The Lone Tree Ferry, later known as the Council Bluffs and Nebraska Ferry Company, was the crossing of the Missouri River at

Council Bluffs, Iowa Council Bluffs is a city in and the county seat of Pottawattamie County, Iowa, Pottawattamie County, Iowa, United States. The city is the most populous in Southwest Iowa, and is the third largest and a primary city of the Omaha–Council Bluffs ...

, and

Omaha, Nebraska Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest cit ...

, US, that was established in 1850 by

William D. Brown William D. Brown (1813 – February 3, 1868) was the first pioneer to envision building a city where Omaha, Nebraska sits today. Many historians attribute Brown to be the founder of Omaha, although this has been disputed since the late nineteenth ...

. Brown was the first pioneer to see the potential for a city on the site, and the landing became a popular gathering site for the first settlers of the

Nebraska Territory The Territory of Nebraska was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 30, 1854, until March 1, 1867, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Nebraska. The Nebraska ...

.Federal Writers' Project of the Works Progress Administration. (1970) ''Nebraska: A Guide to the Cornhusker State.'' Nebraska State Historical Society. p. 241. Named after a solitary tree on the Nebraska bank of the river, the Lone Tree Ferry became central to the founding and development of the City of Omaha."Chapter XII,"
''Romance of Omaha''. Retrieved 8/13/07.

Lone Tree Ferry

William Brown was headed west from

Mount Pleasant, Iowa Mount Pleasant is a city in and the county seat of Henry County, Iowa. The population was 9,274 in the 2020 census, an increase from 8,668 in the 2010 census. It was founded in 1835 by pioneer Presley Saunders. History The first permanent s ...

in the

California Gold Rush The California Gold Rush (1848–1855) was a gold rush that began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The news of gold brought approximately 300,000 people to California fro ...

of 1849 when he decided to stay in Council Bluffs. In 1850 he outfitted a

flat boat A flatboat (or broadhorn) was a rectangular flat-bottomed boat with square ends used to transport freight and passengers on inland waterways in the United States. The flatboat could be any size, but essentially it was a large, sturdy tub with a ...

with oars and obtained a charter from the Pottawatomie County Commissioners to operate a ferry across the Missouri River, at which point he also illegally staked out of the prime Missouri Valley flatland which became Omaha. It was from this position that Brown first conceived of founding Omaha. The point which he launched from on the Nebraska side was purportedly in the Miller's Landing area.

Council Bluffs & Nebraska Ferry Company

Brown convinced 12 businessmen, including Dr. Enos Lowe,

Jesse Lowe Jesse Lowe (March 11, 1814 – April 3, 1868) was the first mayor of Omaha, Nebraska, serving for one year from March 5, 1857 to March 2, 1858. An important real estate agent in the early city, Lowe is credited with naming the city after the Omah ...

, Jesse Williams, and Joseph H. D. Street, all of

Kanesville, Iowa Council Bluffs is a city in and the county seat of Pottawattamie County, Iowa, United States. The city is the most populous in Southwest Iowa, and is the third largest and a primary city of the Omaha-Council Bluffs Metropolitan Area. It is lo ...

, that the Omaha plateau was an ideal spot for a city. On July 23, 1853 they formed the Council Bluffs and Nebraska Ferry Company. In addition to owning ferry boats the company also owned property on both sides of the Missouri River.Council Bluffs and Nebraska Ferry Company
. ''Early Omaha: Gateway to the West''. Retrieved 8/13/07. In September 1853 the company bought a steamboat from

Alton, Illinois Alton ( ) is a city on the Mississippi River in Madison County, Illinois, United States, about north of St. Louis, Missouri. The population was 25,676 at the 2020 census. It is a part of the River Bend area in the Metro-East region of the ...

called the ''General Marion''. In its early years the company was the instrumental force in getting settlers into the Nebraska Territory. Early in 1854 the company built the St. Nicholas Hotel, the first building and first hotel in Omaha. During the next summer the organizers of the ferry company surveyed and laid out the town site for Omaha City west of the Missouri River. The first commercial building in Omaha belonged to the ferry company, which donated its services as the legislative chambers for the first territorial legislature and the first post office. Prior to the completion of the Omaha railroad bridge in April 1872 the

Union Pacific The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...

railroad transfer boats carried the trains across to the Nebraska side. In the winter an

ice Ice is water frozen into a solid state, typically forming at or below temperatures of 0 degrees Celsius or Depending on the presence of impurities such as particles of soil or bubbles of air, it can appear transparent or a more or less opaq ...

bridge was constructed for the train to use. In 1862 Captain

W. W. Marsh William Wallace Marsh (April 15, 1835 – May 12, 1918) was a Canadian American inventor and businessman who co-founded Marsh, Steward & Company with his brother Charles. Born in Ontario, Canada, Marsh developed an early harvester prototype on the ...

bought a large interest in the company and the next spring took charge of the business. The company ran a twenty-year charter which featured a variety of boats until 1872, when the

railroad opened the first bridge across the Missouri River. That bridge made the ferry service obsolete at the end of the contract term after it was constructed in 1888. People associated with the ferry company included pioneers such as Dr. Enos Lowe,

, Jesse Williams, and Joseph H. D. Street, all of whom resided in Kanesville, now known as Council Bluffs. The president of the incorporated company was Dr. Enos Lowe, and the other members were Sam S. Bayliss, Joseph H. D. Street, Henn and Williams,

Samuel Curtis Samuel Curtis (born in Walworth, Surrey on 29 August 1779-died at La Chaire, Rozel Bay, Jersey, on 6 January 1860

, Tanner and Downs, and others.

Location

There has been speculation about the location of the Lone Tree Ferry landing. One source places the Nebraska side at the east end of present-day Davenport Street in

Omaha Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest city ...

and the east bank on West Broadway in

. However, in 2004 a map expert using

GPS The Global Positioning System (GPS), originally Navstar GPS, is a Radionavigation-satellite service, satellite-based radionavigation system owned by the United States government and operated by the United States Space Force. It is one of t ...

and old maps identified a location by the

Gallup University Gallup may refer to: * Gallup, Inc., a firm founded by George Gallup, well known for its opinion poll *Gallup (surname), a surname * Gallup, New Mexico, a city in New Mexico, United States **Gallup station, an Amtrak train in downtown Gallup, New ...

as the location.(2004
"Omaha's First Ferry Dock Identified,"
KETV. Retrieved 8/13/07.

References

{{Pioneer Omaha Ferries of Iowa Ferries of Nebraska Pioneer history of Omaha, Nebraska Defunct companies based in Omaha, Nebraska Transport companies established in 1850 1872 disestablishments in the United States 1850 establishments in Iowa Transport companies disestablished in 1872 1872 disestablishments in Nebraska

Lone Tree Ferry

Council Bluffs & Nebraska Ferry Company

Location

See also

References