New Book Releases

Many immigrants were moving through the prairie as early as the 1840s and 1850s, and the majority were using the trails located about 60 miles north of Seward County along the Platte River. This county's part of the prairie lay undisturbed and pristine until the late 1850s. In the tall grasses, the antelope, deer, and buffalo roamed freely along the Big Blue River and its tributary creeks and crystal-clear natural springs, which were previously only visited by Native Americans passing through. When people from the Eastern United States and Europe started to settle the prairie, it was a daunting undertaking.

Hastings was founded in 1872 on the open prairie at the intersection of two railroads. It grew to become the "Queen City of the Plains," cigar-making capital of Nebraska, birthplace of Kool-Aid, and the site of the largest inland naval ammunition depot in America during World War II.

The area around Bennington played an important role in the westward expansion of the United States. The Missouri and Platte Rivers were important travel corridors for indigenous peoples, early explorers, trappers, and pioneers. Railroads revolutionized travel and led to the creation of hundreds of small villages along the rail lines; Bennington, founded in 1887, was one of these villages. The arrival of the automobile and better roads decreased the dependency on rail service. By 1975, the rail line that created Bennington had been abandoned. Bennington benefitted from upgraded roads and highways and from suburban sprawl. In the meantime, the Washington community declined, eventually closing its school and church.

In the early days, Huntington, New York, was known as part of the Gold Coast of Long Island. It was a busy area boasting summer hotels and docking facilities. Steamboats brought crowds to Huntington from New York City for outdoor fun. Mariners took advantage of landmarks to guide their craft into channels until 1857, when the Lloyd Harbor Light Station was built on a sandspit to guard the entrance of both Lloyd and Huntington Harbors. In 1907, the US Congress appropriated $40,000 for the construction of a new lighthouse to replace the Lloyd Harbor Light Station, which proved to be ineffective for the navigation of vessels entering Huntington Harbor. The Venetian Renaissance-style structure was completed in 1912 and had the distinctive appearance of a small castle. Thanks to the enormous efforts of the Huntington Lighthouse Preservation Society, Inc., the beauty and uniqueness of the Huntington Harbor Lighthouse has been preserved.

For more than 100 years, students at the University of Nebraska at Kearney (formerly Kearney State and the Nebraska State Teachers College) have worn the blue and gold of the Antelopes. Within these pages are more than 200 photographs that chronicle the storied history of athletics at the University of Nebraska at Kearney. Legendary coaches such as Fred Fulmer, Charlie Foster, Al Zikmund, and Jerry Hueser are highlighted along with the star athletes they coached, including Pat Panek, Frank Lydic, Larry Snell, Randy Rasmussen, Tom Kropp, and Bart Kofoed.
Also appearing in these pages are coach George Van Buren, who, beginning in 1910, helped shape the early sports program, and lesser-known but equally important athletes such as multisport standouts Earl "Irish" Carrig, Ronald "the Farnam Flash" Lewis,
and Ray Adams. Besides athletes, coaches, and championship teams, the intense rivalry with Hastings College is highlighted throughout. A Century of Sports at the University of Nebraska at Kearney offers a compelling visual history that will take the Antelope faithful on a journey back to the glory days of the school's athletics.