The 37th state admitted to the US was Nebraska, on March 1st, 1867. Nebraska is known as the Cornhusker State because of the University's athletic teams mascot. A cornhusker is a person who removes the husks from corn by hand, which was the standard way of doing it before machines were invented. Corn is the most widely grown crop in Nebraska, but the state has fertile soil and the best climate, which has led to it being the leading agriculture state in the USA. The state has the largest aquifer - the Ogalala - that is underground, and Nebraska has more miles of river than any other state. The state motto is "Equality before the law", due to its commitment to equality and justice being above political agendas. Everyone is subject to the same rules and must be treated the same way in this state. The 911 emergency call system was developed and first used in Lincoln, Nebraska. The state capitol is Lincoln, the state bird is the Western Meadowlark, the state flower is the Solidago, and the state tree is the Eastern Cottonwood.
The Paleo-Indians were the first to inhabit Nebraska over 12,000 years ago. They hunted and made their weapons from stones. In the 19th century, Native Americans from the Omaha, Oto, Pawnee, and Ponca lived in the east and central parts of the state, while the Brulé, Ogala Teton Sioux, Arapaho, Comanche, and Cheyenne lived in the west. Indigenous peoples lived in the Nebraska region for thousands of years before settlers arrived. Francisco de Coronado was the first European to arrive in 1541. During the late 1600's, the Spanish and French explorers found their way to the state. In the 1690's, trade between the Apaches and the Spanish explorers was established. In the early 1700's, France was trading pelts with the Indigenous, and soon signed treaties with them. Spain and France broke out in war (the massacre of the Villasur), and Spanish Lieutenant General Pedro de Villasur dispatched an armed expedition that was defeated by the Pawnees and Otoes - who were allies with the French at the time. In 1762, the Seven Year's War started the withdrawal of France from the area and the rise of the British. By 1773, the British were trading with the Indigenous. On May 30th, 1854, the Nebraska and Kansas territories were created by the US Congress. This large territory included the current states of Colorado, North and South Dakota, Wyoming, and Montana. The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 gave residents of the state the right to decide on whether or not to allow slavery. This act divided the land, created a violent uprising known as "Bleeding Kansas", and this issue continued to build until the Civil War occurred in 1861. The US government forced the Indigenous to cede their land and move to reservations. Then, the Homestead Act allowed new settlers to gain free land (the Indigenous land) in Nebraska. These settlers were farmers, and they populated the state enough to be able to apply for statehood. Nebraska became a state on March 1st, 1867, and the capitol was moved from Omaha to Lancaster. Lancaster was renamed Lincoln after Abraham Lincoln was assassinated.
Native Americans have been working toward self-determination, recognition, and sovereignty since their land was stolen from them. They have created tribal colleges and universities, and have collaborated with the state and country officials to resolve issues. Alliances have been built with state and local governments, and regional issues are resolved through working together to find new ways to preserve the history and culture of Nebraska.
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