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Page 25 text:
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H J hraska he State 1. The Past EOR uiuuimhercJ years Nebraska l.iy on the bed ot an immense sea. Then, thmugh ai es m ealculable, this sea-bottom rose and sank, accumulating the slow deposits of sea, lakes, and rivers. The rocks thus formed, covered with glacial gravel, the wind-blown loess, and finally the black alluvium of the rivers, became the physical Nebraska we know. The land for a long time teemed with animals of many species, far more varied than those of today. Finally, man appeared. We find grave-mounds and extensive flint-mines, evidences of an energetic though primitive race. Perhaps they were cousins of the mound-builders; we do not know. Nor do we know whence they came, or what became of them. More knowledge of these first Nebras- kans must come from careful study of the remains that are frequently being found. Here there is a gap in the record; then we find the aborigine displaced by the Indian. The largest tribe in this region was the Pawnee, which had attained a fairly settled life in the Loup, Platte, and Republican valleys. The Sioux family was represented by the Otoes, Omahas, and Poncas, and by the much wilder Brule and Ogalala bands farther west. A third group, the Chcyennes and Arapa- hoes, were Algonquins who had wandered far from their native lands in New York and New England. What white man first set foot upon Nebraska territory? The question has been warmly argued and still is undecided. The honor is often accorded to Coronado, but it is quite possible that his expedition of If 41 did not penetrate so far north. For two hundred years after him there was little knowledge of the Nebraska region, save from the memoirs of explorers who out-fabled Baron Munchausen. The first travelers who un- doubtedly visited the region were two French- men, the Mallet brothers, who led a party across It in 17. 9. Politically, Nebraska was a part of New France until 1762, when it was ceded to Spain. It was ceded back to France in 1800, and finally, in 18 ' 4, was brought under the American flag. From that year until 1 82 1 , it was first under military government and then attached success- ively to the territories of Indiana, Louisiana, an 1 Missouri. The first American explorers, Lewis and Clark, passed up the Missouri River in 1804, held councils with the Indians, and noted the character of the land. The most prominent Nebraskan of that early time was Manuel Lisa, a fur-trader. His post. Ft. Lisa, was established about ten miles above the site of Omaha in 1810 or 1812. During the War of 1812, Lisa ' s influence over the Nebraska Indians was sufficient to keep them loyal to the United States. An- other fur-post later developed into Bellevue, which is thus the oldest town in Nebraska. The first army post on the western plains, Fort Atkinson, was established in September, 1819. From 1821 to 18. 4, Nebraska was an unorganized wilderness. The main interest of the time was in the cut-throat competition of rival fur companies. This lawless period was terminated by the incorporation of the territory into the new Indian Country, from which white men were to be excluded. For twenty years settlement was debarred, but in the spring of 1854 the famous Kansas-Nebraska bill opened the gates, and settlers flcxided the Territory of Nebraska. Towns instantly dotted the east- ern border, and the rival villages of Omahi and Bellevue, with Florence, Plattsmouth, and Nebraska City close behind, began to clamor for the territorial capital. Omaha out-generaled her neighbors and for years thereafter the favorite legiskitive sport of the territory was the attempt, never successful, to remove the capital from Omaha. The year 1856 was one of speculative insanity. Embryo town-sites elbowed each other on the map, and wild-cat banks, with no equipment except beautifully lithographed notes, sprang up in every village. There was $750 in bank capital for every person in this territory on the edge of civiliza- tion. When the bubble broke, in 1857, poverty seemed more bitter than ever. Many squatters lost PaKC .■; Sud tliiu.sc iJeloiiymg tu Early S :lll :r
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Page 26 text:
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fc. j. Sterlinji Murlvn Munmneiit, Arbor Lodge Old Sfttler s Cabin. Arbor Lodge their land because of inability to pay the filing tecs. In 1859 the principal topic of conversa- tion, besides Pawnee thievery, was secession; for (he South Platte region, exasperated by Omaha ' s tenacious hold on the capital, attempted to join Kansas. Kansas refused, however, and Nebraska remained intact. Until 1858, almost all the residents of the territory were old-fashioned Democrats. In that year the Republicans organised and elected Samuel Daily to Congress. J. Sterling Morton •md Dr. George Miller were among the pn)mm ent Democrats of the time. From time to time there were sporadic move- ments to form a state constitution and secure admission to the Union. Such proposals were rejected in 1860 and 1864. In 1866 a third proposition for a state constitution, with Republr cans for and Democrats against, earned by a nar- row margin. It happened in this election that the party strengths in the legislature were very close and the outcome hinged upon the election in Cass county. A democratic majority in Rock Bluff precinct was thrown out on the ground that the election board members had locked the ballot box while they ate dinner. As a result Cass sent Republicans to the legislature, which in this way became Republican and elected Republicans as United States senators. The state constitution was approved by Congress on condition that it should not be construed so as to prevent negroes from voting; and, on March 1, 1867, Nebraska became the thirty-seventh state. The young state immediately reopened the venerable capital dispute by appointing a commis- sion, which selected a new site in a salt basin at least forty miles from the Missouri. The aggrieved representatives of Omaha sought to discredit the new capital by fixing on it the name of Lincoln. The first state capitol building was built under difficulties, for no railroad reached Lincoln until 1872. A con- stitutional convention, called in 1871, spent months formulating a new constitution which the people rejected; a second convention, in 1875, was more successful. The most exciting event of 1871 was the impeachment and conviction of Governor Butler on the charge of misuse of $16,000 of the state ' s funds. The tremendous increase of population from 1867 to 1880 was materially stimulated by the State Board of Immigration which in countless pamphlets expatiated on the resources and the future of Nebraska. The decade was also distinguished by the growth and political power of the Grange and other farmers ' organ i::ations. In 1876 the remnants of the Pawnee, Ponca, and the Otoe Indians were removed from their ancient lands to Oklahom. , leaving the Omahas and a few smaller tribes in Ncbrask.i. The political history of the state ran quite smcxithly with the increase in population and prosperity, until 1890. That year was one of crop failures and there was a tre- mendous defection of farmers from the old parties. The Farmers ' Alliance, with 50.000 members, entered politics and secured majorities in the legislature and in the Con- gressional delegation. Then the panic of ' 93 burst iipon Nebraska, bringing with it a depression that lasted until 1900. In the election of 1896 the state became the cynosure of the nation ' s eyes, as the residence of William Jennings Bryan and the center of free-silver agitation in that hot campaign. Political and economic upheavals kept the Republican party out of power until 1900. For the Entrance to Morton Mansion. J ehras a City PaKc 6 •■ ' ' ■» ' ■■■ ' - ■
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