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<br />> .> , <br /> <br />002655 <br /> <br />Continuous settlement by immigrants predates Nebraska's <br /> <br />statehood in 1867 by approximately fifty years. Early settle- <br />ments followed the Louisiana Purchase of 1803. Bellevue, Ne- <br /> <br />braska's oldest permanently settled community, was the site of a <br /> <br />trading post by 1810. Other early settlements in Nebraska usually <br /> <br />were located adjacent to a major river--for example, Nebraska City, <br /> <br />Brownville, and Fort Atkinson. <br /> <br />Various explorers and trappers traversed Nebraska on their <br /> <br />way west to hunt for furs and fortune. With the opening of the <br /> <br />Oregon Territory and the discovery of gold in California, Nebraska <br /> <br />became a major thoroughfare for migrants and fortune seekers. <br /> <br />Between 1841 and 1869 more than 250,000 people traveled up <br /> <br />the Platte valley on their way west. <br /> <br />The Mormons passed through Nebraska in 1847 on their way to <br />Utah, but few of these migrants stayed. Although the Missouri River <br /> <br />provided access from St. Louis, wagon trains provided the chief <br /> <br />mode of transportation until the railroad was completed. <br /> <br />Two important events, occurring almost simultaneously during <br /> <br />the Civil War Period, were to have a significant impact on Nebraska's <br /> <br />future settlement patterns. Passage of the Homestead Act in 1862 <br /> <br />opened up vast stretches of land in Nebraska, and President Lincoln's <br /> <br />decision in 1859 to use the central route for the transcontinental <br /> <br />railroad made these areas more accessible and provided an outlet <br /> <br />for agricultural products. <br /> <br />Statehood was achieved in 1867; at which time the population <br /> <br />of 50,000 was concentrated primarily in the area adjacent to the <br /> <br />Missouri River with Omaha the largest city in the state. <br /> <br />Water was a determining factor in site selection for the <br /> <br />2-17 <br /> <br />