Nationally Distinguished Nebraskans Collection

Creator: Kral, E.A.

Quantity: 14 boxes  (14 linear ft.)

Language: English

Restrictions:

Access and Use: For information on access or copyright, please see our guidelines or email archives@unl.edu.

Historical Records Statement: Please see our statement on historical records and materials.

Preferred Citation: Nationally Distinguished Nebraskans Collection (MS 0352). Archives & Special Collections, University of Nebraska–Lincoln Libraries.

E.A. Kral, an educator, researcher, and writer, grew up on a farm in Saline County, Nebraska, attended Rural School District 97, graduated from Wilber High School in 1953, then served in the U.S. Army as a finance clerk. He earned bachelor and master degrees from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln in 1960 and 1965. Following his education, he taught Spanish and English at Irving Junior High in Lincoln and Livingston High School at Livingston, California, and English at Grand Island Senior High in Grand Island for a total of 30 years.

While at GISH, he worked on campaigns for a new public library, publication of a term paper manual, sponsorship of student-written GISH histories, preservation of the school newspaper, and the development of science reasoning with assistance from Project ADAPT professors at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and from Anton Lawson of Arizona State University.

With Lawson, he co-authored "Developing Formal Reasoning Through the Study of English" in Educational Reform, Winter 1985, and he later published his evaluation "Science Reasoning and Achievement in a High School English Course" in The Skeptical Inquirer, May/June 1997.

After his retirement from teaching in 1991, Kral resided in Wilber, Nebraska, while working on local and state history projects. Upon publishing biographies of movie star Robert Taylor in the October 8, 1993 Beatrice Daily Sun and in Nebraska History, Winter 1994, he began researching nationally distinguished Nebraskans in all fields of knowledge, resulting in a publication on "900 Famous Nebraskans." Many of his recommendations for inclusion of entries on distinguished Nebraskans were accepted by the editors of American National Biography, which also published his entries on Carl T. Curtis and Charles H. Purcell.

Kral published many other articles, including supplements on town founder Charles Dana Wilber, actress Irene Worth, centenarians of Saline County, and Nebraska centenarians who reached age of 107 or above in the history of the state. With Jean Sanders, he co-authored articles about 44 distinguished Nebraskans in The Crete News, which were later published in the 267-page book Profiles of Nationally Distinguished Nebraskans by the Gage County Historical Society in 2010. He also authored Nationally Distinguished Nebraskans: A Bio-Bibliography of More Than 900 Individuals from 1854 to 2012 published by the Nebraska State Education Association in 2012.

During his career, Kral cooperated on various projects with the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry based at Amherst, New York and Gerontology Research Group based in Los Angeles as well as the Nebraska State Education Association, The Nebraska Czechs of Wilber, the Dvoracek Memorial Library, the Gage County Historical Society, and the Nebraska Health Care Association.

Kral dedicated his research to his parents Henry F. and Rose Altman Kral, who taught him to value history, research, and education.

Scope and Content:

Candidates for inclusion are any nationally distinguished person who was born in Nebraska or who resided in the state for any length of time after 1854, the year the Kansas-Nebraska Act was passed. Selection criteria for inclusion involves meeting most, if not, all, of the following conditions or traits:

1. A pioneer in a field, a founder, inventor, developer, creator, opinion maker, significant leader, record holder, performer or major philanthropist; 2. Listed in reliable, reputable national references or publications; 3. Longevity of accomplishment, preferably a major portion of one's lifetime; 4. Magnitude of accomplishment (the pinnacle or near-pinnacle of one's field or expertise) and contribution to society; 5. Recognized as distinguished by peers and audiences elsewhere; 6. Recipient of major antional awards, honors or recognition. The names of individuals who have been known to perpetrate harmful or significant fraud or were convicted of a felony are not included.

Each individual file on the list may contain information from a number of sources, which include newspaper clippings, magazine articles, and photocopies of websites or published materials. For example the file on Denny Brauer includes the following items:

"The Nebraska 100," Omaha World Herald; BrauerBass.com, biography; "Boxed In," Lincoln Journal Star; " Reeling Dough," Sports Illustrated; "Best of the Bassmen," Missouri Conservationist; "Fishing Legend Stops Off in ET," Tyler Morning Telegraph; Rev. Rossiter's Sermon "Angling Without an Angle;""A Fish Story," Esquire; BASSMASTER bio, ESPN.com; "The Boss of BASS Teaches Son Well," Omaha Sunday World Herald; NEBRASKAland magazine.

Please note that all locations are in Nebraska except for those that list a specific state.

Subjects:

Nebraska -- Biography

Nebraska -- History

Agriculture

Arts, architecture and design

Engineering and technology

Journalism and mass communication

Literature

Military science

Performing arts

Sports