Nebraska

• Population- 1,768,340
• Capital- Lincoln
• Largest cities– Omaha, Lincoln, Bellevue
• Time zone- Central, Mountain
• Date of Admission to the Union- March 1, 1867
• Slogan- “Equality before the law”
• State website URL- www.nebraska.gov

Buttes are outstanding and unique geologic formations that occur in particular areas of the West. One of the most well known butte formations is Chimney Rock, located in the western part of Nebraska. It is a National Historic Site, recognized for the role it played in marking the way for early Westward settlers. The butte was put on Nebraska’s commemorative quarter.

Another geologic feature is Agate Fossil Beds National Monument in Harrison. The site is rich in a number of significant fossil findings. Ancient fossils have given scientists the first glimpses at prehistoric horses and rhinos.

Owing to its railway history, North Platte’s Union Pacific rail yard is the largest in the country. In fact, Union Pacific maintains its headquarters operations in Omaha. And the railway freight industry is a leading economic plus for the state.

In 1917 Father Edward Flanagan founded a home for boys in the Nebraska farmland. Boys’ Town has become world-renowned for its charitable work with abused and abandoned kids of all kinds. Today the nationwide organization is called Girls’ and Boys’ Town. The original Boys’ Town Village in Nebraska is a historic site.

Much of Nebraska is devoid of trees, but ironically enough the occasion of Arbor Day was started in Nebraska. The annual event was founded. J. Sterling Morton, an influential Nebraskan, who wanted to make the largely treeless state more attractive to newcomers. His solution: a day each year during which residents were asked to plant a tree.