Individuals and groups who have made a better future for the past will be honored with awards at the 134th meeting of the Nebraska State Historical Society at 12 noon, Friday, October 26 at the Holiday Inn Downtown in Lincoln. A variety of awards are offered annually to recognize people who have made history. Winners include:
- Restore Omaha, a volunteer group of architects, architectural historians, conservators, preservation and restoration professionals and enthusiasts will receive the Nebraska Preservation Award. The group produces an annual conference and exhibitions in the spring including exhibitors of preservation products and services and a fall tour. These events provide current and potential owners of older properties an opportunity to learn from experts about how to restore, revive and preserve their historic place or business, and to inspire them to do the work.
- Dr. Dennis Mihelich, retired professor of history at Creighton University, will receive the Addison E. Sheldon Memorial Award for lifetime achievement in the interpretation and preservation of Nebraska History. He will be honored for his publications, teaching, and public involvement. His most recent book is "First Telegraph Line Across the Continent: Charles Brwon's 1861 Diary," edited from a manuscript Mihelich discovered at the Smithsonian Institution. Dr. Mihelich was a previous award winner for one of eight articles that published in Nebraska History magazine. He has provided his historical expertise to the Joslyn Art Museum, Douglas County Oral History Project and the Omaha Business Hall of Fame Oral History Project. His community service projects include former NSHS Board member and President, Douglas County Historical Society board member, and historical consultant to various groups and councils. Mihelich is a member of the Nebraska Hall of Fame Commission.
- Putting history on-line has netted Suzy Giannoble and Bonnie Quinn, both volunteers from Lincoln, the Robert W. Furnas Award for outstanding contributions to the Nebraska State Historical Society (NSHS). They have prepared hundreds of articles from Nebraska History for online publication at www.nebraskahistory.org, and have scanned and written summaries for articles spanning decades of research.
- Gayle Carlson, Lincoln is winner of the A.T. Hill Award for exemplary work in Nebraska archeology. Carlson worked in the NSHS archeology program for 44 years, and retired as State Archeologist in 2011. His expertise is in the study of various Plains Native American cultural groups, early Nebraska military posts and overland trail related sites.
- David Delbert Kruger's article, "Main Street Empire: J.C. Penney in Nebraska," was judged the best article published in Nebraska History Magazine. The 2011 article was deemed by Chadron State College history faculty as worthy of the James L. Sellers Memorial award. The author receives a plaque and $1,000 from the NSHS Foundation, through the support of Catherine Sellers Angle. Kruger is the agricultural research librarian at the University of Wyoming in Laramie.
Registration for the awards luncheon is $25; the deadline is Wednesday, October 17. To register call 402-471-3272 or email lana.hatcher@nebraska.gov. For further information about the awards, award winners or the Nebraska State Historical Society, visit www.nebraskahistory.org
For general information:Lynne M. Ireland
Deputy Director
Nebraska State Historical Society
1500 R Street
PO Box 82554
Lincoln, NE 68501-2554
402.471.4758 (v)
402-471.3100 (f)
lynne.ireland@nebraska.gov
Your Nebraska source for the histories we share.