Nebraska
The Cornhusker State
Climate
Continental, with hot summers and cold winters. Summer highs are about 88F (31C) and winter highs about 35F (2C), with tornadoes possible on the plains.
Main industries
One of the top states for corn and cattle, plus soybeans, hogs, meatpacking, and a large insurance business in Omaha.
Top places for tourists
Chimney Rock and Scotts Bluff on the old Oregon Trail, the Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha, and the spring crane migration on the Platte River.
Places of interest
Nebraska is the only state with a one-house, nonpartisan legislature, and the drink Kool-Aid was invented here.
A little history
Home to Plains tribes, Nebraska saw the Oregon Trail cross it and Homestead Act settlers claim farmland, and it became the 37th state in 1867.
Fun fact
Each spring about half a million sandhill cranes stop along the Platte River, one of the great wildlife shows in North America.