The depression of the 1890s was compounded by drouth. Farmers felt chicory could be the answer to their problems. Like now, chicory was mixed with coffee or used as a coffee substitute. In the 1890s, most chicory was imported. Nebraska farmers decided to plant their own.
Chicory is a bulky crop, so processing needed to be done close to the fields.
Factories were built at O'Neill, Fremont, and Omaha. Despite the high hopes, drouth, a bad crop year, and production difficulties spelled trouble. Better farm prices sent farmers back to their traditional crops. The chicory processing factories were forced to close, or in the case of Fremont, to convert to sugar beet processing. By 1900, Nebraska's experience with chicory was over.