Hastings, Nebraska
Encyclopedia
Hastings is a city in and the county seat
of Adams County
, Nebraska
, United States
. It is the principal city of the Hastings, Nebraska Micropolitan Statistical Area, which consists of Adams and Clay
counties. The population was 24,907 at the 2010 census. It is known as the town where Kool-Aid
was invented by Edwin Perkins
in 1927, and celebrates that event with Kool-Aid Days the second weekend of every August. Hastings is also known for Fisher Fountain, and during World War II
operated the largest Naval Ammunition Depot
in the United States. A National Weather Service
Forecast Office is located there, serving central and south-central Nebraska and six counties in north-central Kansas
. On June 24, 2007, Hastings won Yahoo's Greenest City in America competition.
and the St. Joseph and Denver City Railroad. It was named for Colonel D.T. Hastings of the St. Joseph and Grand Island Railroad
, which built a line from Hastings to Grand Island
. The area was previously open plain: the Donner party
passed through on its way to California
in 1846 and a pioneer cemetery marker in Hastings bears an inscription taken from Tamsen Donner's journal: "The country between the Blue and the Platte
is beautiful beyond compare. Never have I seen so varied a country so suitable to cultivation." In the 1870s, railroads lured European immigrants to the new state of Nebraska with advertisements. Hastings' first settlers were English, from Liverpool
, and were quickly joined by other English, Irish, Germans, Danes, and Germans from Russia.
Between 1872 and 1880, when the population had grown to 2,800, Hastings was a boomtown. Settlers first built sod houses, dugouts, and shanties, then houses and stores. The city was incorporated in April 1874, and in September 1878, after a five-year Great County Seat War, the county seat was transferred to Hastings from Juniata
. However, a fire in 1879 destroyed 33 buildings downtown. The city was rebuilt between 1880 and 1890 in fireproof materials and in a more planned fashion, with characteristically ornate Victorian buildings
, many designed by Charles C. Rittenhouse, the first practicing architect in Adams County and also mayor for ten years. Thanks to the railroads, the city enjoyed great prosperity during the Gilded Age
. The population grew to 13,500. This period of expansion ended with the drought and agricultural depression of the 1890s; the town's population fell to 7,000 and would not reach 15,000 until 1930.
Hastings saw renewed growth from 1900 to 1930, which is reflected by buildings in the Craftsman
, Prairie
, Colonial Revival
, and American Foursquare
styles. The leading Arts and Crafts
architect was Claude W. Way. Hastings had four brickyards and in 1911 was producing more bricks than any other city in Nebraska, and all the paving bricks. During this period, the city also became known as the cigar-making capital of Nebraska. The largest cigar factory, the Kipp Cigar Company, was by 1921 hand-rolling one-fifth of all cigars produced in Nebraska; in 1925 it produced half, a total of 10 million. Cigars lost their popularity to cigarettes between the two World Wars, and in the 1930s the Great Depression
again brought the town's expansion to a halt.
In 1942, the Naval Ammunition Depot was constructed, initiating explosive growth: Hastings' population grew from 15,000 to 23,000 in under a year and there was a critical shortage of housing, which prompted both alteration of existing housing stock and rapid construction of new neighborhoods. Once World War II
ended, staff was reduced at the ammunition depot, bringing Hastings' last growth period to an end in 1950, and the depot eventually closed.
Today, Heartwell Park and Central Hastings, two of the oldest neighborhoods, are listed on the National Register of Historic Places
. The Hastings Symphony Orchestra performs in the Chautauqua Pavilion, built in 1907 and on the National Register of Historic Places, while the Hastings Community Theatre performs in the auditorium of the former Spencer Park School, built during the housing shortage of the 1940s. The city has adapted several of its historic buildings to new uses. Central Community College
is housed in buildings of the former Naval Ammunition Depot. Lincoln Elementary School, built in 1912, is now the police headquarters. The Clarke Hotel, built in 1914 and also on the National Register of Historic Places, is now the Kensington, a home for senior citizens. Spencer Park, an 840-unit "village" built to house workers in the 1940s, is now Good Samaritan Retirement Village.
, the city has a total area of 10 square miles (25.9 km²), of which 9.8 square miles (25.4 km²) is land and 0.1 square mile (0.258998811 km²), or 1.31%, is water.
of 2000, there were 24,064 people, 9,610 households, and 5,948 families residing in the city. The population density
was 2,448.5 people per square mile (945.2/km²). There were 10,333 housing units at an average density of 1,051.4 per square mile (405.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 93.39% White, 0.79% African American, 0.42% Native American, 2.02% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 2.39% from other races
, and 0.96% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.58% of the population.
There were 9,610 households out of which 29.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.8% were married couples
living together, 9.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.1% were non-families. 31.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.98.
In the city the population was spread out with 23.6% under the age of 18, 12.8% from 18 to 24, 26.5% from 25 to 44, 20.5% from 45 to 64, and 16.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 93.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $35,461, and the median income for a family was $44,688. Males had a median income of $29,633 versus $21,262 for females. The per capita income
for the city was $17,941. About 5.6% of families and 10.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.6% of those under age 18 and 6.7% of those age 65 or over.
, the national passenger rail system, provides service through Hastings, operating its California Zephyr
daily in each direction between Chicago
and Emeryville, California
, across the bay from San Francisco. Hastings is served by major highways, including east-west U.S. Highways 6
and 34
, and north-south U.S. Highway 281
. Burlington Avenue is the main street running from south to north in Hastings; northward it leads to U.S. Highway 281. Hastings is about 14 miles (22.5 km) south of Interstate 80
.
The Hastings Municipal Airport, owned and operated by the City of Hastings, has been serving the city for many years.
(public) Athletics Class B and St. Cecilia's (Catholic) Athletics class C-1. Just outside town is Adams Central Junior-Senior High School
(public rural) Athletics Class B.
Hastings College
is a private liberal arts college founded in 1882. Central Community College
, a 2-year technical college, began serving students in 1966 and occupies the site of the old Naval Ammunition Depot.
Fisher Fountain was originally a temporary exhibit at the 1932 Adams County Fair, called the Electric Fountain. It was invented by Edward R. Howard and became a symbol of hope during the Great Depression
and Dust Bowl
. Because of its popularity, it was moved to the park and made permanent. A competition among schoolchildren to rename it resulted in two winning names that were combined: Rainbow Fountain, and Fisher Fountain after Mayor Jacob Fisher.
Fisher Fountain was renovated in 1982 but was then dynamited by vandals in 1984. Its destruction aroused a strong community response. $63,000 was raised to rebuild it, and it was rededicated on Mother's Day in 1985.
and completed in 1939. Albert Brooking, who founded the museum in 1926 and provided it with many exhibits, including Indian relics, fossils, and the largest private collection of mounted birds in the US, was buried in the basement in 1946. The museum currently houses the Lied Super Screen Theatre, McDonald Planetarium, and local and regional exhibits including the largest diorama of whooping
and Sandhill crane
s in the world. The Adams County Historical Society is located within the museum.
naval munitions plant, emcompassing over 2,200 structures valued at $71 million. In 1945 it employed 6,692 civilians in addition to 125 officers and 1,800 enlistees. It was reactivated in the Korean War
but decommissioned between 1958 and 1966, and the site now houses a US Department of Agriculture research station, training facilities for the National Guard and Reserves, an industrial park, Central Community College, and a golf course.
, published six days a week.
County seat
A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....
of Adams County
Adams County, Nebraska
Adams County is a county located in the U.S. state of Nebraska. As of July 1, 2006, the population estimate was 33,185. Its name is in honor of the second President of the United States, John Adams...
, Nebraska
Nebraska
Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is the principal city of the Hastings, Nebraska Micropolitan Statistical Area, which consists of Adams and Clay
Clay County, Nebraska
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 7,039 people, 2,756 households, and 1,981 families residing in the county. The population density was 12 people per square mile . There were 3,066 housing units at an average density of 5 per square mile...
counties. The population was 24,907 at the 2010 census. It is known as the town where Kool-Aid
Kool-Aid
Kool-Aid is a brand of flavored drink mix owned by the Kraft Foods Company.-History:Kool-Aid was invented by Edwin Perkins in Hastings, Nebraska, United States. All of his experiments took place in his mother's kitchen. Its predecessor was a liquid concentrate called Fruit Smack...
was invented by Edwin Perkins
Edwin Perkins
Edwin Elijah Perkins , born in Lewis, Iowa, U.S., invented the powder drink mix Kool-Aid in 1927 in Hastings, Nebraska after his family had moved there from Iowa in 1893....
in 1927, and celebrates that event with Kool-Aid Days the second weekend of every August. Hastings is also known for Fisher Fountain, and during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
operated the largest Naval Ammunition Depot
Naval Ammunition Depot
The Naval Ammunition Depot was the largest United States World War II naval munitions plant operating from 1942 to 1946. Construction began in July, 1942 on near Hastings, Nebraska and was completed in early 1943 with over 2000 structures including buildings, bunkers, and various other types of...
in the United States. A National Weather Service
National Weather Service
The National Weather Service , once known as the Weather Bureau, is one of the six scientific agencies that make up the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration of the United States government...
Forecast Office is located there, serving central and south-central Nebraska and six counties in north-central Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
. On June 24, 2007, Hastings won Yahoo's Greenest City in America competition.
History
Hastings was founded in 1872 at the intersection of the Burlington and Missouri River RailroadBurlington and Missouri River Railroad
The Burlington and Missouri River Railroad was an American railroad company incorporated in Iowa in 1852, with headquarters in Omaha, Nebraska. It was developed to build a railroad across the state of Iowa and began operations in 1856...
and the St. Joseph and Denver City Railroad. It was named for Colonel D.T. Hastings of the St. Joseph and Grand Island Railroad
St. Joseph and Grand Island Railroad
The St. Joseph and Grand Island Railroad was created in about 1879 when the St. Joseph and Western Railroad built a line from Hastings, NE to Grand Island, NE. Upon completion of the line, the SJ&W was reorganized into the SJ&GI. Doniphan, NE was plotted in 1879 at about the halfway point between...
, which built a line from Hastings to Grand Island
Grand Island, Nebraska
Grand Island is a city in and the county seat of Hall County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 48,520 at the 2010 census.Grand Island is home to the Nebraska Law Enforcement Training Center which is the sole agency responsible for training law enforcement officers throughout the state,...
. The area was previously open plain: the Donner party
Donner Party
The Donner Party was a group of American pioneers who set out for California in a wagon train. Delayed by a series of mishaps, they spent the winter of 1846–47 snowbound in the Sierra Nevada...
passed through on its way to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
in 1846 and a pioneer cemetery marker in Hastings bears an inscription taken from Tamsen Donner's journal: "The country between the Blue and the Platte
Platte River
The Platte River is a major river in the state of Nebraska and is about long. Measured to its farthest source via its tributary the North Platte River, it flows for over . The Platte River is a tributary of the Missouri River, which in turn is a tributary of the Mississippi River which flows to...
is beautiful beyond compare. Never have I seen so varied a country so suitable to cultivation." In the 1870s, railroads lured European immigrants to the new state of Nebraska with advertisements. Hastings' first settlers were English, from Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
, and were quickly joined by other English, Irish, Germans, Danes, and Germans from Russia.
Between 1872 and 1880, when the population had grown to 2,800, Hastings was a boomtown. Settlers first built sod houses, dugouts, and shanties, then houses and stores. The city was incorporated in April 1874, and in September 1878, after a five-year Great County Seat War, the county seat was transferred to Hastings from Juniata
Juniata, Nebraska
Juniata is a village in Adams County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 693 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Hastings, Nebraska Micropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...
. However, a fire in 1879 destroyed 33 buildings downtown. The city was rebuilt between 1880 and 1890 in fireproof materials and in a more planned fashion, with characteristically ornate Victorian buildings
Victorian architecture
The term Victorian architecture refers collectively to several architectural styles employed predominantly during the middle and late 19th century. The period that it indicates may slightly overlap the actual reign, 20 June 1837 – 22 January 1901, of Queen Victoria. This represents the British and...
, many designed by Charles C. Rittenhouse, the first practicing architect in Adams County and also mayor for ten years. Thanks to the railroads, the city enjoyed great prosperity during the Gilded Age
Gilded Age
In United States history, the Gilded Age refers to the era of rapid economic and population growth in the United States during the post–Civil War and post-Reconstruction eras of the late 19th century. The term "Gilded Age" was coined by Mark Twain and Charles Dudley Warner in their book The Gilded...
. The population grew to 13,500. This period of expansion ended with the drought and agricultural depression of the 1890s; the town's population fell to 7,000 and would not reach 15,000 until 1930.
Hastings saw renewed growth from 1900 to 1930, which is reflected by buildings in the Craftsman
American Craftsman
The American Craftsman Style, or the American Arts and Crafts Movement, is an American domestic architectural, interior design, landscape design, applied arts, and decorative arts style and lifestyle philosophy that began in the last years of the 19th century. As a comprehensive design and art...
, Prairie
Prairie School
Prairie School was a late 19th and early 20th century architectural style, most common to the Midwestern United States.The works of the Prairie School architects are usually marked by horizontal lines, flat or hipped roofs with broad overhanging eaves, windows grouped in horizontal bands,...
, Colonial Revival
Colonial Revival architecture
The Colonial Revival was a nationalistic architectural style, garden design, and interior design movement in the United States which sought to revive elements of Georgian architecture, part of a broader Colonial Revival Movement in the arts. In the early 1890s Americans began to value their own...
, and American Foursquare
American Foursquare
The American Foursquare or American Four Square is an American house style popular from the mid-1890s to the late 1930s. A reaction to the ornate and mass produced elements of the Victorian and other Revival styles popular throughout the last half of the 19th century, the American Foursquare was...
styles. The leading Arts and Crafts
Arts and Crafts movement
Arts and Crafts was an international design philosophy that originated in England and flourished between 1860 and 1910 , continuing its influence until the 1930s...
architect was Claude W. Way. Hastings had four brickyards and in 1911 was producing more bricks than any other city in Nebraska, and all the paving bricks. During this period, the city also became known as the cigar-making capital of Nebraska. The largest cigar factory, the Kipp Cigar Company, was by 1921 hand-rolling one-fifth of all cigars produced in Nebraska; in 1925 it produced half, a total of 10 million. Cigars lost their popularity to cigarettes between the two World Wars, and in the 1930s the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
again brought the town's expansion to a halt.
In 1942, the Naval Ammunition Depot was constructed, initiating explosive growth: Hastings' population grew from 15,000 to 23,000 in under a year and there was a critical shortage of housing, which prompted both alteration of existing housing stock and rapid construction of new neighborhoods. Once World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
ended, staff was reduced at the ammunition depot, bringing Hastings' last growth period to an end in 1950, and the depot eventually closed.
Today, Heartwell Park and Central Hastings, two of the oldest neighborhoods, are listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
. The Hastings Symphony Orchestra performs in the Chautauqua Pavilion, built in 1907 and on the National Register of Historic Places, while the Hastings Community Theatre performs in the auditorium of the former Spencer Park School, built during the housing shortage of the 1940s. The city has adapted several of its historic buildings to new uses. Central Community College
Central Community College (Nebraska)
Central Community College is a two-year public college with three campuses, in Hastings, Columbus, and Grand Island, Nebraska. In addition the college has learning centers in Holdrege, Kearney, and Lexington...
is housed in buildings of the former Naval Ammunition Depot. Lincoln Elementary School, built in 1912, is now the police headquarters. The Clarke Hotel, built in 1914 and also on the National Register of Historic Places, is now the Kensington, a home for senior citizens. Spencer Park, an 840-unit "village" built to house workers in the 1940s, is now Good Samaritan Retirement Village.
Geography
Hastings is located at 40°35′21"N 98°23′30"W (40.589293, -98.391689). According to the United States Census BureauUnited States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the city has a total area of 10 square miles (25.9 km²), of which 9.8 square miles (25.4 km²) is land and 0.1 square mile (0.258998811 km²), or 1.31%, is water.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 24,064 people, 9,610 households, and 5,948 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 2,448.5 people per square mile (945.2/km²). There were 10,333 housing units at an average density of 1,051.4 per square mile (405.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 93.39% White, 0.79% African American, 0.42% Native American, 2.02% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 2.39% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 0.96% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.58% of the population.
There were 9,610 households out of which 29.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.8% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 9.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.1% were non-families. 31.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.98.
In the city the population was spread out with 23.6% under the age of 18, 12.8% from 18 to 24, 26.5% from 25 to 44, 20.5% from 45 to 64, and 16.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 93.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $35,461, and the median income for a family was $44,688. Males had a median income of $29,633 versus $21,262 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the city was $17,941. About 5.6% of families and 10.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.6% of those under age 18 and 6.7% of those age 65 or over.
Transportation
AmtrakAmtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
, the national passenger rail system, provides service through Hastings, operating its California Zephyr
California Zephyr
The California Zephyr is a long passenger train route operated by Amtrak in the midwestern and western United States.It runs from Chicago, Illinois, in the east to Emeryville, California, in the west, passing through the states of Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, and California...
daily in each direction between Chicago
Union Station (Chicago)
Union Station is a major train station that opened in 1925 in Chicago, replacing an earlier 1881 station. It is now the only intercity rail terminal in Chicago, as well as being the city's primary terminal for commuter trains. The station stands on the west side of the Chicago River between Adams...
and Emeryville, California
Emeryville, California
Emeryville is a small city located in Alameda County, California, in the United States. It is located in a corridor between the cities of Berkeley and Oakland, extending to the shore of San Francisco Bay. Its proximity to San Francisco, the Bay Bridge, the University of California, Berkeley, and...
, across the bay from San Francisco. Hastings is served by major highways, including east-west U.S. Highways 6
U.S. Route 6
U.S. Route 6 , also called the Grand Army of the Republic Highway, a name that honors an American Civil War veterans association, is a main route of the U.S. Highway system, running east-northeast from Bishop, California to Provincetown, Massachusetts. Until 1964, it continued south from Bishop to...
and 34
U.S. Route 34
U.S. Route 34 is an east–west United States highway that runs for 1,122 miles from north-central Colorado to the western suburbs of Chicago. Through Rocky Mountain National Park it is known as the Trail Ridge Road where it reaches 12,183 ft , making it the highest paved through highway in...
, and north-south U.S. Highway 281
U.S. Route 281
U.S. Route 281 is a north–south United States highway. At 1,872 miles long it is the longest continuous three-digit U.S. Route....
. Burlington Avenue is the main street running from south to north in Hastings; northward it leads to U.S. Highway 281. Hastings is about 14 miles (22.5 km) south of Interstate 80
Interstate 80
Interstate 80 is the second-longest Interstate Highway in the United States, following Interstate 90. It is a transcontinental artery running from downtown San Francisco, California to Teaneck, New Jersey in the New York City Metropolitan Area...
.
The Hastings Municipal Airport, owned and operated by the City of Hastings, has been serving the city for many years.
Education
Hastings has several elementary schools. The largest public elementary is Longfellow. Others are Hawthorne, Watson, Alcott, Morton, and Lincoln. Zion Lutheran serves students in grades K-8. There is a new middle school that opened in the fall of 2008. The high schools are Hastings High SchoolHastings Senior High School (Nebraska)
Hastings Senior High School is a public secondary school located in Hastings, Nebraska, USA. It is part of the Hastings Public Schools school district. Other Hastings-area high schools are Hastings St. Cecilia High School and Adams Central Junior-Senior High School...
(public) Athletics Class B and St. Cecilia's (Catholic) Athletics class C-1. Just outside town is Adams Central Junior-Senior High School
Adams Central Junior-Senior High School
Adams Central Jr-Sr High School is a public secondary school located in Hastings, Nebraska.It is part of the Adams Central Public Schools school district, Nebraska District 90, which encompasses much of rural Adams County as well as the town of Juniata...
(public rural) Athletics Class B.
Hastings College
Hastings College
Hastings College is a private, undergraduate, four-year, residential liberal arts college in Hastings, Nebraska, USA.- History :The college was founded in 1882 by a group of men and women seeking to establish a Presbyterian college dedicated to high academic and cultural standards...
is a private liberal arts college founded in 1882. Central Community College
Central Community College (Nebraska)
Central Community College is a two-year public college with three campuses, in Hastings, Columbus, and Grand Island, Nebraska. In addition the college has learning centers in Holdrege, Kearney, and Lexington...
, a 2-year technical college, began serving students in 1966 and occupies the site of the old Naval Ammunition Depot.
Fisher Fountain
The Jacob Fisher Rainbow Fountain in Highland Park, Hastings, is the largest water fountain between Chicago and Denver. The fountain shoots continuously changing arrays of water jets (reaching heights of 67 feet) while green, yellow, orange, red, magenta, and blue lights illuminate the water in varying patterns.Fisher Fountain was originally a temporary exhibit at the 1932 Adams County Fair, called the Electric Fountain. It was invented by Edward R. Howard and became a symbol of hope during the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
and Dust Bowl
Dust Bowl
The Dust Bowl, or the Dirty Thirties, was a period of severe dust storms causing major ecological and agricultural damage to American and Canadian prairie lands from 1930 to 1936...
. Because of its popularity, it was moved to the park and made permanent. A competition among schoolchildren to rename it resulted in two winning names that were combined: Rainbow Fountain, and Fisher Fountain after Mayor Jacob Fisher.
Fisher Fountain was renovated in 1982 but was then dynamited by vandals in 1984. Its destruction aroused a strong community response. $63,000 was raised to rebuild it, and it was rededicated on Mother's Day in 1985.
Hastings Museum
The Hastings Museum of Natural and Cultural History is in an art deco building funded by $75,000 from the Works Progress AdministrationWorks Progress Administration
The Works Progress Administration was the largest and most ambitious New Deal agency, employing millions of unskilled workers to carry out public works projects, including the construction of public buildings and roads, and operated large arts, drama, media, and literacy projects...
and completed in 1939. Albert Brooking, who founded the museum in 1926 and provided it with many exhibits, including Indian relics, fossils, and the largest private collection of mounted birds in the US, was buried in the basement in 1946. The museum currently houses the Lied Super Screen Theatre, McDonald Planetarium, and local and regional exhibits including the largest diorama of whooping
Whooping Crane
The whooping crane , the tallest North American bird, is an endangered crane species named for its whooping sound. Along with the Sandhill Crane, it is one of only two crane species found in North America. The whooping crane's lifespan is estimated to be 22 to 24 years in the wild...
and Sandhill crane
Sandhill Crane
The Sandhill Crane is a large crane of North America and extreme northeastern Siberia. The common name of this bird references habitat like that at the Platte River, on the edge of Nebraska's Sandhills in the American Midwest...
s in the world. The Adams County Historical Society is located within the museum.
Naval Ammunition Depot
The Naval Ammunition Depot, constructed on 49000 acres (198.3 km²) southeast of Hastings and in operation from 1942 to 1946, was the largest United States World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
naval munitions plant, emcompassing over 2,200 structures valued at $71 million. In 1945 it employed 6,692 civilians in addition to 125 officers and 1,800 enlistees. It was reactivated in the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
but decommissioned between 1958 and 1966, and the site now houses a US Department of Agriculture research station, training facilities for the National Guard and Reserves, an industrial park, Central Community College, and a golf course.
Parks and recreation
Hastings has twenty parks and recreational facilities throughout the city. The city offers recreational and leisure programs and operates the Aquacourt Water Park, the City Auditorium, Lake Hastings, Chautauqua Pavilion, Duncan Field, the Pioneer Spirit Trail, Smith Softball Complex, Brickyard Park Amphitheater, and Heartwell Lake.Media
The principal newspaper in Hastings is the Hastings TribuneHastings Tribune
The Hastings Tribune is a newspaper published in Hastings, Nebraska. The newspaper is put out six days a week, excluding Sundays. It serves ten counties in south central Nebraska and north central Kansas.It has a circulation of 11,145.-History:...
, published six days a week.
Notable natives and residents
- Edwin PerkinsEdwin PerkinsEdwin Elijah Perkins , born in Lewis, Iowa, U.S., invented the powder drink mix Kool-Aid in 1927 in Hastings, Nebraska after his family had moved there from Iowa in 1893....
, inventor of Kool-AidKool-AidKool-Aid is a brand of flavored drink mix owned by the Kraft Foods Company.-History:Kool-Aid was invented by Edwin Perkins in Hastings, Nebraska, United States. All of his experiments took place in his mother's kitchen. Its predecessor was a liquid concentrate called Fruit Smack... - Charles Henry DietrichCharles Henry DietrichCharles Henry Dietrich was the 11th Governor of Nebraska.-Biography:Dietrich was born in Aurora, Illinois November 26, 1853. He was employed as a clerk in a hardware store in St. Joseph, Missouri. He moved to Chicago, Illinois and engaged in the hardware business...
, Governor of Nebraska and U.S. Senator, and his wife Margretta, woman's suffrage leader - Tom Osborne, former University of Nebraska football coach and CongressmanUnited States House of RepresentativesThe United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
- Rick SheehyRick SheehyRick Sheehy has been the 38th Lieutenant Governor of Nebraska, since 2005.Appointed by Governor Dave Heineman on January 24, 2005, after Heineman became Governor upon Mike Johanns' appointment as United States Secretary of Agriculture in the Cabinet of President George W. Bush.Sheehy is a native...
, Lieutenant Governor of Nebraska - Fred A. SeatonFred Andrew SeatonFrederick Andrew Seaton was United States Secretary of the Interior during Dwight Eisenhower's administration.-Biography:Seaton was born in Washington, D.C., but grew up and attended high school in Manhattan, Kansas...
, U.S. Secretary of the InteriorUnited States Secretary of the InteriorThe United States Secretary of the Interior is the head of the United States Department of the Interior.The US Department of the Interior should not be confused with the concept of Ministries of the Interior as used in other countries...
1956-61. - Rollin KirbyRollin KirbyRollin Kirby was an American political cartoonist. In 1922 he was chronologically the first winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning, an honor that he would receive three times....
, political cartoonist - Neal HeftiNeal HeftiNeal Hefti was an American jazz trumpeter, composer, tune writer, and arranger. He was perhaps best known for composing the theme music for the Batman television series of the 1960s, and for scoring the 1968 film The Odd Couple and the subsequent TV series of the same name.He began arranging...
, jazz musician and composer - Sandy DennisSandy DennisSandra Dale “Sandy” Dennis was an American theater and film actress. In 1966, she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?.-Early life:...
, American theater and film actress - Sheila HicksSheila HicksSheila Hicks is an American fiber artist who presents textile art as an experience situated between sculpture and performance.From 1954 to 1959 she studied at Yale University under Josef Albers and Rico Lebrun...
, fiber artist - Teddi Smith, model
- Clarence L. "Ben" CoatesClarence L. "Ben" CoatesClarence L. “Ben” Coates was an American computer scientist and engineer known for his work on waveform recognition devices, circuit gates and accumulators....
, computer scientist - Johnny HoppJohnny HoppJohn Leonard Hopp was a Major League Baseball outfielder and first baseman. He was an All-Star in 1946....
, Major League baseball player - Marc Boerigter, former professional football player
- Adam CarrikerAdam CarrikerAdam Eugene Carriker, , is a professional American football defensive end for the Washington Redskins of the National Football League. He was drafted by the St. Louis Rams in the first round of the 2007 NFL Draft. He played college football at Nebraska.-Early years:Carriker attended Kennewick High...
, current NFL defensive tackle for the Washington Redskins.
Sources
- Elizabeth Spilinek, John B Chrise, Keith Enockson, Brett Erickson. Connections to the Past: The Connected History of Hastings, Nebraska as Told Through its Historic Architecture. Video. Adams County Historical Society, 2007. OCLC 237049053
External links
- City of Hastings, NE
- Hastings Economic Development Corporation
- Visit Hastings Nebraska!
- Hastings Museum of Natural and Cultural History
- Hastings Tribune
See also
- Hastings (Amtrak station)Hastings (Amtrak station)The Hastings Amtrak station is a train station in Hastings, Nebraska, United States served by Amtrak, the national railroad passenger system. It is served daily by the California Zephyr....
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Adams County, NebraskaNational Register of Historic Places listings in Adams County, NebraskaThis is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Adams County, Nebraska. It is intended to be a complete list of the properties and districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Adams County, Nebraska, United States...