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Sep. 7--Nebraska bids farewell to the bicentennial of the Lewis and Clark expedition with a free family festival of music, living history re-enactors and educational displays.
"People want to know their history," says Ron Hull, chairman of the Nebraska Lewis and Clark Bicentennial Commission. "We love our land, and we have a vibrant culture that we nurture. We're more unified than most states."
He predicts that people who participate Saturday will go home with more pride in their history, their country, their culture and a place between the Missouri River and the foothills of the Rockies that is called Nebraska.
Free trolley service is available among sites. Here are plans for Saturday's festival, downtown from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.:
National Park Service headquarters, on the riverfront, displays a life-size keelboat like one the explorers would have used 200 years ago. Visitors can explore the boat and learn how the design had an impact on the river voyage. Members of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers create a mini-encampment to show what daily life was like for the men on the Corps of Discovery. The Lewis and Clark Fife and Drum Corps showcases the music and marching styles of the Lewis and Clark era. Indoor activities include performances by Darrel Draper portraying expedition member George Drouillard, who was a hunter and an interpreter.
Durham Western Heritage Museum opens a renovated Lewis and Clark history exhibit. It features a life-size mural, a stuffed buffalo, a reproduction of a uniform worn by the explorers and a sextant used for navigation. Gary Moulton, editor of the Lewis and Clark journals, speaks. Renae M. Hunt gives a program on the unpaid members of the Corps of Discovery.
Joslyn Art Museum showcases art, music and history of the American West. Visitors can get background information with museum audio guides and backpacks filled with hands-on activities related to art of the American West. A new special exhibit, "Faces from the Land: a Photographic Journey Through Native America," features contemporary photographs accompanied by comments of the people in the photographs. Daniel Slosberg portrays expedition member Pierre Cruzatte, including his fiddling style. History interpreter Amy Mossett talks about the life of Sacagawea. Arvel Bird plays violin in a style that evokes American Indian traditions, jazz and classical music.
Lauritzen Gardens showcases the plants and animals the explorers found on their journey. You can feel the pelts of North American animals.
Omaha Children's Museum presents hands-on science and craft projects related to Lewis and Clark. The Nebraska Humane Society arranged for families to meet a Newfoundland dog at the museum and learn how Seaman, Capt. Lewis' dog, helped on the expedition.
Omaha Public Library presents storytellers. Matthew "Sitting Bear" Jones gives an American Indian viewpoint. Dale Clark talks about life on the trail. Families also can create Indian crafts and meet "Scamper," the library's prairie dog mascot.
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Copyright (c) 2006, Omaha World-Herald, Neb.
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Business News.
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