Kansas and Nebraska Compared

Mr. Beat compares and contrasts two states in the middle of the country, and two that he knows very well.

Music featured in this video:
Additional music by the 126ers.

Produced by Matt Beat. All images/video by Matt Beat, found in the public domain, or used under fair use guidelines.

Creative commons credit:
Babymestizo
Tony Webster
Teton Council Site
Don Middleton
Fredlyfish4
Bkell
City of Greensburg, Kansas
Capitolist
rayb777
James St. John

Sources/further reading:

#compared
#kansas and #nebraska
Two bordering states that I am VERY familiar with in these United States. Both can trace their beginnings to the Kansas–Nebraska Act. I guess you can call this whole video the Kansas Nebraska Act amirite? Ha ha!

Both have been settled by humans for thousands of years. Some were nomadic, others were sedentary. By the time Europeans got to the area in the 1500s and 1600s, prominent American Indian nations in modern-day Kansas included the Arapaho, Cheyenne, Comanche, Kansa, Kiowa, Osage, Pawnee, and Wichita. Wait, the Kansa? Yeah, Kansas is named after the Kansa Indians, for real. Prominent American Indian tribes in modern-day Nebraska included also the Cheyenne and Pawnee, but additionally the Lakota, Omaha, Otoe, and Ponca. Nebraska is named after the Otoe Indian word Nebrathka, which means “flat water,” in reference to the Platte River, which runs through the state. As you probably already guessed by now, the biggest cities in both states today, Wichita and Omaha, are both named after the Indian tribes.

Anyway, in 1541, a Spanish conquistador named Francisco Vásquez de Coronado and his expedition were the first Europeans to reach modern-day Kansas. Modern-day Nebraska wasn’t really checked out by Europeans much until the 1700s. The French claimed it. In 1714, Etienne de Bourgmont and his crew checked it out for the first time.

Both the French and Spanish did not settle modern-day Kansas, but the French did do some trading along the Missouri River, which led to a trading post in modern-day Nebraska.

The future states both completely were part of the Louisiana Purchase. Yep, the United States bought them in 1803. The next year, Lewis and Clark checked both out on their famous expedition. In 1806, Zebulon Pike’s expedition passed through Kansas and assumed the area was too dry for farming. Thanks to him and particularly a dude named Stephen Long, who checked out both modern-day Kansas and modern-day Nebraska in 1820, the western part of the Great Plains mistakenly got called the Great American Desert. Later on, when the American government was forcing American Indians off their lands back east and needed a place to relocate them, they were like, let’s send them off to the crappy land we can’t farm out in the Great American Desert?

[iammrbeat]

This was the most personal Compared episode I've ever made.

So which state should I move to next? Er, I mean, which states should I compare next? And don't even bother arguing that Kansas is better than Nebraska or that Nebraska is better than Kansas. It's pretty clear that they are EXACTLY EVEN.

[joanignasi]

The difference is that in Kansas when your house gets sucked up by a tornado you get transported to a magical land while in Nebraska you just die.

[anticorncob]

I live in Nebraska. My corner of the world is so seldom talked about that it really feels special seeing videos like this.

[yayhay]

Did you know on football day the third most populated city in Nebraska is the football stadium

[remotelysuspiciousname]

I was hoping for Nebraska's true enemy: Iowa, but this was a pleasant surprise

[revinhatol]

FUN FACT: Lebanon, Kansas is called the "Heart of America" due to its location being close to the geographic center of the lower 48.

[akaijuinomaha]

Quick side note: Kool-Aid was invented in Hastings, Nebraska

[samuelquintin]

They are very similar yet very different. Kansas is little more edgy while Nebraska is more chill. Kansas *practically* invented Sunflowers while Nebraska created Arbor Day. They may occasionally throw insults and jokes, but at the end of the day when a Kansa and Nebraska meet they instantly click. They just get each other like nobody else. Kansas and Nebraska go together like Czech Republic & Slovakia, or Rwanda & Burundi.

[liam-man]

Kudos to Nebraska for planting manmade forests to help the environment!

[Sammykyt]

The interesting thing is that a lot of people call the Great Plains states (The Dakotas, Nebraska, Kansas and Oklahoma) part of the Midwest but I have always thought of the Great Plains as its own part of the country

[joannleichliter]

As a Nebraskan, I love being in flyover country and hope everyone just keeps flying over.

[paytonlee]

I think one of the funny parts of this is that pretty much any Kansas native watching this video probably knows where the majority of those towns are you mention

[Tristin]

I appreciate you too, Mr. Beat! I've learned more from you than my many years of history class in school, combined! Keep up the good work!

[NotMyWar]

I used to live in Colorado and drove back and forth between there and my hometown of Indianapolis. It’s amazing how much the landscape changes from east to west in Kansas and Nebraska. Quite beautiful

[arsenalarsenalCOYG]

Fun fact.
• The first Christian to be Martyred in the USA was in Kansas.
• The Spanish Flu can be traced back to Kansas.

Look it up.

[jakezoucha]

I give you points Mr. Beat for appreciating the Sandhills. One of the most underappreciated areas in the state.

[joskjj]

Im quite pumped for a Maryland vs Virginia thanks Mr beat

[semipenguin]

I used to deliver to Dollar General stores in both states. I love them both, but I like Kansas more.

I got to go to Lawrence one year and watch a KU football game. They were beating Texas A&M the whole game and lost in the last two minutes. It was still fun.

The trucking company I work for now is based in Lincoln. A previous company I worked for was based in Omaha.

[jady]

I was born in Topeka and currently live in a suburb of Topeka (less than a mile away from Topeka in fact). It makes me happy to see videos covering states like Kansas and Nebraska that many people just forget about. I’ve been to Omaha about 3 times, and overall, Nebraska seems like a pretty nice state. This video has made me learn more about both states!

[sloopfan]

Thank you for covering my home state of Nebraska!