Join NSHSF for our Two-Day Prairie Pioneer Tour!
Join the Nebraska State Historical Society Foundation on a two-day tour of the Prairie Pioneer region of the state. Starting from Lincoln, this chartered bus tour will make visits to the Mennonite Heritage Park in Henderson and then on to the stunning Stuhr Museum in Grand Island. After lunch in Grand Island the tour will make a stop at the Fort Kearny State Historical Park before checking in at the Kearney Holiday Inn Express. Appetizers and cocktails will be offered in the late afternoon to tied everyone over for our early evening tour at the Crane Trust Nature Center to see the Sandhills Crane on the coveted ticketed “Footbridge Tour.” The day will conclude with supper at the Nebraska Ale Works in Kearney.
The next morning, we will tour the Frank House in Kearney with a short presentation on a new digital project of historical objects at UNK. The rest of the morning will be a behind the scenes tour of MONA, Museum of Nebraska Arts. Get a sneak preview of their major renovation before it opens to the public later this spring. After lunch in downtown Kearney, we will head to Red Cloud for a two-hour guided tour of the Willa Cather childhood home, the Farmers & Merchant Bank and the renovated Opera House. Before leaving we will take a sneak peek at the brand-new boutique Garber Hotel in the historic Potter-Wright Building. As we make our way home to Lincoln, we will stop in Ohiowa for dinner at the Lazy Horse Vineyard and Brewing Company.
The all-inclusive cost for two days is $772 per person for double occupancy, and $877 per person for single occupancy.
Tour Led by Dr Sara Crook
Dr. Sara Crook retired as Professor Emeritus in 2022 from Peru State College after teaching there for 38 years. She has been an avid promoter of Nebraska, its people, and its history through extensive involvement in numerous organizations including History Nebraska, Nebraska State Historical Society Foundation, Humanities Nebraska, Nebraska Hall of Fame Commission, Nebraska Sesquicentennial Foundation, and the Nebraska Sesquicentennial Commission.
Her love of Nebraska led her to co-create for Peru State College a college credit tour program called “Trails and Tales” that ran numerous tours from 1996-2016. She has won several teaching awards including the Nebraska State College’s “Excellence in Teaching Award.” Now in retirement, Dr. Crook is eager to continue to share her love of our state through tours sponsored by the Nebraska State Historical Society Foundation.
