Lincoln (Neb.) -- Guidebooks; Lincoln (Neb.) -- History
In 1863 Elder Young founded the town of Lancaster—to become Lincoln four
years later—on his own 80 acre tract, which cornered Luke Lavender’s
farm at what is now 14th and O. The village was to extend from 14th to
7th and from O to Vine. As the far-sighted elder bent musingly over the
white paper which represented the future town he saw a city strong in
church life—and even predicted that it would some day be the capital of
Nebraska. Another dream was of a female seminary—either to induce
families with young ladies to come to the new town or to make prairie
damsels into suitable wives and mothers for his churchly city. Hovering
over the platted town his pencil finally came to rest at 9th and P as a
site for the seminary.
Many of the lots into which his farm was ribboned he gave to county and
school districts. Money from the others went into the seminary. That
institution burned in 1867, but Elder Young’s dream of a city of
churches was more enduring. Between 1866 and 1870 Congregational,
Methodist, Presbyterian, Christian, Baptist and Catholic churches were
organized and built. These were forerunners of present downtown
churches. Lincoln now has about 80 places of worship.
The First Presbyterian church was organized April 4, 1869. Its first two
buildings were supplanted in 1927 by the present beautiful structure,
one of whose distinctions is having been planned by the late Ralph Adams
Crams. Thus may it lay claim to special brotherhood with the Cathedral
of St. John the Divine and St. Thomas’ church of New York City.
No. 41—Burlington Shops at Havelock
[Illustration: {uncaptioned}]
On July 4, 1870, while Lincoln citizens were celebrating the nation’s
birthday in shady groves, as was their wont, there came from the
northeast a strange cavalcade. It was a string of flatcars, over which
bowers of cottonwood branches had been arranged, pulled by a chortling
little engine named The Wahoo, which name probably echoed the cries of
the tugging engine rather exactly. Under the bowers sat travelers on
improvised seats, chatting excitedly. It was the first passenger train
to pull into, or almost into, Lincoln. The Burlington and Missouri rails
had been laid to within a mile of the town and the company celebrated by
offering a free round trip from Plattsmouth to Lincoln, which was made
at the exhilarating speed of 15 or 20 miles an hour.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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