STANTON COUNTY, Neb. (KTIV) – Archeologists with the Nebraska State Historical Society are digging at the site of an 1860s Stanton County homestead.

The Sharp Homestead, located near Pilger at the intersection of Nebraska Highway 15 and U.S. Highway 275, started Nov. 21, 1865, when Charles F. Sharp submitted a homestead application to the Nebraska Land Office in Nebraska City.

Sharp built a 16-by-24-foot, one-and-a-half-story, three-room house by 1872. It also contained a stable, a granary and a cellar below the house.

The 2014 Pilger tornado uncovered historical artifacts at the site, which led to further investigation. Architectural debris like brick, metal hinges and glass were later discovered.

Additionally, items like stoneware and flatware, a set of pliers, an old horseshoe and other unidentifiable metal items were found.

Nolan Johnson, an archeologist with the Nebraska State Historical Society, has been working on the Sharp Homestead project since 2016.

Johnson said the Sharp Homestead is a significant site due to its age and could help scientists understand the evolution of farming practices in Nebraska.

“The archival record from the 1860s-1880s is scant and archeology is an important tool for filling in those gaps in our understanding of how people lived in Nebraska in the past,” said Johnson.

Over the next six to eight weeks, four state archeologists and two technicians will excavate several one-meter square grids by hand to recover artifacts and hopefully find evidence of building foundations.

Most of the recovered artifacts will be collected for cleaning, processing, analysis and storage at the State Archeology Office in Lincoln.

A comprehensive project report will be released detailing the excavations and providing results of the team’s findings once the analysis is complete.

The historical society is working with the Nebraska Department of Transportation to make way for a 10-mile expansion of U.S. Highway 275 from Norfolk to Omaha Expressway.

The expressway is planned to be expanded from two lanes to four lanes beginning 8.5 miles east of Norfolk and extending to the intersection of Nebraska Highway 15 and U.S. Highway 275.

The Sharp Homestead archeological work is the largest project the Nebraska State Historical Society and the Nebraska Department of Transportation have partnered on in more than 20 years.

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LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) – The Nebraska Legislature’s General Affairs Committee is now mulling an amendment to LB 677 that would prohibit cannabis flower, one of the most common forms. It would also keep PTSD off the list of qualifying conditions.

A group of veterans flocked to the Capitol Rotunda on Monday, telling lawmakers to reverse course and saying that cannabis can help people deal with the pain of war.

“It’s very inhumane to not allow people the medical option to help them with their with their issues and their situations,” said Benjamin Marksmeier, a wounded veteran. “Medical cannabis has the most beneficial factors and carries the least amount of risk, and for me, the amount of opioids that I needed to combat my pain was a ridiculous amount.”

Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana, the group behind the medical cannabis ballot drive that was supported in November by more than two-thirds of voters, said they can’t back the bill with that amendment.

“We will not concede to leaving people out, to making this more difficult for patients to access,” Crista Eggers, the director Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana, said. “Voters have spoken. We are going to honor and respect the voters whether lawmakers want to or not.”

Sen. Rick Holdcroft, the chair of the General Affairs Committee, said the bill wouldn’t have the votes to make it out of committee and onto the floor if it included access to flower and PTSD as a qualifying condition.

The committee is expected to convene on Thursday to take up the issue.

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LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – The No. 21-ranked Nebraska softball team completed the sweep over Northwestern on Monday, shutting out the Wildcats 3-0 in Evanston.

With the win, the Huskers swept the Wildcats for the first time since 2017, outscoring Northwestern 24-2 in the series.

The Huskers moved to 31-10 (11-3 Big Ten) on the season, and the Wildcats fell to 20-15-1 (9-4 Big Ten).

After being named Big Ten Pitcher of the Week for the fourth time this season, Jordyn Bahl tossed a complete game shutout and fanned a season-high 14 batters.

SEE ALSO: Nebraska softball’s Jordyn Bahl earns fourth weekly honor of season

Bahl only walked one batter in her sixth double-digit strikeout game of the season.

Bahl, Samantha Bland and Abbie Squier each knocked in an RBI for the Huskers, while Bahl and Emmerson Cope each tallied a double.

The Huskers will play a two-game series against Indiana starting Friday at 5 p.m. at Bowlin Stadium.