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PODCAST

Rooted in the Plains

Nicole Blackstock

Rooted in the Plains is a podcast about the people, places and moments that shaped the Great Plains.We’ll dig into stories of resilience, curiosity and courage. These are the voices that whisper through the wind and are written in the dirt beneath our feet.

history

All Episodes

12:36

Off the Record

Rooted in the Plains ·

2026/04/15

Send us Fan Mail Every episode leaves something on the research desk. The details that didn't quite fit. The rabbit holes that led somewhere unexpected. The questions the records wouldn't answer. Today we're opening the files. In this episode, we go back to three stories from Season 2, the ones I couldn't stop thinking about long after the microphone was off. A Nebraska son hired to evaluate the Carnegie library program, who told an uncomfortable truth and watched his report disappear. A sacr...

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11:22

What the Prairie Knew

Rooted in the Plains ·

2026/04/01

Before the plow broke the prairie, the prairie was already a library. Every plant had a name. Every name carried a use. Every use carried a story. In this episode, we explore the deep relationship between the peoples of the Great Plains and the plant life they had cultivated, tended, and understood for centuries. From the sacred cottonwood along the river bottoms to the purple coneflower in your supplement aisle, the knowledge was always there, built over generations of watching, experimentin...

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15:17

A Line in the Sod: Oklahoma Land Runs

Rooted in the Plains ·

2026/03/18

Note: This episode opens with a gunshot sound effect. On September 16, 1893, a gun was fired at noon, and 100,000 people surged across the Oklahoma plains in the largest land run in American history. Within 2 hours, 6.5 million acres were claimed. Cities appeared overnight. The frontier, they said, was finally settled. But a young Tonkawa woman was already there, lying flat in the grass at the edge of her family's field, feeling the hoofbeats in her teeth. In this episode, we follow the...

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13:47

What Couldn't Be Erased: Deadwood's Chinatown

Rooted in the Plains ·

2026/03/04

In 1876, Chinese immigrants arrived in Deadwood, South Dakota, building restaurants, laundries, medical practices, and a temple that smelled of incense from a block away. By 1880, there were over 200 - possibly 400. But then the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 changed everything. In this episode, we explore how a thriving community faced systematic legal persecution - yet refused to disappear. We'll meet Wong Fee Lee, who became the first Chinese property owner in Deadwood in 1877, and Judge Gr...

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18:08

Temples of Literature: Nebraska's Carnegie Libraries

Rooted in the Plains ·

2026/02/18

Between 1901 and 1922, Andrew Carnegie funded 69 libraries across Nebraska, giving the state the second-highest per capita rate of Carnegie libraries in the nation. But why Nebraska? In this episode, we explore how women's clubs, a newly formed state Library Commission, and Carnegie's millions transformed Nebraska from having just 26 libraries to over 120 in two decades. We'll meet Belle Stoughtenborough, who traveled the state preaching "the library way," and Edna Bullock, who lobbied the le...

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14:48

Bass Reeves? You Seem Familiar.

Rooted in the Plains ·

2026/02/04

Content Warning: This episode discusses historical violence, including domestic violence, murder, and attempted suicide. While not graphic, sensitive listeners may want to be aware before listening. Deputy U.S. Marshal Bass Reeves walked into his boss's office for his next assignment, a murder warrant. When Marshal Leo Bennett saw the suspect's name, he hesitated. "Maybe another deputy should handle this one, Bass." The name on the warrant: Benjamin Reeves. Bass's son. "Give me the writ," Bas...

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19:33

When Fences Became Phone Lines

Rooted in the Plains ·

2026/01/21

In the 1890s, Great Plains farmers faced a problem: they desperately needed telephones, but the Bell Telephone Company thought rural areas were too expensive and unsophisticated to serve. So, farmers built their own system—using barbed wire fences. By 1920, these homemade networks had made farmers more connected than city dwellers. This is the story of whiskey bottle insulators, party line eavesdropping, and how the devil's rope became a lifeline across the isolated prairie. Want to see more?...

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5:14

Episode Samples

Rooted in the Plains ·

2026/01/11

Rooted in the Plains, Episode Samples

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20:08

Meadowlarks, Cottonwoods, Honey Bees, Oh My!

Rooted in the Plains ·

2026/01/07

In this Season 2 premiere of Rooted in the Plains, we will explore how the Great Plains states chose their official symbols, flowers, birds, trees, and insects. From the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago to grassroots campaigns by women's clubs, discover the surprising stories behind these emblems of state identity. Learn why five states chose the same bird, how Montana kids voted for their state tree 41 years before the legislature acted, and why Oklahoma has three different flower symbols. Throu...

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18:31

Stories from the Plains Sky- Part 1

Rooted in the Plains ·

2025/11/19

The Pawnee people have long looked at the sky for guidance, meaning and connection. In this episode, Matt Reed, the Tribal Historic Preservation Officer for the Pawnee Nation, shares stories of ceremony and tradition that tie the Pawnee to the stars, moon and storms. See photos, maps, and glimpses of prairie life on Instagram: @rootedintheplains *Part one of a two-part series exploring the stories and science of the Great Plains sky.

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12:31

Stories from the Plains Sky- Part 2

Rooted in the Plains ·

2025/11/19

The sky tells its story in many ways through observation, science and technology. In this episode, Dr. Randy Peppler from the University of Oklahoma explores how meteorology and Indigenous environmental knowledge intersect across the Great Plains and how listening to both reveal a deeper understanding of place and weather. See photos, maps, and glimpses of prairie life on Instagram: @rootedintheplains *Part two of a two-part series exploring the stories and science of the Great Plains s...

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11:24

White Gold of the Plains

Rooted in the Plains ·

2025/11/05

Nebraska is far from the ocean, but the land remembers water. More than 100 million years ago, it was the floor of a vast inland sea, and its salt still lingers in the marshes around Lincoln. In this episode, we trace how salt shaped Nebraska’s history, from the Otoe, Omaha, and Pawnee who gathered crystals for trade and food, to settlers who dreamed of a booming salt industry, to the rare plants and the tiny, fierce Salt Creek tiger beetle that now fight to survive in the last saline wetland...

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14:54

The Pony Express: Short-Lived with Lasting Effects

Rooted in the Plains ·

2025/10/15

From gunfights at Rock Creek to hot peaches at Liberty Farm, this episode traces the short but powerful run of the Pony Express. Though it lasted just 18 months, its mark across Nebraska endures, from relay stations and home stops to the towns and trails that grew in its wake. You’ll hear stories from Rock Creek Station, where a deadly conflict launched the legend of Wild Bill Hickok. Liberty Farm, a cozy home station, lost to the 1864 uprising. Fort Kearny, a military post that helped ...

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14:45

From Slavery to Service on the Frontier

Rooted in the Plains ·

2025/10/01

In the years after the Civil war, newly freed men stepped into uniforms and became part of the U.S. Army’s first Black regiments. Known later as the Ninth and Tenth Cavalry and the Twenty-fourth and Twenty-fifth Infantry, these soldiers built forts, guarded settlers, patrolled reservations and carried the weight of frontier duty across the Great Plains and beyond. In this episode, we follow their story from Fort Robinson in Nebraska, from the experimental Iron Riders Bicycle Corps in Mo...

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11:23

Mountains, Tribes, and Truth: Grinnell’s American West

Rooted in the Plains ·

2025/09/17

In this episode of Rooted in the Plains, we follow the life of George “Bird” Grinnell, naturalist, writer and advocate for the American West. From his early days learning under Madam Audubon to his expeditions across Montana and Yellowstone, Grinnell became a key voice in the conservation movement. He worked alongside Indigenous communities, helped found the Audubon and Boone & Crockett Clubs, and fought to preserve places like Glacier National Park. His legacy lives on in the landscapes,...

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16:22

Curtains Up on the Prairie: Nebraska’s Opera Houses,...

Rooted in the Plains ·

2025/09/03

In this episode of Rooted in the Plains, we open the doors to Nebraska’s opera houses, cultural centers that stood at the heart of prairie towns between 1870 and 1920. Though few ever hosted full operas, these spaces bustled with activity: traveling shows, lectures, community meetings and much more. Built to attract and retain residents, they were often nestled along main streets, reflecting the ambition and spirit of growing towns. We stop in Friend, Plattsmouth, and Red Cloud, to exp...

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9:29

Barbed Wire and the End of the Open Range

Rooted in the Plains ·

2025/08/22

A deceptively simple invention reshaped the Great Plains. In this episode, we explore how barbed wire transformed farming, ended the era of open-range cattle drives and stirred up fierce legal battles and neighbor disputes. From sod fences, osage orange hedgerows to fence-cutting wars and changing property laws, barbed wire marked a turning point in the region’s landscape and way of life. We’ll consider the legacy it left behind and how the balance between boundaries and openness contin...

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10:32

The Letters of Elinore Pruitt Stewart: Homesteading...

Rooted in the Plains ·

2025/08/06

In this episode of Rooted in the Plains, we explore the life and letters of Elinore Pruitt Stewart, whose homesteading experience in early 20th-century Wyoming offers one of the clearest windows into the daily lives of frontier women. From milking cows to cutting hay, Elinore’s vivid, often humorous letters reveal a life shaped by grit, joy and self-reliance. Discover how a housekeeper became an expected literary voice and why her words still resonate today. Through Elinore’s story, we ...

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1:30

Rooted in the Plains Trailer

Rooted in the Plains ·

2025/07/31

Rooted in the Plains is a podcast about the people, places, and moments that shaped the Great Plains. From sod houses and opera halls to conservationists and Pony Express riders, host Nicole brings forgotten voices and buried histories to life. In each episode, you’ll explore stories of resilience, change, and connection — and discover how the past still echoes across the prairie today. Subscribe now and follow @rootedintheplains on Instagram for photos, maps, and glimpses of prairie life.

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19 results

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