Nebraska
2 of the 7 encyclopedias on this shelf carry an entry for Nebraska. Both are reproduced below, so you can see where they agree and where they differ.
Aiton's Encyclopedia (1910)
a central state of the American Union. It lies on the western bank of the Missouri between the fortieth and forty-third parallels of north latitude. The extreme western boundary of the state is formed by the 104 deg. W. The width of the state from north to south is 208 1/2 miles. The length from east to west is 413 miles. The area is 76,840 square miles. The physical features of the state are remarkably simple. The surface rises gradually from the Missouri river westward. The extreme southeastern part of the state is 842 feet above the sea level. Wild Cat Mountain in Banner County, the highest elevation in the state, rises 5,038 feet above the sea. Aside from the Missouri, the chief river is the Platte, which flows from west to east throughout the entire length of the state. It was called by the Indians Nebraska, meaning Shallow Water. Platte is a French name having the same significance. It is a shallow, sandy river without rapids or falls. All the waters of the state find their way into the Missouri. CHARACTERISTICS. Limestone is the oldest rock. The state has comparatively little mineral wealth. Lignite coal is found in workable quantities. There are also beds of peat. Limestone is quarried for building purposes. It affords excellent lime and Portland cement. The eastern edge of the state is covered with glacial drift. There is an extensive area of sand drifts or sand hills in the northwest. The eastern part of the state is fertile, comparing favorably with the most productive parts of the Mississippi Valley. The west extends into the foothill region of the Rocky Mountains and is lacking in moisture. The entire state seems to be underlaid with an abundance of water which has entered the soil, no doubt, in the foothills of the Rockies. Artesian wells sunk to depths of from 200 to 500 feet seldom fail to reach water. The annual rainfall in the southeastern part of the state is about thirty inches. It falls off toward the northwestward about an inch for each fifty miles. The extreme northwestern part of the state has about fifteen inches of rain. The winter is so dry that there is little snowfall. The extremes of temperature may be placed at 102 deg. above and 40 deg. below zero. The southeastern part of the state has the mildest climate; the northwestern the most severe. The mean annual temperature for the year varies from 52 deg. to 46 deg. The average for July, the hottest month in the year, is about 78 deg. AGRICULTURE. Nebraska is preeminently an agricultural state. In order of acreage, the chief field crops are corn, wheat, oats, wild hay, rye, timothy, alfalfa, sorghum, millet, barley, potatoes, clover, and broom corn. An annual corn crop of 250,000,000 bushels is expected and about one-fifth as much wheat. The state takes high rank in dairy products. Extensive irrigation canals have been constructed in the western part of the state, aggregating about 3,000 miles in length. They water perhaps a million acres. Land previously considered too dry for agricultural purposes is now enormously productive. That part of the state east of the 100 deg. meridian has acquired a reputation of late for fruit. Apples, plums, and cherries do well. Peaches and grapes are raised successfully in the southeastern portion. Strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, currants, and gooseberries thrive. Market gardening, especially in the vicinity of Omaha, is an important industry. INDUSTRIES. There are extensive stock ranges in the west, on which cattle find their own living the year through. The bluffs and valleys of the east shelter forests of hardwood. Fringes of cottonwood follow the streams. A tree known as the bullpine grows on the highlands of the northwest, but, taken as a whole, Nebraska is a prairie state. Tree Planting Day or Arbor Day , established largely through the efforts of Secretary Morton of the department of agriculture, is popularly observed. As stated, Nebraska is noted for agriculture rather than for manufacturing. The annual value of manufactured products, however, represents the large total of $143,990,000. Half of this sum is to be credited to the immense packing establishments of South Omaha. Flour milling comes next. Car building, publishing, and brewing follow in the order named. The soil has been found particularly well adapted to the raising of sugar beets. The output of beet sugar is about 25,000,000 pounds a year. HISTORICAL. The Lewis-Clark Expedition followed the eastern borders of the state in 1804. Trappers and fur traders from St. Louis were the first to explore the Platte Valley. Colonel Pike, Major Long, Captain Bonneville, and General Fremont led their forces through the state. Nebraska was a part of the Louisiana Purchase. It formed part of Missouri Territory in 1812. After the admission of Missouri in 1821 Nebraska was designated Indian country. It was organized as a territory in 1854, with boundaries extending from the Missouri River to the Rocky Mountains, including portions of the present states of Colorado, North and South Dakota , and Montana. The first legislature met at Omaha. The state was admitted to the Union in 1867. The capital was then removed to Lincoln. EDUCATION. The educational system of the state was organized at an early date. In common with other Northwestern States, every eighteenth section of land was set apart for sale to create a school fund. The early settlers were largely from the Northern States and from Germany. The percentage of illiteracy, as shown by the last census, is but 2.3. A complete system of common schools , graded schools, and high schools covers the entire state. There are two normal schools, one at Peru and another at Kearney. The state university is located at Lincoln. It comprises several colleges and already has an enrollment of 3,000 students. The population of the state in 1900 was 1,066,300. STATISTICS. The following statistics are the latest to be had from trustworthy sources: Land area, square miles 76,840 Water area 712 Population 1,070,000 Omaha (1909) 134,972 Lincoln 52,308 South Omaha 42,146 Number counties 90 Members of state senate 33 Representatives 100 Salary of governor $2,500 U. S. representatives 6 Presidential electors 8 Assessed valuation of property $329,000,000 Bonded indebtedness none Acres improved 19,000,000 Miles of railway 6,000 Manufacturing establishments 1,819 Capital invested $80,000,000 Operatives 26,000 Raw material $124,000,000 Output of manufactures $155,000,000 Agricultural Products-- Corn, bushels 205,000,000 Wheat, bushels 44,000,000 Oats, bushels 56,000,000 Potatoes, bushels 8,000,000 Barley, bushels 2,000,000 Rye, bushels 2,000,000 Beet sugar, pounds 19,000,000 Butter, pounds 46,000,000 Wool, pounds 1,856,000 Eggs, dozen 50,000,000 Orchard products, value $1,000,000 Domestic Animals-- Horses 1,000,000 Mules 68,000 Milk cows 879,000 Other cattle 3,265,000 Sheep 431,000 Goats 3,000 Swine 4,300,000 Fowls 7,500,000 Output of meat products $70,000,000 Clay products $1,000,000 Quarry products $324,000 Teachers in public schools 10,059 Pupils enrolled 276,000 Percentage of male teachers 12.7 Average monthly salary of men teachers $66.01 Average monthly salary of women teachers $46.16 Average annual expenditure per pupil $30.12 See Omaha
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
a State in the North Central Division of the North American Union; bounded by South Dakota, Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Colorado, and Wyoming; admitted to the Union, March 1, 1867; capital, Lincoln; number of counties, 93; area, 76,840 square miles; pop. (1890) 1,058,910; (1900) 1,068,539; (1910), 1,192,214; (1920) 1,296,372. Topography. - The State is situated in the great central plain of North America, and has a flat or undulating surface, with a slight inclination S. E. On the N. W. is an extensive desolate tract of land known as the Mauvaises , rich in interesting Terres or Bad Lands fossil remains. Timber has been extenhere of late. The principal sively planted rivers are the Missouri, which forms the boundary on the E.; its great affluent, the Nebraska or Platte, which, formed by two main forks, from the Rocky Mountains, traverses the territory in an easterly direction; and the Republican Fork of Kansas river, traversing the southern part of the State. Geology. The greater part of the State is occupied by Miocene Tertiary formations. A small portion of the N. W. is of Pliocene Tertiary deposit, the remainder of the State being divided among the Permian, Carboniferous, and Cretaceous. The Missouri and Platte river valleys exhibit signs of glacial action. The mineral deposits are not extensive. Coal occurs in places in layers ranging from 5 to 22 inches. Building stones are quarried in places, including a yellowish gray limestone, a magnesium limestone, capable of taking taking a high polish, and the blue Trenton limestone. Lignite, marble, lime, gypsum, um, rock salt, and peat are found in limited quantities. Mineral Production. - The only mineral products of the State are clay products and pottery. Soil. The soil, excepting in the N. W., is a deep, rich loam underlaid by a porous clayey subsoil, and is admirably adapted to withstand drought. The climate is equable, and on the whole fine. The forest trees include elm, maple, black walnut, hickory, red cedar, linden, cottonwood, hackberry, pine, and spruce. Considerable attention is paid to forestry. The principal growth of timber, cottonwood, is found along the river banks. Agriculture. The even temperature, fertile soil, and extensive farm area, make Nebraska an important agricultural State. The principal farm products in 1919 were as follows: corn, 184,186,- 000 bushels, valued at $224,707,000; oats, 69,962,000 bushels, valued at $45,475,000; wheat, 60,675,000 bushels, valued at $122,564,000; hay, 4,299,000 tons, valued at $60,186,000; potatoes, 6,325,000 bushels, valued at $12,018,000. Manufactures. - The statistics of the manufactures of the State in 1914 are as follows; number of establishments, 2,294; average number of wage earners, 25,144; capital invested, $121,008,000; amount paid in wages, $16,893,000; value of materials used, $194,114,000; value of finished products, $221,616,000. Transportation. The total railway mileage of the State for 1920 was 8,392. Little railway construction has been done in recent years. The railways having the longest mileage are the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy, the Union Pacific, and the Chicago and Northwestern. Banking. On Oct. 31, 1919, there were 190 National banks in operation, having $16,640,000 in capital, $10,766,813 in outstanding circulation, and $9,673,520 in United States bonds. There were also 957 State banks with $23,334,000 in capital, and $6,885,000 in surplus. The exchanges at the United States clearing house at Omaha, for the year ending Sept. 30, 1919, aggregated $2,965,754,000, an increase over the preceding year of $273,280,000. Education. The total number of children of school age was 387,394. There were enrolled in the public schools 292,- 362 pupils with an average daily attendance of 219,246. There were 12,697 teachers with an average salary of $64.75 monthly. There are normal schools at Peru, Kearney, Wayne and Chadron. The University of Nebraska at Lincoln is part of the educational system of the State. Other institutions of collegiate rank are Bellevue College at Bellevue, Union College at College View, Doane College at Crete, Hastings College at Hastings, University of Omaha at Omaha, a, Nebraska- Wesleyan College at University Place, Cotner University at Bethany, and York College at York. Charities and Corrections. The charitable and correctional institutions include State institutions for the blind and deaf, an institute for the feeble-minded, industrial schools for girls and boys, three asylums for the insane, and a State penitentiary at Lincoln. There is a juvenile court law and a board of control for dependent and neglected children. Churches. The strongest denominations in the State are the Roman Catholic; Methodist Episcopal; Lutheran; Synodical Conference; Presbyterian, North; Regular Baptist, North; Congregational; Disciples of Christ; Lutheran, General Council; and United Brethren. Finances. The State has no bonded debt. The total receipts for the fiscal year of 1918 was $4,980,973 and the disbursements amounted to $4,012,270. There was a balance at the end of the year amounting to $1,451,880. State Government. -The governor is elected for a term of two years and receives a salary of $2,500 per annum. Legislative sessions are held biennially in odd years, beginning on the first Tuesday in January and are limited to 90 days each. The Legislature has 33 members in the Senate and 100 in the House. There are 6 representatives in Congress. The State government in 1920 was Republican. History. Nebraska was originally a part of the Louisiana Purchase, and was for a long time part of the Northwest Territory. The overland emigration to California in 1849 brought about a general settlement of this region, and a Territory was organized in 1854 under the Kansas-Nebraska Bill. From the area of this Territory were taken part of Colorado, Montana, Wyoming, and the Dakotas. In 1867 the Union Pacific railroad was completed across Nebraska, the Territory was admitted to the Union as a State, and the capital was removed from Omaha to Lincoln.