More Hidden Gems in Nebraska

National Museum of Roller Skating, Lincoln

The National Museum of Roller Skating in Lincoln, Nebraska is home to the largest collection of roller skates in the world, going back as far back as 1819. The museum aims at educating skating enthusiasts from all around the world about the history and evolution of skating as something more than just a hobby.

At the museum, the staff works towards collecting and preserving the enriching past of skating. Along with the biggest collection of historical roller skates, the National Museum of Roller Skating also houses patents, trophies, artworks, photographs, costumes, videos, and any other memorabilia related to the world of Skating.

There are approximately 1,500 books and journals related to roller skating. Among the museum’s most prized collections are the James L. Plimpton (the Father of contemporary roller skating) family collection, Antonio Pirello’s jetpack skates, and pictures of Scott Baio on roller skates.

Panorama Point, Pine Bluffs

The highest natural point in Nebraska, Panorama Point in Pine Bluffs stands at 5,429 feet above the sea level and as opposed to what you may believe, it’s not a mountain or even a hill – it’s just a small rise on the High Plains!

Located on the ground of High Point Bison Ranch, the summit at the Panorama Point has a stone marker and a guest register. There used to be several bison roaming freely in the area as well, but now they remain behind fences. As you reach the Point, vast plains extend in front of you as far as your eyes can see and on a clear day, you can spot the Rocky Mountains in the distance.

As a visitor, pay the nominal entrance fee and if you come across a bison on your way, don’t scare it away.

Old Lincoln Highway in Omaha, Omaha

Originally constructed in 1913 to run between New York City to San Francisco, the Old Lincoln Highway was the first coast-to-coast highway built in the United States of America. Among the 13 states that it catered to, Nebraska’s section of the highway ran between Omaha and Elkhorn.

However, in 1929, after the Abraham Lincoln Memorial Bridge was constructed, the highway was rerouted onto U.S. Route 30 through Blair (a city in Nebraska). After the rerouting was completed, officials from Blair, inhumanely, dug up the markers from the highway section in Omaha and placed them in their town.

Though this resulted in a long-standing resentment between the two towns, it is perhaps also the reason behind this century-old stretch of an old highway to remain so well-reserved.

This three-mile stretch may not remain as crucial as it once was, but it definitely is the longest surviving brick-paved section of America’s first coast-to-coast highway. The Old Lincoln Highway was registered on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.

Ole’s Big Game Steakhouse and Lounge, Paxton

Established by Rosser O. Herstedt (aka Ole), the Steakhouse and Lounge is not just a simple steakhouse, although it does serve some mean steaks. It, in fact, is a private collection of taxidermy gathered by Ole during his 30+ years as a Game Hunter.

Purchased in 1933, the Big Game Steakhouse and Lounge got its first taxidermy object in 1938, an elk’s head that Ole had killed during one of his many hunting sprees. He traveled the world in search of bigger, better, and rare games and brought home the heads of his catch as a medal to be showcased at the steakhouse. Among the rare collection are giraffes, elephants, moose, and even a full-size taxidermy polar bear, which is also the bar’s mascot.

Ole retired from hunting in 1988, however, new owners kept adding to the collection. Today, over 200 taxidermy mounts, as well as celebrity photos, are on display at the Steakhouse and Lounge and the watering hole continues to attract local hunters to date.

Hudson-Meng Bison Kill, Harrison

In 1954, Albert Meng, a Nebraskan cattleman, decided to expand a historic spring to provide water for his cattle when he stumbled upon bones – lots and lots of them!

Discovered within the grounds of Oglala National Grasslands, the seriously alarming number of carcasses were later confirmed by researchers and scientists to have belonged to over 600 bison from approximately 10,000 years ago.

Meng consulted with his friend, Bill Hudson, an amateur archaeologist, and after digging for almost three years, Meng and Hudson were accredited with unearthing the largest collection of Alberta Culture bison found anywhere on earth.

Though the area was reportedly a hunting ground from the time when Native American tribes inhabited the land, research showed that the bison found at the Hudson-Meng Bison Kill died of inexplicable natural causes.