Once upon a time (1850s), in a growing Missouri River town (Omaha), amber waves of grain and hops were harvested to supply the big four breweries. In Omaha, beer was king and poured supreme.

In 1856, McCumbe’s Brewery opened as the River City’s first brewery. Two brothers purchased McCumbe’s in 1861 and switched the name to Metz. Business boomed.

Krug’s Brewery opened in 1859. Falstaff purchased the plant in 1936 and by the mid 1960s, was the third largest brewer in America. Eventually the company sold to Pabst and Falstaff fell to its demise. The Omaha plant shut its doors in 1985.

Storz Brewing and Willow Springs originated in Saratoga, Nebraska, in Douglas County in 1863. Eventually the brewery moved to Omaha. In 1884, the plant foreman, Gottlieb Storz, bought the factory. Considering the boom in Omaha – the crowded and growing stockyards  and the influx of immigrants to the town’s South side – beer was a natural fit. During Prohibition, Storz continued its reign with near beer products. By 1960, Storz sold one-third of all beer in Nebraska, but just over a decade later, it would shut down operations. The year: 1972.

It would take nearly  20 years for a new beer movement in the Cornhusker State. In March 1991, Lazlo’s became Nebraska’s first craft brewer. In 1997, when the legislature passed laws allowing the sale of craft beer outside the brew pub, the name changed to Empyrean.

Two of my favorite craft beer spots are Gottberg Brew Pub in Columbus. The beer is great; so is the root beer for those who choose not to drink. And I love the Upstream Brewing Company in Omaha’s Old Market. Both spots have such great character (as well as characters!!).  Now, ten breweries exist in Nebraska, and over a handful of craft brew bars operate. (Plus, they’re the only two I’ve visited. So far!)

Nebraska breweries include:

• Empyrean Brewing - Lincoln
• Gottberg Brewery - Columbus
• Jaipur Brewing Company - Omaha
• Lucky Bucket Brewing - LaVista
• Modern Monks – Misty’s - Lincoln
• Nebraska Brewing Company - Papillion
• Schilling Bridge - Pawnee City
• Spilker Ales - Cortland
• Thunderhead Brewing - Kearney
• Upstream Brewing - Omaha

Try one of these Nebraska-made craft breweries and toast the amber waves of Nebraska hops and grain.

                If I shut my eyes and tune in to the past, I envision my grandparents (heck, probably the ‘rents, too) whirling around the dance floor of the former Oakdale community center. Background noise gives way to faint strains of the accordion and a small brass ensemble.

                “Strike up the music the band has begun the Pennsylvania Polka. Pick out your partner and join in the fun…”

                Polka derives from the Czech word pulka, which translates to little half. The fancy footwork for the peasant dance originated in Bohemia in the 1800s, when Anna Slezak set the movement to a folk tune.

                Quickly, the popular dance spread from Eastern Europe across the Atlantic to the U.S. When the Czechs left their homeland due to bleak economic times and landed in a place Cather described as “nothing but land: not a country at all, but the material out of which countries are made,” they shared their folklore and passion for music.

                Variations of the 2/4-time dance follow regional preferences. The Polish polka, which is faster and a bit more swinging, hails from Chicago. The oom-pah, or Dutchmen sound, is a Midwestern favorite. By the 1940s, trendy polka bandleaders sold millions of records in America. 

                “In heaven there is no beer. That’s why we drink it here…”

                My Swedish-German heritage didn’t leave me stranded on the dance floor. My first memory of dancing a polka involves my Uncle Cecil, who seemed like a 6’5” giant when I was three years old. Despite the fact that he was wearing his Marine uniform, I stood on the top of his squeaky-white shoes and he whisked me around the dance floor.   

                Both sets of grandparents tuned in to Lawrence Welk on WNAX, and I remember Grandma Larson talking about going to Yankton to dance to the champagne music played by Welk’s orchestra.

                Before FM or XM, the Big Joe Polka Show, the polka equivalent of “American Bandstand,” blared from KTTT in Columbus, and later was viewable on RFD-TV. Now, Mark Vyhlidal plays favorites on his All-Star Polka Show on KJSK AM from Columbus.

                My seventh grade PE class spent a month working on our dance moves. No Chubby Checker twist. No Motown jive. No, we perfected our polka skills to Sonny and Cher’s “When You Say Love”, nonetheless.

                Many family celebrations – weddings and anniversaries – feature some sort of polka. When my parents and grandparents held a joint bash for their 45- and 65-year anniversaries, we danced a lot of polkas.

                “Red rose, why you are not blooming….”

                Now, the polka is a rural American ritual seemingly waltzing into obscurity.

                Small-town ballrooms, which once were filled with locals who favored this music genre, continue to dim the dancehall lights. It’s a sad tribute to a music and dance genre that’s part of our heritage, no matter what country your family hails from.

                It’s a tradition worth saving and sharing.

                “Roll out the barrel, we’ll have a barrel of fun. Roll out the barrel, we’ve got the blues on the run.”

My sister’s text message equaled one word.

 “Earthquake!”

 I didn’t get too shook up about it. Laurie lives in San Diego and she sends that message whenever a sizable tremor rattles her neighborhood.

But her next message surprised me.

 “A 3.0 just hit Nebraska. Did you feel it?”

 While most may consider earthquakes a California phenomenon, Nebraska’s tremor testimony stretches back in time. The Nebraska Geological Survey estimates 50 quakes have rocked the state.

The first substantial earthquake felt in Nebraska occurred about a month after achieving statehood reports the U.S. Geological Survey. On April 24, 1867, a quake near Lawrence, Kansas affected much of the Cornhusker state. Since then, at least seven reports of seismic activity with an intensity V (Mercalli scale) or greater have centered within our borders. The intensity rating translates to a 4.0 or higher on the Richter scale.

On November 15, 1877, two shockwaves hit Nebraska about 45 minutes apart along the western edge of the Keweenawan mafic belt. Columbus, located northwest of the epicenter, suffered damage to courthouse and schoolhouse walls. The second wave released a surge of energy and lasted nearly 40 seconds in North Platte. Buildings swayed in Lincoln. Parts of the Dakotas, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri and Wisconsin experienced the eruption. The quake registered intensity VII and the event is considered Nebraska’s strongest earthquake.

Small, modest earthquakes struck throughout the next several decades. Near Battle Creek, an intensity V shook the bell towers of local churches and clattered dishes in many homes on July 28, 1902. During a single day in 1910, multiple rumblings shook houses in Columbus. In 1972, a 3.7 occurred near Basset. Residents of Ainsworth and Newport reported it, too.

 But several strong earth rattlers have hit Nebraska. In 1934 near Chadron, a 5.5 quake caused plaster to fall from walls. Canned goods and dishes wobbled from shelves. This event was felt as far away as Sterling, Colorado.

Close to Tecumseh, two earthquakes broke windows, cracked plaster, and damaged chimneys. The jolts came four minutes apart in 1935.

In March 1964, Nebraska, Montana, South Dakota, and Wyoming felt an awakening jolt. But six hours later, in the middle of the night, a 5.1 quake caused roadways south of Merriman to crack. The banks of the Niobrara River slid into the tranquil, flowing river. Damage rated as an intensity VII or very strong.

I’ve experienced two earthquakes, and both weren’t felt on the sandy beaches of San Diego. The first quake was centered between Center and Creighton. I taught in Wausa and a fellow teacher walked into my room and asked if felt the earthquake.

Um, no.

In fall 2002, on a Sunday afternoon, I thought a semi-truck was rounding the curve and hitting the brakes near our home in Neligh, until I noticed the ceiling fan swaying. A 4.3 quake hit northwest of O’Neill.

Even though Nebraska’s earthquakes haven’t been extremely destructive, the shake, rattle and roll are unnerving, making it difficult to imagine the earthquakes my sister has survived.

Have you experienced Nebraska shiver?

The Geological Survey tracks earthquakes in real time at http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsus/.