Brown Bag History Series

Bring your lunch and learn! This month April White will be presenting "Waterpower, Trolley Cars, and 8 Lightbulbs: Kearney's Early Electric History."

Have you ever wondered how electricity first arrived in Kearney? For a late-1800s city located in rural Nebraska, far from the bustling metropolises, electricity likely seemed like an unattainable fantasy. However, that fantasy became reality when George Frank moved in with futuristic, electric vision for Kearney. This presentation delves into why George Frank chose hydroelectric power over other methods, the development of the canal system that stills runs through the city, how electricity transformed Kearney, powered business endeavors, and why an electric vision nearly 150 years ago continues in Nebraska today.

April White has been the Director of the G.W. Frank Museum of History & Culture since 2019 and is also an adjunct instructor in the University of Nebraska at Kearney (UNK) Department of History. A native Nebraskan from the Omaha area, she came to Kearney in 2003 to attend UNK. There she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Art History and a Master of Arts in History. As Director and instructor, she engages and cultivates relationships with UNK students and faculty to train future museum professionals to build a bright future for her museum and the public history field. She likes to say that the Frank Museum is her favorite place in the whole world and enjoys learning about its history and sharing the museum’s story.

These free programs are a partnership of the University of Nebraska at Kearney's History Department and the Kearney Public Library.

You may also like the following events from Kearney Public Library:

• This Tuesday, 19th August, 01:00 pm, Knot Just Knitting in Kearney
• This Tuesday, 19th August, 07:30 pm, Pub Quiz @ Cunningham's Journal in Kearney
• This Sunday, 24th August, 01:00 pm, Storybook Walk in Kearney

Also check out other Arts events in Kearney.