WELCOME to our Nebraska Highway 2 website. Nebraska Highway 2 rolls through the heart of the State of Nebraska, from Nebraska City on the banks of the Missouri River in the southeast to Crawford in the Pine Ridge area of the State in the Northwest. Here you will find a webpage for each of the 33 communities along Nebraska Highway 2. Large communities and small communities and some communities that are only a ghost of themselves.
Each community has its own history and stories to tell. On the community webpages you will find what you need to meet your traveling needs: food, rest, fuel, events, sights to see, things to do.
Nebraska State Capitol Building
ONLY IN NEBRASKA!
Nebraska is celebrating its 150th birthday in 2017. Nebraska became the 37th State admitted to the Union and was the first State admitted after the Civil War. Here is a great link to events planned all year long and all across the entire State to mark this Sesquicentennial celebration of our State.
Lincoln is Nebraska's capitol city and home of the Nebraska State Capitol building, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the Lied Center, Quilt Museum, UNL Dairy Store on East Campus, the Lincoln Children's Zoo, the Sheldon Art Gallery, a store devoted to licorice, restaurants serving the cusine of the world, and so very much more. Nebraska's State Capitol Building is a true work of architectural wonder and towers over the plains. Be sure and visit the Nebraska State Capitol building. You may arrange for a tour with lots of insider information provided.
Nebraska Passport Program
Nebraska once again has put together the Nebraska Passport program. A fun activity for family and friends which encourages travel and learning throughout the State of Nebrska. Seven communities along Nebraska Highway 2 have locations included in the 80 passport stops. The adventure begins May 1, 2017 and ends September 30, 2017. PRIZES!!!
TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE - AUGUST 21, 2017
Several communities along Nebraska Highway 2 will be perfect areas to view the total solar eclipse on August 21, 2017. The eclipse begins in Oregon and travels east across the United States to South Carolina. In Nebraska, the communities of Alliance, Ravenna and Grand Island lie in the direct path of the total eclipse. Events are planned in the communities to enhance your eclipse viewing experience. Make your plans soon!
Pathway West to East of total solar eclipse across Nebraska
A total solar eclipse
occurs when the new moon passes between the Earth and the Sun and the Moon fully "occults" (blocks) out the sun. A "New Moon" is the first phase of the Moon. The totality is estimated to last a full 2 minutes and 35 seconds.
For some rambling chatter about life near and on Nebraska highway 2, visit Country Home Jam Blog and feel free to leave a comment, suggestion or ask a question.
SOME HISTORY OF NEBRASKA HIGHWAY 2
Nebraska highway 2 is a discontinuous highway. The highway runs from Nebraska City west to Lincoln where it disappears into the city itself. 82 miles further west it reappears at Grand Island and continues west and northwest to the South Dakota border north of Crawford. The second leg of the highway includes 272 miles of the Sandhills Scenic Byway from Grand Island to Alliance. This leg of Nebraska Highway 2 has been deemed one of the most beautiful drives in the United States.
THE POTASH HIGHWAY
Just east of Alliance along Nebraska highway 2 is the ghost town known as Antioch which provided potash during World War I. For a brief introduction to the Sandhills’ part in potash production, read a historical accounting from Jim McKee and the Lincoln JournalStar newspaper. Nebraska highway 2 was initially called the “Potash” highway and it traveled east from Antioch to Grand Island and south to Hastings, east to Fairmont and then south to Wichita, Kansas.
The communities in western Nebraska enthusiastically called for a highway route from Alliance to Grand Island which would connect them to the larger economic areas. The discovery of potash near Antioch gave rise to population booms in Antioch and Lakeside. Populations which died off after the war ended and less expensive methods of obtaining potash were relied on once again. However, the need for a dependable drivable roadway did not die off and in 1926 Nebraska highway 2 incorporated that section of the roadway called the “Potash” highway. A great source of information about the history of Nebraska Highway 2 and the Potash Highway can be found at Nebraska State Historical Society.
