The hum and bustle of reform seemed to be everywhere in Omaha in July of 1892. Economic instability and uncertainty hovered, foreshadowing the impending Panic of 1893. Midwesterners took aim at the perceived causes of their pecuniary distress with a gathering in Nebraska’s Gate City. Frustration with the inequalities produced by the Gilded Age had been combined in the 1880s with a number of agricultural grievances to produce a conglomeration of Western and rural reformers eventually known as the Populist movement.

If you love the look of the Nebraska State Capitol, you owe a lot of thanks to this Nebraska-born poet and philosopher.

Doing laundry now is unpleasant on the best of days. This 1905 Otoe County laundry day looks especially rough.

This curious object is the Thermator fireless cooker, and it was manufactured right here in Nebraska.

Fireless cookers were popular in the early 20th century, and slowly cook food using less fuel. Food was heated in pots on a stove or fire, and placed in the fireless cooker. Soapstone or metal heating plates were also heated and placed under and over the pots. The cooker was tightly closed to retain the heat and not reopened until the food was presumed cooked. Recipe books gave general guidelines for cooking times.

Over the years, Nebraska has been "number one" in a lot of categories. We've had the nation's highest-rated football team, we've produced more popcorn than anyone else, we've had more school districts, and our state boasts the largest stabilized sand dune formation in the western hemisphere.

Our Historical Markers across Nebraska highlight fascinating moments and places in our state's past. Today we focus on Victor Colson's homestead in Oakland, Nebraska. Colson and his family are said to have broken the first sod in Oakland in 1867.