Nebraska History Podcast

From Nebraska to the German Skies of World War II

Rediscover the remarkable true story of Second Lieutenant Elbert S. Wood, Jr, a young navigator whose final mission over Schweinfurt in 1943 became one of the most devastating air battles of World War II. We retrace his final flight, the crash, and the long journey home through the 1995 Nebraska History Magazine article, “Or Go Down in Flame: A Navigator’s Death of Schweinfurt, [https://history.nebraska.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/doc_publications_1995_War_05_Death_Schwein.pdf]” written by his brother, W. Raymond Wood.

Born a King, Raised a Ford: The Early Life of President Gerald R. Ford

Nebraska is the birth state of one U.S. President. In this episode, we revisit the remarkable story of President Gerald Ford, born Leslie King, Jr., in a grand Omaha mansion and shaped by a turbulent family history. We explore how a twist of fate carried him from a wealthy but troubled Omaha legacy to a loving adoptive family through the 1987 Nebraska History Magazine article, "President Gerald R Ford's Roots in Omaha [https://history.nebraska.gov/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/doc_publications_NH1987PresFord.pdf]," written by Edward L and Frederick H Schapsmeier.

The Real Story Behind Nebraska's Cowboys

Today, we ride back into the real history of Nebraska’s open‑range cowboys; hard‑working, underpaid young men who helped shape the frontier long before Hollywood myths took hold. In this episode, we explore their lives on horseback, the dangers they faced, and the communities they built through the 2013 Nebraska History Magazine article, “A Peculiar Set of Men: Nebraska Cowboys of the Open Range [https://history.nebraska.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/doc_publications_NH2013Cowboys.pdf],” written by James E. Potter.

The History and Wonder of Courthouse and Jail Rocks

When travelers on the Oregon, Mormon, and California Trails passed through the panhandle of Nebraska, Chimney Rock was the most documented landmark on the journey. However, two other iconic landmarks helped guide travelers westward, Courthouse and Jail Rock. Today, we explore these two formations and how they captured the imaginations of pioneers through the 1962 Nebraska History Magazine article, “Courthouse and Jail Rocks: Landmarks on the Oregon Trail, [https://history.nebraska.gov/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/doc_publications_NH1962OregonTrail.pdf]” written by Earl R. Harris.

The Pioneering and Forgotten Baseball Team of Lincoln, Nebraska

In the spring of 1890, a group of determined young Black waiters defied the odds, stepped onto a Lincoln ballfield, and briefly reshaped baseball on the Great Plains. Their talent, grit, and improbable rise caught the attention of early historian Solomon White, who later honored them as the first Black professional team in the West and praised their place in the game’s evolution. On this episode, we relive the story of this influential and forgotten team through the 2015 Nebraska History Magazine article, “The 1890 Lincoln Giants: Professional Baseball’s Unlikely Return to Nebraska’s Capital City, [https://history.nebraska.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/NH2015Giants.pdf]” written by Kent Morgan.