South Omaha History as per Historical Plaques by MCC So Omaha

 I ran into a couple Magic City plaques and wanted to share them.  I know there are others as they are numbered.  If anyone knows how to find them please let me know.  

Book Review: Rising Above: Nebraska and Western Iowa's Historic 2019 Floods

 Rising Above: Nebraska and Western Iowa's Historic 2019 Floods, BH Media Group, Omaha World Herald, Omaha, Nebraska, 2020.

There was a prediction that their could be some flooding.  But there were still doubts.  However no one predicted the severity of the flooding.  The combination rising rivers, ice in the rivers, combined with a failed dam, resulted in catastrophic flooding.   The frozen ground, and high rainfall lead to flooding through much of the state.  Four Nebraskans died in the flooding, but there was over a billion dollars in property loss.  Washed out and flooded roads, many towns were isolated due to flooded roads.  Many had difficulty getting to work.  Offutt base was flooded here in Bellevue.  Also the park close to the river, American Heroes Park area was flooded.  The Paradise Lakes residential neighborhood was flooded.

Other communities had it worse.  The Niobrara River flooded.  The Elkhorn River flooded.  The Loup River flooded.  Towns in 29 Nebraska counties evacuated.  Iowa was not spared, especially those communities close to the Missouri River.  Spencer Dam on the Niobrara River failed releasing an eleven foot wall of water.  The ice in the river made it seem a glacier as it ripped away everything in its path.  

But the title of the book, "Rising Above," has another meaning.  This also tells the story of how people banned together and helped each other.  Gifford Farm in Bellevue was devastated, with many animals put at risk.  Many people rose to the occasion to help.  Such was the case all over the state.  It is hard to comprehend that this was only a few years ago.  I have only lived in Nebraska a short time, but neighbors went through this flooding.  

This book tells a very important story, with pictures from all over the state.  It tells of businesses lost, or crippled.  Farms destroyed.  Too much sand on the soil from the flooding river.  But it also tells stories of resilience.  People running their business without the normal tools that washed away, and getting by the best they could.  

Magazine Article Review: Robert Kennedy's Remarkable Speech at Creighton University

Robert Kennedy's Remarkable Speech at Creighton University by Dennis P. Crawford, Nabraska History Magazine, Vol 104 No. 2, Summer 2023, History Nebraska, Lincoln, Nebraska pp 100-104.

Only fifteen states held primaries in 1968.  This made each state primary more important.  Kennedy had won the week before in Indiana.  He campaigned hard in Nebraska, visiting every city over 10,000 and 25 counties.  However a Creighton University was not really home turf.  

As part of his speech, question and answer he indicated he was against draft deferment for those attending University.  He indicated that this deferment resuted in more African Americans carrying the load of military service as they were less likely to be in college.  The same for those who were poorer.  His views were contrary to most of those who attended the speech.  Even so he won Nebraska handily, winning every county.

Even though Kennedy would lose in Oregon, he appeared on his way to victory in California, which may have given him the energy needed to take New York and win the nomination.  However his love was cut short in California with an assassin's bullet.  

Documentary Review: The John Wayne Story (1993)

John Wayne has a long history in theater, spanning 50 years.  He was born Marion Morrison, but his name was changed to the more masculine John Wayne.  

The Early Years:  John Wayne's family moved to California, and that is when John Wayne was introduced to the theater.  He worked at odd jobs, and attended USC where he played football.  However his USC career ended with an injury, and so he turned more to the theater...He started with bit parts, and then started doing B movies.  He was the original singing cowboy, even though he couldn't sing nor play guitar.  Others did that for him.  Gene Autry and others took over this genre.  He would finally get his big break in a John Ford film called "Stagecoach."

The Later Years:  This movie takes up his more successful period, with a few flops added.  But even the flops usually eventually made a profit.  Usually after a flop usually a John Ford collaboration showed and he was on top again.  He did fourteen shows with John Ford as the director starting in 1939.  He was in the top ten of box office movies for 25 consecutive years, meaning one of his movies was always doing well.  Between 1950 and 1970 he was consistently in the top three.   He made five film with Maureen O'Hara as his costar, starting with Rio Grande in 1950.  John Wayne was in 175 movies over his 50 year career.  He won the Oscar in 1969 for best actor for his portrayal of Rooster Cogburn in "True Grit."  He recreated this roll with Katherine Hepburn in 1975 in the film "Rooster Cogburn."

Cancer finally caught up with him.  His last film, "The Shootist" he portrays a gunslinger dying of cancer.  This was 1976.  He would die of cancer in 1979.

This film is very enjoyable.  The best part is the movie clips.  It also has many trailers.  There is a sketch with Dean Martin talking about their movie together.  Raquel Welch talks about humanitarian efforts Wayne did in Mexico.

Kanesville was a Temporary Town, But Had a Bustling Economic System

 Industry is Kanesville was instrumental in outfitting people for the Mormon trek to Salt Lake City.  The city lasted from 1846 to 1953 when the Mormons abandoned it and others renamed it Council Bluffs.  Originally it was named for Thomas Kane.

Thomas Kane

Kanesville

Grand Encampment

diorama of Kanesville

Book Review: Your Bridge to History

 Your Bridge to History: A Black Votes Matter "Face to Face with Black History Tour" Children's Book by Portia Love and Preston Love Jr., illustrated by Regina Jeanpierre, Preston Publishing, www.BlackVotesMatterUSA.com, 2019.

These is a short book about a tour taken by youth to the south, where they can experience first hand the history of Black America.  It starts in Memphis where Martin Luther King Jr. was murdered and where he gave his last speech.  Then to the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church in Birmingham which was bombed and several young women killed who were there with the parents working for Civil Rights.  In Birmingham was a struggle for voting rights and the Selma (Edmund Pettus) Bridge march, which took place three times.  Finally in 1965 the Voting Fights Act was passed.  

In Montgomery they were taught about Rosa Parks and the bus boycott.  The boycott lead to harship but eventually the bus company had to give in.  Also in Montgomery is a muserum that documents lynchings.

In Atlanta is the King Center where Martin Luther King Jr. is buried.  There is a depiction of his life.  

Mormon Battalion Was Mustered in Kanesville, Iowa, Kanesville Visitor Center

 Thomas Kane was instrumental in lobbying President Polk as a way of supporting the Mormons in their treck west.  The president wanted to assure the loyalty of the Mormons.  After the recruiters had tried recruiting in the eastern Iowa locations where the Mormons had camped, Captain James Allen finally arrived in Kanesville.  Brigham Young encouraged people to enlist, for the financial help it would give the church.  Each recruit would receive a $42 clothing allowance, but unifors were not required.  Much of that money went to support the church in Winter Quarters and on the journey west.  The mustering of the Mormon Battalion also provided a way for the church to show their political support for the United States.  Over five hundred joined the Battalion, five companies, which was the only unit, "Mormon Battalion," with a religious name.

Mormon Battalion uniform and equipment

Brigham Young and a man saying goodbye to his wife