Nebraska Hall of Fame

The Nebraska Hall of Fame officially recognizes prominent individuals from the State of Nebraska. Twenty-six busts located on the second floor of the Nebraska State Capitol commemorate members of the Hall of Fame. Nebraska Medal of Honor recipients are also members of the Nebraska Hall of Fame. A plaque with the names of Medal of Honor recipients is located in Memorial Chamber—the fourteenth floor of the capitol.

Nebraska Hall of Fame
Northwest courtyard corridor of Nebraska Hall of Fame, Nebraska State Capitol, Second Floor.
EstablishedJune 22, 1961
LocationNebraska State Capitol
Website

History
Nebraska Hall of Fame, Bust Locations, Nebraska State Capitol, Second Floor.

On May 23, 1961, the family of U.S. Senator George W. Norris gave a bust of Norris to the State of Nebraska. In celebration of the centenary of his birth, the state placed the Norris bust in the southeast niche of the Great Hall of the capitol.[1] One month later, the Nebraska State Legislature established the Nebraska Hall of Fame and the Nebraska Hall of Fame Commission.[2] The commission chose Norris as the first member on November 21, 1961.[3] The state permitted the commission to use the Norris bust in the capitol as the senator's statuary representation in the hall of fame.[4]

On June 6, 1961, the Nebraska State Legislature also accepted a bust of John G. Neihardt and resolved to permanently place it "in one of the niches in the corridors of the State Capitol."[5] The state dedicated the Neihardt bust on December 7, 1961, and placed it in a large niche above the landing of the northeast stairwell.[6] On April 3, 1962, the state moved the Neihardt bust to the southwest niche of the Great Hall (across from the Norris bust) after protests pronounced that the bust's previous location was improper.[7] On March 21, 1974, the Nebraska Hall of Fame Commission elected Neihardt to the hall of fame, and the commission grandfathered his bust into its statuary collection at the capitol.[8]

The commission dedicated the bust of William Frederick Cody on June 12, 1969, and placed his bust in the last of the six niches of the Great Hall.[9] The commission placed subsequent busts on limestone plinths throughout the second floor courtyard hallways to the north and south of the legislative chambers.

Selection Criteria

In 1961, the Nebraska State Legislature provided fundamental selection criteria for membership to the Nebraska Hall of Fame. The legislature stated that the purpose of the hall is to "bring to public attention and to recognize officially those people who, in their lives, have achieved prominence and who were outstanding Nebraskans."[10] The legislature further stated that "Nebraskans" mean individuals "(1) who were born in Nebraska, (2) who gained prominence while living in Nebraska, or (3) who lived in Nebraska and whose residence in Nebraska was an important influence on their lives and which contributed to their greatness."[11]

The 1961 legislature also provided that "the Nebraska Hall of Fame Commission shall not name more than two persons to the Nebraska Hall of Fame during the first two years after [June 22, 1961], and not more than one person each two years thereafter." Further, the legislature required that an inductee be deceased.[12]

In 1976, the Nebraska State Legislature amended statutes and provided that four members may be named to the hall of fame in celebration of the United States Bicentennial. The legislature also stipulated that individuals shall be deceased at least ten years before being named to the hall of fame.[13]

Finally in 1998, the Nebraska State Legislature again amended statutes and provided that, beginning January 1, 2000, no more than one member may be named to the hall of fame every five years. Additionally, the legislature stipulated that individuals shall be deceased at least thirty-five years before being named to the hall of fame.[14]

Members
Member Inducted Bust Original Composition of Bust Sculptor Note of achievement
George W. Norris19611942Jo DavidsonNebraska U.S. Congressman (1903-13); Nebraska U.S. Senator (1913-43).
Willa Cather19621962Paul SwanNebraska novelist.
John J. Pershing19631921Bryant BakerCommanding General, American Expeditionary Forces, Europe, World War I (1917-18); U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1921-24).
Edward J. Flanagan19651967Paul GranlundFounder of Boys Town.
William Frederick Cody (Buffalo Bill)19671891Anton Friedrich SchollSoldier, buffalo hunter, Army scout, actor, rancher, and showman of the West.
William Jennings Bryan19711905William Whitney ManattU.S. Secretary of State (1913-15); Nebraska U.S. Congressman (1891-95); three-time Democratic candidate for President of the United States (1896, 1900, 1908).
Bess Streeter Aldrich19711973Herman Albert BeckerNebraska novelist.
John G. Neihardt19741956Mona NeihardtPoet of the West, historian, philosopher, and friend of the American Indian. Named Nebraska Poet Laureate in 1921.
Julius Sterling Morton19751896Rudolph EvansFounder of Arbor Day; U.S. Secretary of Agriculture (1893-97); legislator, and Territorial Secretary of Nebraska (1858-61).
Grace Abbott19761978James T. OlsenSocial reformer and social worker.
Mari Sandoz19761980Mary Bryan ForsythNebraska biographer, historian, and novelist.
Roscoe Pound19761981Avard FairbanksBotanist, pioneer ecologist, lawyer, and legal educator.
Standing Bear (Ponca: Maⁿchú-Naⁿzhíⁿ)19771980Ted LongPonca leader; Standing Bear v. Crook (1879) which declared American Indians as citizens under the U.S. Constitution.
Robert W. Furnas19801982Tom PalmertonNewspaperman, soldier, historian, and second Governor of Nebraska (1873-75).
Edward Creighton19821983Phyllis AspenTelegraph pioneer and banker.
Susette LaFlesche Tibbles (Omaha: Inshata Theumba, "Bright Eyes")19831984Deborah S. Wagner-AshtonOmaha Indian educator; speaker and writer for American Indian rights.
Gilbert M. Hitchcock19841985George LundeenFounder of the Omaha World-Herald; Nebraska U.S. Senator (1911-23).
Loren Eiseley19861987Kappy WellsAnthropologist, poet, and philosopher of science.
Hartley Burr Alexander19881990Tom PalmertonAnthropologist, poet, philosopher, educator, and authority on North American Indian mythology. Thematic consultant to the Nebraska State Capitol.
Arthur Weimar Thompson19901992Bryant Baker"Dean of American Auctioneers."
Dwight P. Griswold19931994George LundeenBanker, publisher, and twenty-fifth Governor of Nebraska (1941-47).
Nathan J. Gold19961997George LundeenBusinessman, civic leader, philanthropist, and Nebraska booster.
Red Cloud (Lakota: Maȟpíya Lúta)20002001Jim BrothersOglala Lakota leader.
Charles Edwin Bessey20072009Littleton AlstonBotanist and chancellor of the University of Nebraska.
Alvin Saunders Johnson20122014Wesley WoffordEconomist and founder of The New School.
Thomas Rogers Kimball20172019John LajbaOmaha architect.

Medal of Honor Recipients
Nebraska Medal of Honor Plaque, Nebraska Hall of Fame, Nebraska State Capitol, Memorial Chamber.

In 1969, the Nebraska State Legislature amended the Nebraska Hall of Fame statutes "to provide that Nebraskans awarded the Medal of Honor shall be named to the Hall of Fame" and required that the Hall of Fame Commission procure a plaque with the names of the Medal of Honor recipients.[15] On May 5, 1974, the State of Nebraska officially inducted 57 Nebraska Medal of Honor recipients to the Nebraska Hall of Fame.[16] The commission placed a bronze plaque by J.H. Matthews on the southwest pilaster of the Great Hall of the Nebraska State Capitol.[17]

On November 11, 2013, the State of Nebraska unveiled a new, updated bronze plaque with the names of 72 Nebraska Medal of Honor recipients.[18] The Nebraska Office of the Capitol Commission placed the new plaque in Memorial Chamber—the fourteenth floor of the capitol.

Controversy

In spring 2004, the Nebraska Hall of Fame Commission created controversy when it considered naming U.S. Senator Kenneth S. Wherry or Malcolm X to the hall of fame. Critics of Wherry said he was an inappropriate inductee because of his "crusade to root out homosexuals in government" during his tenure in Congress at the height of McCarthyism.[19] Critics of Malcolm X said he was an inappropriate inductee because he only lived in Nebraska for a few months after his birth in Omaha. On April 27, 2004, the commission selected Wherry over Malcolm X on a four-three vote.[20]

By June 2004, however, the commission realized its selection was in violation of state law. Statute dictated that the commission should not name more than one individual to the hall of fame between January 1, 2000, and December 31, 2004.[21] The commission had previously named Red Cloud a hall-of-famer on January 20, 2000.

To date, neither Wherry nor Malcolm X are members of the Nebraska Hall of Fame.

References
  1. "Capitol Gets Norris Bust". The Lincoln Star. Lincoln, NE. 24 May 1961. p. 6.
  2. "Legislative Bill 693" (PDF). Legislative Journal of the State of Nebraska. 1: 1789. 1961. Retrieved 13 June 2016.
  3. "Hall of Fame Picks Norris First Member". The Lincoln Star. Lincoln, NE. 22 November 1961. p. 1.
  4. "Bust of Norris Might Be Used In Hall of Fame". The Lincoln Star. Lincoln, NE. 23 November 1961. p. 31.
  5. "Legislative Resolution 36" (PDF). Legislative Journal of the State of Nebraska. 1: 1626. 1961. Retrieved 13 June 2016.
  6. "Dedication Today of Bust of Poet Laureate J.G. Neihardt". The Lincoln Star. Lincoln, NE. 7 December 1961. p. 13.
  7. "Neihardt Bust is Firmly Cemented". The Lincoln Star. Lincoln, NE. 4 April 1962. p. 16.
  8. "Poet Neihardt Chosen". Lincoln Evening Journal. Lincoln, NE. 21 March 1974. p. 5.
  9. "Bust of Buffalo Bill Installed in Statehouse Hall of Fame". The Lincoln Star. Lincoln, NE. 13 June 1969. p. 5.
  10. State of Nebraska (1961). "Legislative Bill 693". Laws. Lincoln, NE: Frank Marsh, Nebraska Secretary of State: 1118.
  11. State of Nebraska (1961). "Legislative Bill 693". Laws. Lincoln, NE: Frank Marsh, Nebraska Secretary of State: 1118.
  12. State of Nebraska (1961). "Legislative Bill 693". Laws. Lincoln, NE: Frank Marsh, Nebraska Secretary of State: 1119.
  13. State of Nebraska (1976). "Legislative Bill 670". Laws. Lincoln, NE: Allen J. Beermann, Nebraska Secretary of State: 353.
  14. State of Nebraska (1998). "Legislative Bill 1129". Laws. Lincoln, NE: Scott Moore, Nebraska Secretary of State: 567.
  15. "Legislative Bill 1212" (PDF). Legislative Journal of the State of Nebraska. 1 (Eightieth Session): 603. 1969. Retrieved 12 June 2016.
  16. "Civil War to Vietnam: 57 Medal Winners Enter Hall of Fame". Lincoln Evening Journal. Lincoln, NE. 6 May 1974.
  17. "Nebraska Hall of Fame Members". Nebraska State Historical Society. Retrieved 12 June 2016.
  18. Salter, Peter (11 November 2013). "New plaque names those who went 'above and beyond the call of duty'". Lincoln Journal Star. Lincoln, NE. Retrieved 12 June 2016.
  19. Kenney, Colleen (27 April 2004). "Wherry voted into state Hall of Fame". Lincoln Journal Star. Lincoln, NE. Retrieved 15 June 2016.
  20. Associated Press (14 June 2004). "Nebraska Choices for Honors Stir Up a Nest of Controversy". The New York Times. New York, NY. Retrieved 15 June 2016.
  21. State of Nebraska (1998). "Legislative Bill 1129". Laws. Lincoln, NE: Scott Moore, Nebraska Secretary of State: 567.
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