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Population: 241,167 Located in Lancaster County
Lincoln was founded in 1859 as the village of Lancaster. Renamed and made Nebraska's state capital in 1867, is the now the second-largest city in the state. Lincoln is Nebraska's center of government and higher education and is a regional retail and transportation center. Despite its size, it retains a friendly, "small town" feel.
There are several threads running through Lincoln's cultural composition. The university and state government have attracted many rural Nebraskans to the city over the years, reinforcing its small town feel. Its position as a college town also helps shape the city's political culture, which is somewhat more liberal than most of the rest of the state. The electorate is nearly evenly split between the Republican and Democratic parties. Once a very ethnically homogeneous city, Lincoln has become more diverse over the past 30 years, welcoming immigrants and refugees from Southeast Asia, the Middle East, the former Soviet Union, and sub-Saharan Africa.
Lincoln is one of the few large cities of Nebraska not located along either the Platte River or the Missouri River. The city was originally laid out near Salt Creek and among the nearly flat saline wetlands of northern Lancaster County. The city's growth over the years has led to development of the surrounding land, much of which is composed of gently rolling hills. In recent years, Lincoln's northward growth has encroached on the habitat of the endangered Salt Creek tiger beetle.
The Lincoln metropolitan area consists of Lancaster County and Seward County, which was added to the metropolitan area in 2003. Lincoln has very little development outside its city limits and has no contiguous suburbs (the largest city that can be considered a suburb of Lincoln is Waverly.) This is due primarily to the fact that most land that would have developed as a suburban city has been annexed to the city of Lincoln itself.
Economy
Lincoln's economy is fairly typical of a mid-sized American city; most economic activity is derived from service industries. The state government and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln are both large contributors to the local economy. Other prominent industries in Lincoln include banking, information technology, insurance, and rail and truck transport. Three regional fast-food restaurant chains began in Lincoln: Amigos/Kings Classic, Runza Restaurants and Valentino's.
Education
Lincoln is the home of the University of Nebraska. The city of Lincoln is served by the Lincoln Public Schools. There are six high schools, including: Lincoln High, East, Northeast, North Star, Southeast and Southwest.
Sports
Lincoln is best known for the University's football team, the Nebraska Cornhuskers. In total, the University of Nebraska fields 21 men's and women's teams in 14 NCAA Division I sports. Other sports teams are the Lincoln Saltdogs, an American Association independent minor league baseball team; the Lincoln Stars, a USHL junior ice hockey team.
Arts, Entertainment and Culture
Lincoln's primary venues for live music include: Pershing Auditorium (large tours and national acts), Knickerbockers, the Chatterbox, Duffy's Tavern, Duggan's Pub (local/regional acts; smaller venues), and the Zoo Bar (blues). The Pla-Mor Ballroom is a staple of Lincoln's music and dance scene, featuring its house band, the award-winning Sandy Creek Band.
The Lied Center is a venue for national tours of Broadway productions, concert music, and guest lectures. Lincoln has several performing arts venues. Plays are staged by UNL students in the Temple Building; community theater productions are held at the Lincoln Community Playhouse, the Loft at The Mill, and the Haymarket Theater.
For movie viewing, the local Douglas Theatre Company owns 32 screens at four locations, and the University of Nebraska's Mary Riepma Ross Media Arts Center shows independent and foreign films. Standalone cinemas in Lincoln include the Joyo Theater, Rococo Theater. The State Theater re-opened as a second-run cinema that serves food and alcohol.
The night life is a busy one. Lincoln has one of the longest main streets in the United States with a portion covered by local drinking establishments. Such highlights include "The Brick Top", "Harry's Wonder Bar" and many others. The scene on a weekend night is intense with many flocking to the area to blow off some steam.
At 15th and K Streets (main entrance), you'll find the historic Nebraska State Capitol building. Open to the public year-round, it was completed in 1932 and is an excellent example of Art Deco architecture, as well as a radical departure from the traditional design of government buildings. Extensive interior art provides a symbolic representation of the history of Nebraska, its government, and its people. The observation deck on the 14th floor provides views of the entire city. Free guided tours last 30 minutes (summer) or 55 minutes (for school groups).
Parks
Lincoln has an extensive park system, with over 100 individual parks. The largest parks in Lincoln's park system are: Antelope Park (which contains the Lincoln Children's Zoo and the Sunken Gardens), Woods Park, Holmes Park, Oak Lake Park, Pioneers Park, Tierra Park, and Wilderness Park. The parks are connected by a 159 km (99 mi.) system of recreational trails. The MoPac Trail extends through Lincoln.
Source: wikipedia.org
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