Chadron

WESTERN

CHADRON

Chadron is located in Nebraska’s scenic Pine Ridge region, which has ponderosa pine forests and rugged butte-studded hills.

The scenic beauty of the region is

showcased at Chadron State Park, which was founded in 1921 as Nebraska’s first state park. This 974-acre retreat 10 miles south of Chadron is popular with campers, fishermen, hikers and photographers. Mountain biking is exciting here and on adjacent Nebraska National Forest lands. Visitors also enjoy cabins, a swimming pool, picnic shelters, fishing pond and paddleboats. Campground hosts sell fire wood, and the Trading Post sells buffalo burgers, other meals, ice cream, snacks and drinks. The post also has educational displays, an aquarium of native fish and animals and an outdoor tomahawk throwing course. Special events are planned to celebrate the park and Nebraska’s state park system’s centennial in 2021. 15951 U.S. Highway 385. (308) 432-6167.

The Mari Sandoz High Plains Heritage Center at Chadron State College preserves the memory of one of Nebraska’s most beloved writers. Sandoz grew up in the sand hills of neighboring Sheridan County. Her father, immigrant pioneer Jules Sandoz, discouraged her from writing, and he referred to artists and writers as “the maggots of society.” However, he later made a deathbed plea to Mari to write his life story. That 1935 biography, Old Jules, was her first successful book

The Mari Sandoz High Plains Heritage Center at Chadron State College celebrates the life and literature of one of Nebraska’s favorite authors.

and is considered a masterpiece work of literature about the settlement of western Nebraska.

The facility in the college’s former Carnegie-style library features exhibits about the writer’s life and career. The archival library includes items formerly belonging to Sandoz and her family, as well as the author’s books from around the world printed in foreign languages.

A two-story atrium adjacent to the center houses additional exhibits and is used for special events. Outside, the Heritage Garden features the Old Jules Orchard of fruit producing plants and trees once grown by Sandoz. The Sandoz Collection is planted at the feet of a bronze statue of Mari Sandoz.

Col. C.F. Coffee was one of the first cattle ranchers in northwest Nebraska. The Coffee Gallery on the lower level of the Sandoz Center features exhibits about High Plains ranching. Coffee, who had the equivalent of a fifth-grade education, grew up to be a successful businessman, rancher and banker. The gallery includes historical cattle brand books and a banking exhibit. 1000 Main St. at Chadron State College. (308) 432-6401.

Chadron is home to the Museum of the Fur Trade – the only museum in the world dedicated exclusively to the frontier fur trade era. Clothing, firearms, knives, axes, quilts, kettles, a canoe and James Bordeaux’s 1837 trading post bring American and global fur trade to life as if it never faded at all. The museum has more than 6,000 items on display and adds new exhibits every year. Among them are firearms once belonging to Kit Carson and Chief Tecumseh – even artifacts from Russia and Europe. Most of the plants in the museum’s Heirloom Garden are the result of seeds obtained directly from Native Americans more than 125 years ago. The garden propagates those rare species for future generations. Excess seeds are sold to green-thumbed museum visitors. 6321 U.S. Highway 20. (308) 432-3843.

The Dawes County Historical

Alan J. Bartels Ponderosa pine forests at Chadron State Park are the backdrop to tent campsites, RV pads and historic 1930s cabins.

Museum is located on the original site of the Nellie and Lee Card farm. The main museum building displays pioneer household goods, Native American relics, antique toys, historic photos, military uniforms and a model of the World War II USS Chadron submarine chaser. Treasured textiles are displayed in the museum’s quilt room. Also on site are a country school, cabin and railroad caboose. Regular events include 1800s School, Railroad Weekend, and the Garden Party. The museum also has a new farm equipment building.

Seen nowhere else in Nebraska or anywhere are the many innovative creations of Dawes County farmer and inventor Marcus Cain. The homemade 200-horsepower tractor that he built from a World War II tank retriever is one of the agricultural inventions on display. Some of the inventions in the museum’s new Cullan-Littrel Building are so large that the structure was erected around them because they would have been too big to move in later.

Cain’s other big ideas included a 20-foot stubble chopper that he built long before no-till farming was a common practice, and a 24foot self-propelled tiller with three engines. 341 Country Club Rd. (308) 432-4999.

Travelers needing to stretch their legs can put on some miles at Chadron State College on the south side of town. The Sandoz Heritage Trail is 1.1 miles long and rated easy for walkers and bicyclists. This trail has a paved surface and is maintained during winter. The route winds through the Thompson Natural History Preserve, crosses the upper dam at Briggs Pond and leads visitors to a high point overlooking the college town. C Hill Trail is narrow, and the grass is not mowed often. It leads to the 80-foot white letter “C” created in 1926. The campus landmark can be seen for miles. Five more miles of trails cross the campus where 3,000 students attend class.

Visitors not lodging in the park can rest at the Olde Main Street Inn. This is no ordinary hotel. The business has been in owner Jeanne Goetzinger’s family since 1969. The building’s history goes back much further – it was built in 1890. U.S. Army Gen. Nelson Miles used the building, then known