publications

Coal for Home Heating

Most modern homes are heated with electricity or natural gas during cold weather. However, coal was once the fuel of choice for Nebraska homeowners. The comfort of one’s family during the winter depended upon access to a ready supply. The Lincoln Trade Review of November 22, 1902, described one of Lincoln’s busiest coal dealers and his yards, as well as the types of coal available to the public:



“November weather brings the coal question to mind and the magnitude of this branch of trade and the vast amount of coal consumed in Lincoln annually is scarcely understood and appreciated. Among the principal Lincoln dealers who, in addition to a very extensive city trade, sell carload lots to trade in the state, is Charles B. Gregory, whose city office is at 1044 O street, where for twenty-two years a city coal office has been maintained. Mr. Gregory commenced active business in the coal trade eleven years ago and he has, besides ten splendid years of trade, the satisfaction of now enjoying the best year’s trade of all-a trade three times as extensive as that of the first year’s.” Gregory was so well known in the coal business that in September 1897 he participated in a local parade in honor of a GAR reunion in Lincoln, riding in a buggy at the head of a long procession of his coal delivery wagons.



“A visit to Mr. Gregory’s coal yards, located at Fourteenth and Y streets, on both sides of Fourteenth, would impress one with the comfort that there is no perceptible danger of a coal famine in Lincoln. The yards have some fifty storage bins, with a capacity under cover of upward of two hundred cars of coal. . . . Elkhorn and Missouri Pacific trackage enters these yards and switching facilities for quick handling are excellent. Two platform scales are in service for weighing. At the yards J. C. Kear is foreman, with an office clerk and four yard men. An average of fifteen teams are employed through the season in delivering. One thousand cords of wood were handled and sold by Mr. Gregory last year and upward of 600 cars of domestic coal.



“While steam coal is handled extensively, the largest effort has been made to build up the domestic trade of the city, and sales of anthracite are very heavy. Coal from Illinois, Ohio, Missouri, Arkansas, Indian Territory, Pennsylvania, Kansas, Iowa, Colorado and Wyoming in a half hundred varieties and sizes are handled and kept in stock. Mr. Gregory gives especial attention to his Carterville, Illinois, coal, a thoroughly honest coal and one of the very best heating coals on the market, which now retails for $6 per ton. Another coal given much attention is his Glen Rock, Wyoming, coal, which comes from mines near Casper. . . . The keeping qualities of Glen Rock coal are excellent and the price at retail is $5.75 per ton.”

Become a Member!

Our members make history happen.

Join Now

Other Publications

The Bachelors’ Protective Union of Kearney

When the Bachelors' Protective Union gave a gala reception for two of its newly married, former members and their brides in March of 1890, the social club for young, ...

U.S. Weather Bureau in 1890s Nebraska

The U.S. Weather Bureau was established by an act of Congress on October 1, 1890. It took over the weather service that had been established in the office of the Chief ...

Canning the Way to Victory

During American participation in World War I the U.S. Food Administration, under the direction of Herbert Hoover, launched a massive campaign to persuade Americans to ...

The Shoemaker’s Ashes

"Edward Kuehl, one of the most peculiar characters that ever lived in Omaha, or anywhere else, was found dead in his bed last night in the back room of his place of ...

Crazy Horse Surrender Ledger Foreward

Red Dog, an Oglala Lakota who lived at the Red Cloud Agency, Nebraska, 1876-77 (Nebraska State Historical Society RG2955.ph).   In the summer of 1876, following the ...

Darryl F. Zanuck

Darryl F. Zanuck Darryl F. Zanuck (1902-1979), a native Nebraskan, produced some of Hollywood's most important and controversial films. He helped found 20th Century Fox ...

The Burlington’s Profitable Pork Special

Nebraska railroads were much concerned with developing an adequate economy in the areas they served. The Burlington, for example, had a long history of caring for the ...

Bungalow Filling Stations

After the giant Standard Oil Company was broken into thirty-four separate companies in 1911, the newly independent Standard Oil of Nebraska dominated the state's market ...

The Bull Fight

This is the perfect time of year for a visit to the old fishin' hole. But a group of fisherfolk from Plainview discovered that this bucolic pastime sometimes has ...

Buffalo Soldiers West

African-American soldiers on the western frontier are the focus of an exhibit at the Nebraska History Museum in Lincoln. Buffalo Soldiers West, on loan from the Colorado ...

Protection for Buffalo

The extermination of the buffalo on the Plains occurred largely between 1870 and 1885. The Nebraska State Journal of Lincoln on February 1, 1874, editorialized in vain ...

Buffalo Hunting

In late October 1877 young Rolf Johnson and three friends left their homes in Phelps County, Nebraska, for a buffalo hunt in northeastern Colorado. The hunt was not very ...
About History Nebraska
History Nebraska was founded in 1878 as the Nebraska State Historical Society by citizens who recognized Nebraska was going through great changes and they sought to record the stories of both indigenous and immigrant peoples. It was designated a state institution and began receiving funds from the legislature in 1883. Legislation in 1994 changed History Nebraska from a state institution to a state agency. The division is headed by Interim Director and CEO Jill Dolberg. They are assisted by an administrative staff responsible for financial and personnel functions, museum store services, security, and facilities maintenance for History Nebraska.
Explore Nebraska
Discover the real places and people of our past at these History Nebraska sites.

Upcoming Events

View our new and upcoming events to see how you can get involved.

Become a Member

The work we do to discover, preserve, and share Nebraska's history wouldn't be possible without the support of History Nebraska members.

Latest Hall of Fame Inductee

The Nebraska Hall of Fame was established in 1961 to officially recognize prominent Nebraskans.

Listen to our Podcast

Listen to the articles and authors published in the Nebraska History Magazine with our new Nebraska History Podcast.

Nebraska Collections

History Nebraska's mission is to collect, preserve, and open our shared history to all Nebraskans.

Our YouTube Video Collection

Get a closer look at Nebraska's history through your own eyes, with our extensive video collections.

Additional Research Resources

History Nebraska Research and Reference Services help connect you to the material we collect and preserve.

Support History Nebraska
Make a cash donation to help us acquire, preserve, and interpret Nebraska’s history. Gifts to History Nebraska help leave a legacy and may help your taxes, too! Support the work of History Nebraska by donating to the History Nebraska Foundation today.

Volunteers are the heroes of History Nebraska. So much history, so little time! Your work helps us share access to Nebraska’s stories at our museums and sites, the reference room, and online.