On May 23, 1961, the family of U.S. Senator George W. Norris gave a bust of Norris to the State of Nebraska. In celebration of the centenary of his birth, the state placed the Norris bust in the southeast niche of the Great Hall of the capitol. One month later, the Nebraska State Legislature established the Nebraska Hall of Fame and the Nebraska Hall of Fame Commission. The commission chose Norris as the first member on November 21, 1961. The state permitted the commission to use the Norris bust in the capitol as the senator's statuary representation in the hall of fame. On June 6, 1961, the Nebraska State Legislature also accepted a bust of John G. Neihardt and resolved to permanently place it "in one of the niches in the corridors of the State Capitol." The state dedicated the Neihardt bust on December 7, 1961, and placed it in a large niche above the landing of the northeast stairwell. On April 3, 1962, the state moved the Neihardt bust to the southwest niche of the Great Hall after protests pronounced that the bust's previous location was improper. On March 21, 1974, the Nebraska Hall of Fame Commission elected Neihardt to the hall of fame, and the commission grandfathered his bust into its statuary collection at the capitol. The commission dedicated the bust of William Frederick Cody on June 12, 1969, and placed his bust in the last of the six niches of the Great Hall. The commission placed subsequent busts on limestone plinths throughout the second floor courtyard hallways to the north and south of the legislative chambers.
Selection Criteria
In 1961, the Nebraska State Legislature provided fundamental selection criteria for membership to the Nebraska Hall of Fame. The legislature stated that the purpose of the hall is to "bring to public attention and to recognize officially those people who, in their lives, have achieved prominence and who were outstanding Nebraskans." The legislature further stated that "Nebraskans" mean individuals " who were born in Nebraska, who gained prominence while living in Nebraska, or who lived in Nebraska and whose residence in Nebraska was an important influence on their lives and which contributed to their greatness." The 1961 legislature also provided that "the Nebraska Hall of Fame Commission shall not name more than two persons to the Nebraska Hall of Fame during the first two years after , and not more than one person each two years thereafter." Further, the legislature required that an inductee be deceased. In 1976, the Nebraska State Legislature amended statutes and provided that four members may be named to the hall of fame in celebration of the United States Bicentennial. The legislature also stipulated that individuals shall be deceased at least ten years before being named to the hall of fame. Finally in 1998, the Nebraska State Legislature again amended statutes and provided that, beginning January 1, 2000, no more than one member may be named to the hall of fame every five years. Additionally, the legislature stipulated that individuals shall be deceased at least thirty-five years before being named to the hall of fame.
Members
Medal of Honor Recipients
In 1969, the Nebraska State Legislature amended the Nebraska Hall of Fame statutes "to provide that Nebraskans awarded the Medal of Honor shall be named to the Hall of Fame" and required that the Hall of Fame Commission procure a plaque with the names of the Medal of Honor recipients. On May 5, 1974, the State of Nebraska officially inducted 57 Nebraska Medal of Honor recipients to the Nebraska Hall of Fame. The commission placed a bronze plaque by J.H. Matthews on the southwest pilaster of the Great Hall of the Nebraska State Capitol. On November 11, 2013, the State of Nebraska unveiled a new, updated bronze plaque with the names of 72 Nebraska Medal of Honor recipients. The Nebraska Office of the Capitol Commission placed the new plaque in Memorial Chamber—the fourteenth floor of the capitol.
Controversy
In spring 2004, the Nebraska Hall of Fame Commission created controversy when it considered naming U.S. Senator Kenneth S. Wherry or Malcolm X to the hall of fame. Critics of Wherry said he was an inappropriate inductee because of his "crusade to root out homosexuals in government" during his tenure in Congress at the height of McCarthyism. Critics of Malcolm X said he was an inappropriate inductee because he only lived in Nebraska for a few months after his birth in Omaha. On April 27, 2004, the commission selected Wherry over Malcolm X on a four-three vote. By June 2004, however, the commission realized its selection was in violation of state law. Statute dictated that the commission should not name more than one individual to the hall of fame between January 1, 2000, and December 31, 2004. The commission had previously named Red Cloud a hall-of-famer on January 20, 2000. To date, neither Wherry nor Malcolm X are members of the Nebraska Hall of Fame.
