Agricultural Prospects in 1859
Letters to the Nebraska Farmer
The first issue of Robert W. Furnas's Nebraska Farmer was published in October of 1859 in Brownville. Furnas (who had established ...
Brownville
What We Found
The Pie Lover’s Delight
Rhubarb, a plant well known to pie and dessert lovers in Nebraska, has a long history in this state. Its use as a substitute for fruit in a newly settled country where ...
Robbery at Brownville
In 1869 the U.S. Express Company at Brownville was robbed when its local agent, Jacob K. Baer, reported that he was "sandbagged, shot and robbed" of the company money. ...
Roller Skating in Brownville, 1883
Roller skating originated in Europe in the 1700s, with the first patent issued for a roller skate in 1819. In 1863 an American, James Plimpton, invented an improved ...
Alternative Fuels
The first settlers in Nebraska Territory found the lack of timber, except along creek and river banks, a problem. The consequent lack of fuel for heating and cooking ...
State Fair, 1870
The state fair held in Brownville in 1870 generated great local excitement. Brownville then had four hotels besides a number of restaurants and boarding houses to take ...
Telegraph at Brownville
Brownville, circa 1870.
The first telegraph connection to Nebraska Territory was completed August 28, 1860, to Brownville from St. Joseph, Missouri. For local ...
Wildcat Banks
The wildcat notes issued by some Nebraska territorial banks caused considerable financial instability. The bills had insufficient backing and in some instances, no ...
Mail for the Little Blue
Mail service was a matter of vital importance to frontier Nebraskans, especially to those who depended on the mails for their livelihood. Mark J. Kelley, editor of ...
Nebraska As It Was, As It Is, As It Will Be
This assessment of Nebraska's potential appeared in Brownville's Nebraska Farmer in theautumn of 1859:
"It is now nearly four years ago since I, a wanderer from an ...
The Nebraska Farmer’s First Issue
The first issue of Robert W. Furnas's Nebraska Farmer was published in Brownville in October of 1859, eight years before Nebraska Territory became a state. Furnas (who ...
Fossils
Nebraska has an almost uninterrupted fossil record of the past thirty-five million years, roughly half the time since dinosaurs became extinct. Fossilized remains of ...
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