Willa Cather Foundation Events

Regional artists Rick Houchin and David Lovekin offer bright and evocative imagery in a new exhibit on view at Hotel Garber.

They left during the middle of the night—often knowing only that moss grows on the north side of trees. An estimated 100,000 enslaved people chose to embark on a journey in search of freedom between 1830 and the end of the Civil War in 1865. They moved in constant fear of being killed or recaptured, returned, and beaten as an example of what would happen to others who might choose to run. Under the cover of darkness, “fugitives” traveled roughly twenty miles each night, traversing rugged terrain while enduring all the hardships that Mother Nature could bring to bear.

Usher in the 2026 season with indie folk and pop musician Cornelia Murr! You won’t want to miss this distinct and special performance as we kick off a year-long celebration of American music.

Nebraska historian Bill Hayes discusses the issue of slavery in the U.S. during the 1850s and the controversy surrounding the Kansas-Nebraska Act, and how the issue affected people moving to the Nebraska Territory. The presentation describes the overall history of the Underground Railroad and how the movement became connected with the Great Plains. Hayes explores how the Underground Railroad formed in Nebraska and emphasizes specific sites where escaping enslaved persons most likely found refuge on their journey north to freedom.

Delve into the life and work of an important Willa Cather scholar with the return of our virtual author series! Brad Bigelow will share passages from his new book, Virginia Faulkner: A Life in Two Acts, a biography that chronicles Virginia Faulkner’s career as a promising writer once compared to Dorothy Parker, who eventually returns to her hometown of Lincoln and becomes an editor who is free to nurture what author Timothy Schaffert calls “mad devotion to Willa Cather.” 

On Wednesday, February 25th, at 6:30pm, Peter Cipkowski, literary historian at UCLA and President of the Board of Governors of the National Willa Cather Center, visits the Coffee House to speak about legendary author, Willa Cather.

Join us for a night of Nebraska-grown country music! Whether you like Brooks and Dunn’s powerful anthems, Dwight Yoakam’s playful twang, or Johnny Cash’s unforgettable storytelling, the Colten Wyatt Band offers a performance steeped in country music tradition.

Scott Kirby's drawings and watercolor paintings are inspired by the American Great Plains. Referred to as an “accidental artist” by Sandpoint Magazine, Kirby began making art at the age of forty. Although the attempts to capture these mostly imagined visions are quite intentional, the origins of Kirby's transition from music to art was, in a way, “accidental,” or unexpected, and his scenes are rooted in a long relationship with the towns and landscapes of the American grasslands.

Deepen your understanding of one of Willa Cather’s most celebrated novels! In The Bright Edges of the World, Garrett Peck explores how Cather’s travels to the Southwest inspired her writing. She visited the Southwest six times between 1912 and 1926, and from these journeys came three novels, the last of which was Death Comes for the Archbishop.

Explore 150 years of music through Kirby's live piano performances of some of America's greats - including Stephen Foster, John Philip Sousa, and the ragtime of Scott Joplin! The music and narratives are accompanied by a video featuring nostalgic archival images from America's past, as well as a special artistic features about Red Cloud!