Lincoln was founded in 1856 as the village of Lancaster. It became the county seat of the newly created Lancaster County in 1859. The capital of Nebraska Territory had been Omaha since the start of the territory in 1854. Most of the territory's population lived south of the Platte River. After much of the territory south of the Platte became a part of Kansas, the legislature voted to move the capital south of the river and as far west as possible. They made the village of Lancaster the new capital, in part due to the salt flats and marshes.