Nebraskaland

April 2021 • Nebraskaland 39 with hunting or fi shing, had become a stand-alone activity. In 1921, the movement to preserve wild places for enjoyment by the masses gained enough of a foothold that the Nebraska Legislature formed the State Park Board, and Nebraska became the 20th to create a state park when the board designated a section of school land in the scenic Pine Ridge south of Chadron as such. In the years since, the Commission has added 77 parks and trails for their historic, aesthetic and recreational value. Some were donated, some purchased and some leased, including facilities developed around numerous irrigation and fl ood-control reservoirs built by irrigation districts and state and federal agencies. The result is what is widely recognized as one of the fi nest park systems in the nation. Within a short drive of all Nebraskans, is a state park, historical park or recreation area where people can explore some of the state's most scenic landscapes, stay, learn, play or just relax. These are your parks. 1921 - Chadron State Park was created. 1923 - Victoria Springs, described as an oasis in the Sandhills for the mineral springs found there, became the state's fi rst state recreation area. The park, near Anselmo, includes the log home and store of Judge Charles Mathews. 1923 - Arbor Lodge, the mansion and grounds of J. Sterling Morton, founder of Arbor Day, in Nebraska City, became the state's fi rst state historical park. 1925 - Walgren Lake State Recreation Area was established in Sheridan County. 1925 - The Bureau of Game and Fish began to establish a statewide system of recreation grounds to supplement the state parks "to provide fi shing and hunting for the thousands of Nebraska citizens who desire such outdoor recreation." It acquired Walgren Lake in Sheridan County that year. 1929 - Fort Kearny State Historical Park was established on the site of a frontier fort that operated from 1848 to 1871 on the Oregon-California Trail. It was maintained as a picnic and recreation site until the 1960s, when reconstruction of historic structures began. A visitor center opened in 1968. Land was acquired nearby in the 1960s to create Fort Kearny State Recreation Area, which also opened in 1968. 1929 - The State Park Board was dissolved and merged with the Bureau of Game and Fish to create the Game, Forestation and Parks Commission. 1930 - The Commission purchased land near Gering to create a "big game reserve" today known as the Wildcat Hills State Recreation Area. 1933 - By the end of 1933, the Game, Forestation and Parks In 1881, the Nebraska Fish Commission purchased a private fi sh hatchery on the Platte River south of Louisville and named it the Santee Fishery. By 1915, the 52-acre site was redesignated the Gretna Fish Hatchery. NGPC PHOTO LIBRARY

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