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Nebraska

Thirty-seventh state in the United States, admitted to the Union on March 1, 1867. Named for the Ioway-Otoe Indian word Ñí Brásge, which means "flat water," a reference to the Platte River.[1]

American settlement of the region was insignificant until the discovery of gold in California in 1848, which brought thousands of pioneers westward. On May 30, 1854, Congress created the Kansas and Nebraska Territories.

In the 1860s, The Federal government forced many Indian tribes to cede their lands to the United States and move to reservations, opening vast tracts of land to settlers. The Homestead Act of 1862 made it possible for thousands to claim free government land.

Nebraska gained statehood in 1867 and experienced rapid growth in population. The vast prairies provided excellent grazing land for cattle, and the combination of Nebraska's excellent weather, newly available land and modern agricultural technologies made the new state ideal for farming.[2]

Point Blank: In May 1871[3], Bret Maverick traveled to the cattle towns of Prairie Springs and Bent Forks in Nebraska's panhandle, just south of the North Platte River.[4]

Stage West: In July of 1875[3], Bret Maverick visited the Packsaddle Station along the Tomah Stage route, two hours ride east of Twin Bluffs.[5]

Stampede: In April of 1877[3], Bret Maverick and Dandy Jim Buckley followed Buckley's map leading $40,000 in buried Wells Fargo gold dust to the Twin Peaks[6] in the bluffs along the Missouri River across from Vermillion, Dakota Territory.[3] They crossed the ridge between the peaks and saw that the town of Whiskey Flats had sprung up in the Mountain Meadow.[6] After recovering the gold dust, they crossed the Missouri back into Dakota Territory.[3]

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