CH 3
West Facade
A Civil Society
Lesson 1 - Lincoln and Lincoln
So, you want to find out about Lincoln. The person or the city? The city is named for the person, you know. This memorial to the person Lincoln was here before this Capitol “Capitol” and “capital” sound the same but are spelled differently and have different meanings. The capital is the city or town that is the location of the seat of government. But the Capitol is the building in which a state legislature meets. The city of Lincoln is now the capital of Nebraska—and it’s where Nebraska’s capitol building is located.building was even built.
There was a time when the Capitol building wasn't going to be here, because people wanted to have the capital city someplace else-- like, say, Omaha.
More about the Lincoln Monument!
The Lincoln Monument was designed by architect Henry Bacon and sculptor Daniel Chester French, who created the Lincoln MemorialSomething (like a statue) that keeps the memory of a person or event alive. in Washington D.C. ten years later.
From the very beginning of the Nebraska Territory, there was a huge struggle about where to locate the capital city. To be the capital was not just an honor.
Being the capital city would bring many economic advantages. The city would grow, and trades such as building, printing, and hotel-keeping would prosper.
Omaha was the first capital of Nebraska in the days before statehood. But people who lived south of the Platte River objected to Omaha as the capital. Since more Nebraskans lived south of the Platte, they wanted the capital city to be south of the Platte. The territory divided into North Platters and South Platters. (Reset image)
Nebraska's efforts to achieve statehood were halted in the early 1860’s by the Civil War. That also put a stop to any attempt to move the capital.
When the Civil War broke out in 1861, Nebraska sent 3,300 soldiers to fight on the UnionIn this case, Union means the United States of America because this country is many states joined together. During the Civil War, the Union was the northern states that represented the U.S. government. side. The war affected transportation in the state. Overland freight was routed to Omaha and Nebraska City to avoid the fighting in Missouri. Steamboats couldn't get to Nebraska, affecting supplies of needed goods.
By the time Nebraska became a state in 1867, Omaha was a prosperous town in an excellent location along the transcontinental railroadA railroad that goes all the way across the continental United States, from the east coast to the west coast.. It was clear Omaha would grow even if it wasn’t the capital, which weakened the arguments against creating a new capital city.
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Page 0301_04
0301_0401 map of what would become Lincoln area circa 1870
0301_0402 hilite Seward County
0301_0403 hilite northern Lancaster County
0301_0404 hilite southern Saunders County
0301_0405 hilite southern Butler County
<insert map – when user clicks on one of the green text below the areas are highlighted on the map>
The brand new state legislatureIn this case, the elected group of people who make the laws for the State of Nebraska. created a capital commissionA group of people called together to select a location for the new capital city. made up of the governorThe top elected official of a state, whose job is to enforce the laws of the state., the state auditorThe person who keeps track of the state’s money and how it is spent., and the secretary of stateThe person who is in charge of all of the state’s official records, and is also the chief election officer and the head of the filing office.. This commission was supposed to choose a new site for the capital city on land owned by the state, somewhere in an area that included Seward County, northern Lancaster County, and southern Saunders and Butler Counties.
The New Capital City
There was talk of naming this new community Capital City. But another name was also suggested: Lincoln.
The commissioners picked a site that wasn't state-owned land, even though that was not what the legislature directed them to do. Residents of a town called Lancaster gave the land to the state, and the city was renamed Lincoln. It was planned that land sales would finance the building of the new city. Sales were slow at first, so the commissioners worked with investors from Nebraska City to raise the money needed.
In a way, Lincoln is like Washington, D.C., which is also a city created especially to house government.
Unfortunately, Lincoln's first buildings were nothing like Washington's. The first state Capitol building in Lincoln was built so quickly and so badly that it had to be replaced.
Surprisingly, the capital commissioners -- including Nebraska's first governor, David Butler -- were willing and able to sidestep the law in acquiring the land and financing the new capital. They even refused to give the money from the land sale to the state treasurer, supposedly because he was from Omaha and wouldn't release it for building the new Capitol building.
But in 1871, Butler was impeachedTo impeach is to charge a high government official with a crime.. He was removed from office after being convicted of misappropriatingUsing money or goods in a way that is illegal or unfair. funds, using money from the federal government for himself instead of for school lands as it was intended.
SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT . . .
Does the Capitol look like a war memorial to you? Why or why not?
How is the Nebraska Capitol different from other capitols and memorials?Find images of other capitols and memorials and compare them to Nebraska’s capitol.