Nebraska Territory
The Territory of Nebraska was a historic organized territory of the United States from May 30, 1854 until March 1, 1867 when Nebraska became the 37th U.S. state. It was established by the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854. The territorial capital was Omaha.
History
An enabling act was passed by Congress in 1864. Delegates for a constitutional convention were elected; this convention did not produce a constitution. Two years later, in 1866, a constitution was drafted and voted upon. It was approved by 100 votes. However, a clause in this constitution that limited suffrage to "free white males" delayed Nebraska's entry into the Union for almost a year. The 1866 enabling act for the state was subject to a pocket veto by President Andrew Johnson. When Congress reconvened in 1867, it passed another bill to created Nebraska as a state, on the condition that Nebraska's constitution be amended to remove the suffrage clause. This bill was also vetoed by President Johnson. Congress then overrode his veto.
Fight for the State Capitol
Omaha City desperately wanted to be the capital of the new state. Starting in 1854 local businessmen formed the Omaha Claim Club as part of a scheme to persuade Territorial legislators to keep the capital in Omaha. Their aggressive efforts to secure land to give away to legislators, called Scriptown, was later determined to be illegal in Baker v. Morton.
In January, 1858 a group of representatives illegally moved the Nebraska Territorial Legislature to Florence following a violent outburst at the capitol building. After repeatedly being dogged out of voting on the removal of the capital from Omaha, a skirmish pitted representatives from Nebraska City, Florence, and other communities to convene outside of Omaha. Despite having a majority of members present for the vote to remove the capital and all agreeing, the "Florence Legislature" did not succeed in swaying the Nebraska Territory governor. The capital remained at Omaha until 1867 when Nebraska gained statehood.[1]
Early settlement
Several towns, forts and trading posts were established in the Nebraska Territory from the early 1800s through 1867, including Fontenelle's Post founded in the present-day site of Bellevue in 1806. It was first mentioned in fur trading records in 1823. Fort Lisa, founded by Manuel Lisa near present-day Dodge Park in North Omaha was founded in 1806. Fort Atkinson, was founded on the Council Bluff in 1819; in 1822 Cabanne's Trading Post was founded nearby on the Missouri River. Mormon settlers founded Cutler's Park in 1846, and the town of Bellevue was incorporated in 1853. Nearby Omaha City was founded in 1854, with Nebraska City and Kearney incorporated in 1855. The influential towns of Brownville and Fontanelle were founded that year as well. The early village of Lancaster, later called Lincoln, was founded in 1856, along with the towns of Saratoga, South Nebraska City and Florence.[2]
Early press
Early print media in the Nebraska Territory served the dual purposes of sharing the news and promoting the area for settlement. In 1860 the Territory had twelve weekly publications, one biweekly and one monthly, with a combined circulation of 9,750. After statehood in 1867 the newspaper industry expanded greatly[3]
| Pioneer print media in the Nebraska Territory[4] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Print period | Location | Notes | ||
| Nebraska Palladium and Platte Valley Advocate | 1854-55 | Bellevue | Edited by Thomas Morton | ||
| Arrow | Omaha | ||||
| Nebraska News | Nebraska City | ||||
| Nebraskian | 1854-1864 | Omaha | |||
| Nebraska Advertiser | 1856 | Brownville | Edited by Robert W. Furnas | ||
| Huntsman's Echo | 1858 | Near Shelton | Edited by Joseph E. Johnson, this paper was influential with Oregon Trail pioneers. | ||
| Nebraska Republican | 1858 | Omaha | The first paper in the Territory to have mechanical presses, this was later succeeded by the Omaha Republican, and in 1871 absorbed the Omaha Tribune. | ||
| Nebraska Farmer | 1859 | Brownville | Robert W. Furnas also published the first agricultural newspaper in the Territory. | ||
| Peru Orchardist | Peru | ||||
| Daily Telegraph | 1860 | Omaha | The first daily publication in the Territory failed, and in 1861 it was sold to the Nebraskian. | ||
| Nebraska Deutsche Zeitung | 1861 | Nebraska City | Published by Frank Renner, this German language paper was circulated nationally and in Germany. It is credited with bringing many German settlers to the Territory. | ||
| Daily Herald | 1865 | Omaha | Edited by George L. Miller, this paper was influential in bringing the Union Pacific to Omaha. | ||
Early military posts
With a variety of early fur trading posts, Fort Atkinson, founded in 1819, was the location of the first military post in what became the Nebraska Territory, as well as its first school.[5] Other posts in the Nebraska Territory included Fort Kearny near present-day Kearney; Fort McPherson near present-day Maxwell, Nebr.; Fort Mitchell near present-day Mitchell, Nebr.; Fort Randall, in what is now South Dakota; and Fort Caspar, Fort Halleck, Fort Laramie, and Fort Sanders, in what is now Wyoming.
Boundaries
The Nebraska Territory's original boundaries (as specified by its Organic Act) included much of the original Louisiana Purchase; the territory's boundaries were:
- Southern – 40° N (the current Kansas-Nebraska border);
- Western – the Continental Divide between the Pacific and the Atlantic/Arctic Oceans;
- Northern – 49° N (the U.S.-Canada border);
- Eastern – the White Earth and Missouri rivers.
Subsequent territory creation
Upon creation, the territory encompassed most of the northern Great Plains, much of the upper Missouri River basin and the eastern portions of the northern Rocky Mountains. The Nebraska Territory gradually reduced in size as new territories were created in the 1860s.
The Colorado Territory was formed February 28, 1861 from portions of the territory south of 41° N and west of 102°03' W (25° W of Washington, DC) (an area that includes present-day Fort Collins, Greeley and the portions of Boulder north of Baseline Road.
March 2, 1861 saw the creation of the Dakota Territory. It was made of all of the portions of Nebraska Territory north of 43° N (the present-day Nebraska-South Dakota border), along with the portion of present-day Nebraska between 43° N and the Keya Paha and Niobrara rivers (this land would be returned to Nebraska in 1882). The act creating the Dakota Territory also included provisions granting Nebraska small portions of Utah Territory and Washington Territory — present-day southwestern Wyoming bounded by 41° N, 110°03' W (33° W of Washington, DC), 43° N and the Continental Divide. These portions had not been part of the Louisiana Purchase; rather, they had been part of Oregon Country and became part of the United States in 1846.
On March 3, 1863, the Idaho Territory was formed of all the territory west of 104°03' W (27° W of Washington, DC).
See also
- History of Nebraska
- Landmarks of the Nebraska Territory
- Historic regions of the United States
- Governors of Nebraska Territory
- Timeline of Racial Tension in Omaha, Nebraska
- Oregon Trail
- Mormon Trail
- California Trail
References
- ^ Bristow, D. (1997) A Dirty, Wicked Town: Tale of 19th Century Omaha. Caxton Press.
- ^ Federal Writers Project. (1939) Nebraska. Lincoln, NE: Nebraska State Historical Society. p 49.
- ^ Federal Writers Project. (1939) Nebraska. Lincoln, NE: Nebraska State Historical Society. p 134.
- ^ Federal Writers Project. (1939) Nebraska. Lincoln, NE: Nebraska State Historical Society. p 133.
- ^ (n.d.) World Almanac for Kids: Nebraska: Education.