here to spend my vacation is
a problem which hundreds of
Omaha minds are puzzling
over just now," said the
Omaha Daily News on July 18, 1909,
in a discussion of budget vacations
within the state. The News told its
readers that a fine vacation trip could
be had in Nebraska at little cost: "Go to
any railroad ticket office and they will
give you a list of vacation trips that can
be made at an expenditure of $10 to
$50."
The News suggested Lake
Quinnebaugh, near Tekamah, to
fishermen looking for a bargain: "The
railroad fare for the round trip is only
$1.68 and you can get at some farm
house a week of the very best board—
chicken and fish, and butter and eggs
and milk—for $6. That leaves $2.32 to
spend for snakebite medicine, tobacco,
reading matter and other incidentals."
Long Pine in Brown County was
also said to be a low-cost vacation
destination within the state. People had long noticed the special features
of Pine Creek canyon. The town's
early entrepreneurs had big ideas
about capitalizing on the potentially
medicinal properties of the waters of
the creek, a tributary of the Niobrara
River.
In 1910, the year after the Daily
News article on budget vacation
destinations was published, three
entrepreneurs formed the Long Pine
Amusement Park, a health and vacation
resort that would become one of the
most developed and longest lasting
of all amusement parks in Nebraska.
The resort drew travelers, first by rail
and later by automobile, to stay in
cabins beside Long Pine Creek and
enjoy outdoor recreation and live
entertainment. The area remains a busy
summer vacation spot today, home to
Long Pine State Recreation Area as
well as privately owned facilities. ■
This photograph of boating in Long Pine Lake was depicted on a hand-tinted postcard
from 1927. From private collection.
From Ainsworth Star-Journal, April 26,
1945.
NSHS,
RG3183-3-41
A Brief History
Vacationing on a Budget
in 1909
By Patricia C. Gaster,
Nebraska State Historical Society
"W
From Ainsworth Star-Journal April 26 l
This photograph of boating in Long Pine Lake was depicted on a hand tinted postcard
Along the creek at Long Pine.
10 NEBRASKAland • JUNE 2015
