Hubbry Logo
search
logo
1836699

North Omaha, Nebraska

logo
Community Hub0 Subscribers
Write something...
Be the first to start a discussion here.
Be the first to start a discussion here.
See all
North Omaha, Nebraska

North Omaha is a community area in Omaha, Nebraska, in the United States. It is bordered by Cuming and Dodge Streets on the south, Interstate 680 on the north, North 72nd Street on the west and the Missouri River and Carter Lake, Iowa on the east, as defined by the University of Nebraska at Omaha and the Omaha Chamber of Commerce.

Located just north of Downtown Omaha, the community includes some of the oldest neighborhoods in the city, including the Near North Side, Bemis Park, Saratoga and Florence. It is the site of the Mormon Pioneers' Winter Quarters and the Mormon Temple, a center of European immigration as well as the historically significant African-American community, and the birthplace of Malcolm X. Important landmarks in the community include the Bank of Florence, Prospect Hill Cemetery and the Fort Omaha Historical District.

In 2006, North Omaha became the focus of national attention after local State Senator Ernie Chambers introduced an amendment to divide the Omaha school system into three, which some observers suggested would have created de facto segregated school systems based on residential patterns. The measure was eventually repealed.

North Omaha has a recorded history extending to 1812 with the founding of Fort Lisa by Manuel Lisa. The area was home to Cabanne's Trading Post from the 1820s through the 40s, and in 1846 became home to two encampments that were some 3½ miles apart from one another: Cutler's Park and Winter Quarters. This whole area became part of what is now the city of Omaha, Nebraska.

When Omaha City was founded in 1854 the boundaries were around the present-day downtown core. Prospect Hill Cemetery, a North Omaha landmark, was founded on a high hill on the outskirts of Omaha in 1856, and with more than 15,000 burials it included many of the founding figures of Omaha, as well as soldiers from nearby Fort Omaha, immigrants, and many black people who worked throughout the city.

During the initial period of Omaha history there were a number of outlying towns surrounding it, many of which were located in present-day North Omaha, including Florence, East Omaha, and Saratoga, all of which were settled within a few years of Omaha. Scriptown was a land grab by early legislators of the Nebraska Territory who sought to award themselves for working for the new territory. Casey's Row was a small neighborhood of Black porters who worked for the local railroads. Squatter's Row was an area between North 11th and North 13th Streets, from Nicholas to Locust Streets, behind the Storz Brewery. For more than 75 years this area was inhabited solely by squatters. Before the city of Omaha extended north beyond Lake Street, mostly Irish settlers inhabited an area known as Gophertown, located north of Saratoga and south of Florence. The towns of Benson and Dundee, both in North Omaha, were suburbs of Omaha founded in the 1880s. Fort Omaha was a U.S. Army installation that was built starting in 1878, and was home to the Department of the Platte. Growth in North Omaha was spurred by the arrival of the Union Pacific Railroad and railyards to the east.

The grand Trans-Mississippi and International Exposition was a world's fair held in North Omaha from June through November 1898. It attracted more than 1,000,000 visitors to the area in and surrounding Kountze Park, which won the location over other areas, including the Miller Park neighborhood. The Expo featured many events in the community, including performances by Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show at the Omaha Driving Park, where it was founded several years prior. In 1909 Omaha University opened in the Redick Mansion in the Kountze Place neighborhood.

Perhaps the most important community, if not the most visible, in all of North Omaha was the Near North Side. This neighborhood was one of the first in Omaha, emerging in the 1860s as a home to the city's influx of German and Irish. In the later 19th century, they were joined by eastern European Jewish immigrants and African American migrants from the South. The bustling corridors of North 24th Street and North 16th Street were long the centers of important commercial and social activity.

See all
User Avatar
No comments yet.