Nebraska and the Civil War

Prior to the Civil War, most of the settlement in the Nebraska Territory was located in the eastern portion of the state, primarily along the Missouri River. There were other minor settlements west of there, particularly along the trails that had been leading pioneers westward for almost well over a decade. The territory was settled primarily by people who were sympathetic to the Union case. The U.S. Census of 1860 reveals only fifteen slaves in the Nebraska territory.

When President Lincoln called for troops, Nebraska furnished 3,300 men. This is a remarkable number considering the entire population of the territory in 1860 was only about 30,000 with 9,000 of those being males of military age. Some Nebraska men went to Iowa and Kansas to enlist and some from those states came to Nebraska to enlist.

At the beginning of the Civil War, troops were withdrawn from the garrisons at Fort Kearny and further north along the Missouri River at Fort Randall. This left the area wide open for Indian attack and caused great concern. Major General John J. Thayer of the Nebraska Militia suggested volunteers be placed at the two forts. The federal government proposed that one regiment be raised within Nebraska Territory with a portion of it being used to garrison the forts and defend the frontier. Contrary to the original formation of this regiment, they were ordered to serve against the Confederates in the South and the frontier still remained unprotected.

The regiment, mustered from Omaha, became known as the First Nebraska Volunteer Infantry. They fought in the first major engagement at Fort Donelson, Tennessee in February of 1862 and were at the Battle of Shiloh. The regiment was also involved in scouting and skirmishing in Missouri and Arkansas. They were granted a furlough in June of 1864 to 13 August 1864 to return to Nebraska.

With the passage of the Homestead Act on 20 May 1862, Nebraska became populated by men (and their families) who had served in the Civil War. As they settled and remained here, camps of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) were formed. Records were created which today can be beneficial to the genealogist. One of the best places to begin online research is at the web page, Nebraskans in the Civil War.

Nebraska Masonic History

On 3 October 1855 the Grand Lodge of Illinois chartered Nebraska Lodge No. 184 at Bellevue. The first Masonic meeting occurred on 3 April 1855 on the second story of the Old Trading Post at Bellevue, Nebraska Territory. This was owned by Peter Sarpy. Members of the Omaha tribe lived in an adjoining room. Peter Sarpy was the first candidate to be initiated in 1856. Acting upon his petition, members of the lodge were forced to use an empty gallon pickle jar and small gravel stones.

The following year the Giddings Lodge No. 156 at Nebraska City was chartered by the Grand Lodge of Missouri. In 1857 Capitol Lodge No. 101 in Omaha was chartered by the Grand Lodge of Iowa. The same year the three lodges in the Territory of Nebraska organized a Grand Lodge. members from Nebraska City walked to Omaha for the event.

By 1861 the membership growth was slow, partly because of the poor economy. Many of the old members had left for the gold fields. More of a depletion of members occurred as some left to fight in the Civil War. The Masonic Lodges eventually realized growth and renewal by the admission of Nebraska Territory as a state and with the influx of new settlers after the war.

An excellent book that gives chronological information on Masonic events in the state is A Sesquicentennial History of the Grand Lodge of Nebraska 1857-2007 by Russell G. Reno, published in 2007 by Macoy Publishing & Masonic Supply Co., Inc. of Richmond, Virginia.

The Masonic Grand Lodge of Nebraska's web site contains lodge information, along with location and links if they have a web page. If you have ancestors who belonged to a Masonic lodge in Nebraska, you may be able to gain more information by contacting either the Grand Lodge or a lodge to which he belonged. In your request, be sure to supply information on your relationships to the subject, along with a brief explanation as to why you are seeking the information.

Genealogy Workshop in Omaha

The Greater Omaha Genealogy Society is sponsoring a workshop on Saturday, October 24th. It will begin at 9 a.m. at the Nebraska Methodist College, Josie Harper campus. Doors open at 8:15 a.m. There will also be a bake sale and lunch will be served at a nominal fee.

There will be presentations about wills and probate records, Civil War pensions and a panel discussion to discuss some of the attendee's research problems. If you wish to submit a research problem, it must be done with your registration, explaining what you have researched and what you know about the problem. There will also be an Antiques Roadshow type event where attendees can bring family heirlooms and learn more about them.

Click here to download a registration flyer for the workshop.

Family History Month in North Platte

October is Family History Month. The oldest organized genealogy society in the state of Nebraska is the North Platte Genealogical Society and members are celebrating the month in style!

There is a display on the first floor of the North Platte Public Library, 120 West 4th in North Platte, Nebraska. Volunteers are staffing the genealogy collection in the library, which is on the second floor. Dates are ...

Monday, Oct. 5th 9:30 to 11:00 a.m.

Friday, Oct. 9th 2:00 to 4:00 p.m.

Monday, Oct. 12th 9:30 to 11:00 a.m.

Thursday, Oct. 15th 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.

The volunteers are prepared to help researchers with the questions and assist them in locating books, microfilm and microfiche housed in the library. Collection Organization Tours are being held on:

Saturday, Oct. 17th 9:00 to 11:00 a.m.

Monday, Oct 19th 9:30 to 11:00 a.m.

Thursday, Oct. 22nd 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.

The Fall Genealogy Seminar will be held on Saturday, October 10th. Ruby Coleman (Yours Truly) will be presenting the seminar from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Mid-Plains Community College south campus. The cost is $20; pre-register by calling 308-535-3714. The topics are Clicking Your Way to Genealogical Success (free Internet sites) and Vital Records & Substitutes.

The Genealogy Help Desk will be held on Wednesday, October 21st from 6 to 9 p.m. in the North Platte Public Library Meeting Room. There will be genealogy displays and volunteers available to help with genealogy problems; guests are very welcome. There will be prize drawings at 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m.; must be present to win.

This should be a fun filled month to celebrate genealogy.

The Nebraska Migrations Project

The Nebraska Migrations Project is not a new project, but it is worth checking out. Migrations is actually a stand alone project designed to further migration research and also develop a comprehensive database.

There are two parts to Migrations. The first is the Migrations Database. You can search this by name or place. The second part is a National Migration Links page with a table of state links. There are also some migration links to countries, such as England, Ireland and Germany. Because of the scope of the project, there are search engines for searching locations as well as surnames.

Information submitted to Migrations comes from genealogical researchers who are hoping to make connections with others researching the same family. Obviously the web site will not continue to grow unless people submit their migration information. If you desire to submit information, be sure to read the instructions thoroughly. You will still own the data submitted and it can be removed at your request.

There are 720 entries on the Nebraska Migrations Project. It was started in February of 2000. The database format is name, lifespan, such as 1861-1932 and origin. Once you click on a name of interest, there is more information, such as where born, additional notes along with migration steps and time frame that took them to Nebraska. There is also a clickable link to contact the researcher/submitter.

This is a project worth checking. Spend some time there and see what it is all about, then consider submitting your own data.

Genealogy Lock In

A Genealogy Lock In will be held on Friday, October 2nd at the Omaha Public Library, 215 S. 15th Street in Omaha, Nebraska. It is sponsored by the library and the Greater Omaha Genealogical Society (GOGS). On that evening after the library is locked, genealogists will be doing serious research. The doors to enter will be locked before 6:30 p.m. on October 2nd, so genealogists need to arrive before then. They can leave at any time, even though the Lock In ends at 9:30 p.m. In order to remain in the library after the doors are locked, genealogists need to have a name tag which they can secure by e-mailing, Sahara346@aol.com.

There will be coffee and cookies to keep genealogists going for three hours of intense research. There will also be a donation jar to help pay the guard's salary. If you don't live in the Omaha Public Library's area (have a patron card), you and get a one-day guest card for $2. Cards from Council Bluffs or Lincoln libraries will be accepted. The card allows you to use the computers and receive five free copies.

Ahead of time it would be a good idea to check out the card catalog and have a research plan. Here are some good reasons why you should attend the Lock-In:

1. two librarians on duty to help genealogists

2. fourteen computers with Ancestry.com and other genealogy web sites

3. over 8,000 genealogy books in the book room

4. marriage microfilm from about 20 Nebraska counties; mostly about 1900, but much later for Douglas and Sarpy counties

5. historical Omaha newspapers on microfilm

6. genealogy newsletters from over 125 genealogy societies around the country

7. complete set of Germans to America and other ethnic immigration book sets

8. complete set of Omaha City directories (and several other cities on microfilm)

9. obituary clipping file, 1977 through June 2008

10. naturalization index for Nebraska and some 60 plus Iowa counties (alphabetical)

11. Internet databases on several Douglas County cemeteries

12. church records from several Omaha historic churches - microfilm

13. historic clipping file on Omaha history and people (only accessible by asking librarians)

14. GO-PAF people available to answer genealogy computer problems

15. GOGS volunteers available to help solve genealogy problems

Sounds like fun. I bet at 9:30 there are some wanting to stay longer. I hope it is a great success.

Nebraska Regional Center Cemetery Records

After much litigation, the Hastings Regional Center in Adams Co., Nebraska has released photocopies of the cemetery records to the Nebraska State Historical Society and the Adams County Nebraska Historical Society.

The cemetery records also include corresponding plot maps for individuals buried in the Center Cemetery. From 1909 to 1959 there were approximately 751 patients buried there. A second listing abstracted from the medical ledger books between 1889 and 1918 for 399 patients was also provided. Both of these lists are in a PDF (downloadable/searchable) file at the Nebraska State Historical Society web site.

In 1887 the Nebraska legislature appropriated $75,000 for a "state asylum for the incurably insane" at Hastings, provided the city donate 160 acres of land. The city purchased the land one mile west of the city limits and eventually it was turned into 630 acres. The original building was a three story brick building with a tall central tower. Additions were completed through the years. The first patients were received on 1 August 1889. Forty-four were transferred from the "State Lunatic Asylum" in Lincoln, Nebraska. Through the years thousands of patients were received.

The name of the center changed through the years. In 1895 it was renamed Asylum for the Chronic Insane. In 1905 it was named Nebraska State Hospital and in 1915 to Ingleside Hospital for the Insane and eventually to Hastings State Hospital. The current name change occurred in 1971.

Tragically not everybody who was admitted was incurably or chronically insane. They may have suffered from hereditary disorders, change of life, stress, financial problems or domestic issues. It is sad to think that hundreds were buried there and for decades their place of burial was unknown. I hope that family will recognize their name and find them at last.