Kearney Public Library and UNK-History Department welcome you to the History Brown Bag lunch series Wednesday, July 12 from noon-1:00 pm. Dr. Nathan Tye will present An Interview, a Brothel, and a Baseball Great: Three Tales from 1890s Kearney.
Kearney boomed and busted at the end of the 19th century. Banks shuttered, unemployment reached new heights, and the mayor was arrested by the sheriff in a local brothel. This presentation will explore three figures from this period: Maude Marston Burrows, the city’s first female journalist and attorney, Maude Gebhart, madam in the city’s notorious Burnt District, and Bud Fowler, second baseman for the Kearney Giants and the earliest known professional Black baseball player. Illuminating these figures brings the complexities of this era in Kearney’s history to the fore.
Dr. Nathan Tye, is the Assistant Professor of Nebraska and American West History, where he has taught since 2019. He received his PhD from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and his research focuses on lives of migrant laborers, better known as hobos, and their efforts to survive on society’s margins. Dr. Tye serves on the boards of several local community museums and cultural organizations. His research is published in Nebraska History, Annals of Iowa, The Willa Cather Review, and has appeared on NBC’s celebrity genealogy program, Who Do You Think You Are?
This program is free and open to the public so bring your lunch and learn! This collaborative program is presented by UNK-History Department, and the Kearney Public Library. Mark your calendars for this ongoing series on August 9.