Pike, Pawnee, and a Spanish Flag

Hear the captivating history of Lieutenant Zebulon Pike's 1806 journey into what is now Nebraska and Kansas. Sent to solicit the allegiance of the Pawnee, Pike was instructed to persuade them to lower the Spanish flag, leading to a tense standoff as he continued his westward journey. Discover the story that later would give rise to the description of Nebraska's landscape as the "Great American Desert," and the dispute between Kansas and Nebraska over the exact location of Pike's council with the Pawnee chief. This episode is from the 1966 Nebraska History Magazine article titled "Zebulon Pike and Nebraska," written by Donald Jackson.