indian Heritage
Join us at Chimney Rock for another installment in our 2019 Sunday Afternoons at The Rock series.
Phyllis R. Stone, a descendant of Chief Iron Shell, an elder of the
Rosebud Sioux tribe and a Sun Dancer, will explain the uses and traditions of handmade items she brings for this presentation — items from both past and present American Indian cultures.
Dressed in a traditional Sioux woman’s dress, she speaks about the life of the Rosebud Sioux as she shares artifacts. She describes life on the reservation and how her family combines their Indian heritage with other interests. Also included in the talk are artifacts and legends of the Mountain Man and the relationship of that culture to the Indians of the Plains.
Sundays at The Rock: The Forts of Nebraska
Join us at Chimney Rock for another installment in our 2019 Sunday Afternoons at The Rock series.
Nebraska’s forts were among the first, last and most important on the Great Plains. They were built to promote trade, to protect travelers and settlers, to fight the Indian tribes and then to keep the peace.
During that time, they hosted some great names of American history, including Buffalo Bill Cody, Crazy Horse, George Custer, Robert E. Lee, Red Cloud, and Mark Twain. Jeff Barnes tells the story of Nebraska’s 12 military forts and what today’s visitors will find at the sites.
Brown Bag Lecture - Black Americans in Nebraska and Lincoln
Spend the lunch hour with us at the Nebraska History Museum for a Brown Bag Lecture with Dr. Jeannette Jones, Associate Professor of History and Ethnic Studies at UNL. Dr. Jones will be exploring the history of Black Americans in Nebraska and Lincoln.
Guests are encouraged to bring their lunches with them.
The lecture will also be broadcast live on government access channels and uploaded on the History Nebraska Youtube channel afterward.
Funding for this event is provided in part by Humanities Nebraska, the Nebraska Cultural Endowment, and AARP.
Fur Trade History of the North Platte River Valley
Join us at Chimney Rock for another installment in our 2019 Sunday Afternoons at The Rock series.
While the North Platte River valley was used as a travel corridor for the famed Oregon Trail, it was also a travel route for many others throughout history as well. One group that relied heavily on the shallow waters of the North Platte were the mountain men.
Come join us for Cody Assman's talk focusing on how mountain men used the North Platte, their experiences while traveling along it, and their thoughts of the place we call home.
Sundays at The Rock: Feathered Friends
Join us at Chimney Rock for another installment in our 2019 Sunday Afternoons at The Rock series.
Come along and discover our feathered friends of western Nebraska through this interactive presentation. Uncover common species, learn their calls and unique adaptations for living in this area with Nebraska Game and Parks Commission Education Specialist Amanda Filipi.
Sundays at The Rock: Wee Granny, Mormon Handcart Pioneer
Join us at Chimney Rock for another installment in our 2019 Sunday Afternoons at The Rock series.
At the age of 74, Mary Murray Murdoch (aka Wee Granny) started across the prairie with the ill-fated Martin Handcart Company. Because it was late in the season, they walked to their very limits each day, which eventually became too much for her frail body.
On October 2, 1856, Wee Granny Murdoch passed away in view of Chimney Rock. The exact location of her grave has been lost to history but in 2001, her descendants put a marker in the Chimney Rock Cemetery. Historian Jerry Lucas will tell her amazing story and the legacy she left.
Sundays at The Rock: The Great Platte River Road
Join us at Chimney Rock for another installment in our 2019 Sunday Afternoons at The Rock series.
The Platte’s broad gentle floodplain made it a natural route for wagons to cross the continent. Once the need for wagon roads passed, this natural travel corridor remained an important way to cross America.
Chimney Rock Historian Loren Pospisil will show how trails turned to rails turned to roads. In many ways, the Oregon, Mormon and California trails are still alive.
Brown Bag Lecture: Thomas Rogers Kimball, 2019 Nebraska Hall of Fame Inductee
Thomas Rogers Kimball, FAIA, is perhaps the most unsung contributor to the creation of Nebraska’s National Landmark State Capitol. Capitol Administrator, Robert C. Ripley, FAIA, will present a program highlighting Kimball’s impact on the design of the Nebraska State Capitol. Kimball created the rules governing the design competition and advised the Nebraska Capitol Commission until the Capitol’s completion in 1932. His work enabled Nebraskans to achieve a modern architectural wonder. Ripley will also highlight other aspects of Kimball’s long architectural career in Nebraska and the nation.
