Top20Nebraska.com - Your Top20 Guide to Nebraska

Nebraska (IPA: /nəˈbræskə/) is a state located on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. Nebraska gets its name from a Chiwere word meaning "flat water," after the Platte River that flows through the state.^[2] Once considered part of the Great American Desert, it is now a leading farming and ranching state. The native peoples to be counted as "Cornhuskers" (the name given to Nebraska citizens) included the Iowas, Omahas, Missourias, Poncas, Pawnees, Otoes, and various branches of the Sioux.

History

Main article: History of Nebraska

On May 30, 1854, the Kansas-Nebraska Act created the Kansas Territory and the Nebraska Territory, divided by the Parallel 40° North. The territorial capital of Nebraska was Omaha.

In the 1860s, the first great wave of homesteaders poured into Nebraska to claim free land granted by the federal government. Many of the first farm settlers built their homes out of sod because they found so few trees on the grassy land.

Nebraska became the 37th state in 1867, shortly after the American Civil War. At that time, the capital was moved from Omaha to Lancaster, later renamed Lincoln after the recently assassinated President of the United States Abraham Lincoln.

The Arbor Day holiday began in Nebraska, and the National Arbor Day Foundation is still headquartered in Nebraska City.

Nebraska has a long history of civil rights activism, starting in 1912 with the foundation of Omaha's National Association for the Advancement of Colored People chapter.

Geography

Further information: List of counties in Nebraska and List of Nebraska rivers

Nebraska is split into two time zones. The Central Time zone comprises the eastern half of the state, while the western half observes Mountain Time.

Nebraska is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the southwest; and Wyoming to the west. The state has 93 counties; it occupies the central portion of the Frontier Strip.

Three rivers cross the state from west to east. The Platte River runs through the heart, the Niobrara River flows through the northern part of the state's region, and the Republican River traverses through the southern part of the state.

Nebraska is composed of two major land regions: the Dissected Till Plains and the Great Plains. The easternmost portion of the state was scoured by Ice Age glaciers; the Dissected Till Plains were left behind after the glaciers retreated. The Dissected Till Plains is a region of gently rolling hills; Omaha and Lincoln are located within this region.

The Great Plains occupy the majority of western Nebraska. The Great Plains itself consists of several smaller, diverse land regions, including the Sandhills, the Pine Ridge, the Rainwater Basin, the High Plains and the Wildcat Hills. Panorama Point, at 5,424 feet (1,653 m), is the highest point in Nebraska; despite its name and elevation, it is merely a low rise near the Colorado and Wyoming borders.

Nebraska state welcome sign

A past Nebraska tourism slogan was "Where the West Begins"; locations given for the beginning of the "West" include the Missouri River, the intersection of 13th and O Streets in Lincoln (where it is marked by a red brick star), the 100th meridian, and Chimney Rock.

Nebraska, a doubly landlocked state, claims to have more miles of river than any other state.

Highest elevations

Federal land management

Areas under the management of the National Park Service include:

Areas under the management of the National Forest Service include:

Climate

Two major climates are represented in Nebraska: the eastern half of the state has a humid continental climate (Koppen climate classification Dfa), and the western half of the state has a semi-arid continental steppe climate (Koppen BSk). The entire state experiences wide seasonal variations in temperature and precipitation. Average temperatures are fairly uniform across Nebraska, while average annual precipitation decreases east to west from about 31.5 inches (800 mm) in the southeast corner of the state to about 13.8 inches (350 mm) in the Panhandle. Snowfall across the state is fairly even, with most of Nebraska receiving between 25 and 35 inches (650 to 900 mm) of snow annually. [1]

Map of Nebraska

Nebraska is located in Tornado Alley; thunderstorms are common in the spring and summer months. The chinook winds from the Rocky Mountains provide a temporary moderating effect on temperatures in western Nebraska during the winter months. [2], [3]

Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.	%±
1860	28,841	—
1870	122,993	326.5%
1880	452,402	267.8%
1890	1,062,656	134.9%
1900	1,066,300	0.3%
1910	1,192,214	11.8%
1920	1,296,372	8.7%
1930	1,377,963	6.3%
1940	1,315,834	−4.5%
1950	1,325,510	0.7%
1960	1,411,330	6.5%
1970	1,483,493	5.1%
1980	1,569,825	5.8%
1990	1,578,385	0.5%
2000	1,711,263	8.4%
Est. 2007	1,774,571	3.7%

As of 2007, Nebraska has an estimated population of 1,774,571, which is an increase of 10,806, or 0.6%, from the prior year and an increase of 63,306, or 3.7%, since the year 2000. This includes a natural increase since the last census of 77,995 people (that is 187,564 births minus 109,569 deaths) and a decrease due to net migration of 9,319 people out of the state. Immigration from outside the United States resulted in a net increase of 27,398 people, and migration within the country produced a net loss of 36,717 people.^[3]

The center of population of Nebraska is located in Polk County, in the city of Shelby [4].

As of 2004, the population of Nebraska included about 84,000 foreign-born residents (4.8% of the population).

Demographics of Nebraska (csv)
By race	White	Black	AIAN*	Asian	NHPI*
2000 (total population)	93.53%	4.48%	1.32%	1.58%	0.11%
2000 (Hispanic only)	5.24%	0.13%	0.17%	0.04%	0.02%
2005 (total population)	93.06%	4.82%	1.31%	1.85%</