Downtown Omaha
Downtown Omaha is the central business, government and social core of the Omaha–Council Bluffs metropolitan area, U.S. state of Nebraska. The boundaries are Omaha, Nebraska, Omaha's 20th Street on the west to the Missouri River on the east and the centerline of Leavenworth Street on the south to the centerline of Chicago Street on the north, also including the CHI Health Center Omaha. Downtown sits on the Missouri River, with commanding views from the tallest skyscrapers. Dating almost to the city's inception, downtown has been a popular location for the headquarters of a variety of companies. The Union Pacific Railroad has been headquartered in Omaha since its establishment in 1862. Downtown Omaha was also the site of the Jobbers Canyon Historic District, which housed 24 historic warehouses. All 24 buildings were demolished in 1989, representing the largest single loss of buildings to date from the National Register.Gratz, R.B. (1996) ''Living City: How America's Cities Are ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Gene Leahy Mall
Gene Leahy Mall, also known locally as The Mall, is a park located in Downtown Omaha, Nebraska, United States. The park features two large slides, a sculpture garden, a remote-control boat cove, a large children's play area, and an amphitheater where outdoor concerts are held in the summer. The mall is decorated with thousands of lights during the winter holiday season. Connected on its eastern edge with the Heartland of America Park, it also borders the site of the Mutual of Omaha Headquarters Tower, the former Burlington Headquarters Building, the Old Market (Omaha, Nebraska), Old Market and the ConAgra campus. About Originally conceived in the 1970s, the Gene Leahy Mall was named after List of mayors of Omaha, Omaha Mayor Eugene A. Leahy, and is regarded as being a major impetus for the redevelopment of downtown into a thriving commercial, residential and cultural center in Omaha. In 2005 a major redevelopment process began focused on redesigning The Mall and several areas sur ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Lone Tree Ferry
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, and Omaha, Nebraska, US, that was established in 1850 by William D. Brown. 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.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[...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Warehouse District
This is a list of notable warehouse districts. A warehouse district or warehouse row is an area found in many urban setting known for being the current or former location of numerous warehouses. Logistically, warehouses are often located in industrial parks, with access to bulk transportation outlets such as highways, railroads, and airports. The areas where warehouses are typically built are often designated as special zones for urban planning purposes, and "can have their own substantial infrastructures, comprising roads, utilities, and energy systems". In many instances, where changing social and economic conditions have made it unfeasible to maintain an existing warehouse district, cities or communities will invest in converting the district to other purposes for which this infrastructure can still be used, such as an art district.American Planning Association, ''Planning and Urban Design Standards'' (2006), p. 435. Such a converted area may continue to be known as a warehous ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Old Market (Omaha, Nebraska)
The Old Market is a neighborhood located in downtown Omaha, Nebraska, United States, and is bordered by South 10th Street to the east, 13th Street to the west, Farnam Street to the north and Jackson Street to the South. The neighborhood has many restaurants, art galleries and upscale shopping. The area retains its brick paved streets from the turn of the 20th century, horse-drawn carriages, and covered sidewalks in some areas. It is not uncommon to see a variety of street performers, artists, and other vendors. Historic designation The area is on the National Register of Historic Places as a historic district, and borders the former site of the Jobbers Canyon Historic District, as well as the extant Omaha Rail and Commerce Historic District and the Warehouses in Omaha MPS. There is a walking tour of historic buildings available from the Omaha Chamber of Commerce. There are also several specifically noted historic buildings within the district. Historic buildings Buildings wi ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Sporting District (Omaha, Nebraska)
The Sporting District was an area near 16th and Harney Streets in Omaha, Nebraska, where city boss Tom Dennison kept the majority of his gambling, drinking and prostitution interests from the late 19th century until the end of his reign in 1933. "Cowboy" James Dahlman was reputedly voted to the first of eight terms as mayor of Omaha because he was more tolerant of the Dennison's " Sporting District" in the middle of the city. The term '' sporting'' was a common 19th-century euphemism for gambling and/or prostitution. Many communities around the U.S. used this term; brothels were often referred to as '' sporting houses''. History The Burnt District had been Omaha's red-light district in the late 19th century. The area was located east of Creighton University from Douglas Street six blocks north to Cass Street and from the Missouri River west to Sixteenth Street. The district was closed down around the turn of the century, and business transferred to the Sporting District. It h ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Tom Dennison (political Boss)
Tom Dennison, known as Pickhandle or Old Grey Wolf, (October 26, 1858 – February 14, 1934) was an American political boss and racketeer in Omaha, Nebraska. A politically savvy, culturally astute gambler, Dennison was in charge of the city's wide crime rings, including prostitution, gambling and bootlegging in the 1920s.Beerman, B.J. (2004) Where the hell is Omaha?'' AmericanMafia.Com Retrieved 6/18/07. Dennison is credited with electing "Cowboy" James Dahlman mayor of Omaha eight times, and when losing an election, inciting the Omaha Race Riot of 1919 in retribution against the candidate who won.(nd"Dennison's Political Machine". NebraskaStudies.org. Retrieved 6/21/07. Early life One of eight children born to Irish immigrant parents, John Henry Dennison and Anna ( McConnell) Dennison, Tom Dennison came to Nebraska from Iowa in 1860 at the age of two. When he was young, Dennison traveled throughout the West as a prospector, saloon-keeper, gambler and robber. Dennison had o ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Political Boss
In the politics of the United States of America, a boss is a person who controls a faction or local branch of a political party. They do not necessarily hold public office themselves; most historical bosses did not, at least during the times of their greatest influence. Numerous officeholders in that unit are subordinate to the single boss in party affairs. Bosses may base their power on the support of numerous voters, usually organized voting blocs, and manage a coalition of these blocs and various other stakeholders. When the party wins, they typically control appointments in their unit, and have a voice at the higher levels. Reformers typically allege that political bosses are corrupt. This corruption is usually tied to patronage: the exchange of jobs, lucrative contracts and other political favors for votes, campaign contributions and sometimes outright bribes. History In Spanish America, Brazil, Spain, and Portugal political bosses called '' caciques'' hold power in many pl ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Edward Parsons Smith
Edward Parsons Smith (September 30, 1860 – May 21, 1930) was the mayor of Omaha, Nebraska, from 1918 to 1921. Biography Smith was born in Mount Pleasant, Iowa, on September 30, 1860, and was a son of Edward Smith and Celia (Schockley) Smith. He attended the local schools and graduated from Mount Pleasant's Howe's Academy. He graduated from the University of Iowa College of Law with an LL.B. degree in 1885, and was admitted to the bar. Smith relocated to Seward, Nebraska, in the summer of 1885, and established a law practice that specialized in interstate commerce. He moved to Omaha in 1890 and continued to practice law. In addition to his law practice, Smith was active in several businesses. He was the attorney for the Omaha Grain Exchange, of which he was also a board of directors member. In addition, Smith was vice president of the Omaha Cooperage Company, and served on its board of directors. Mayor of Omaha A Democrat, Smith ran for mayor in 1918 and beat incumben ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Willy Brown
The Omaha Race Riot occurred in Omaha, Nebraska, September 28–29, 1919. The race riot resulted in the lynching of Will Brown, a black civilian; the death of two white rioters; the injuries of many Omaha Police Department officers and civilians, including the attempted hanging of Mayor Edward Parsons Smith; and a public rampage by thousands of white rioters who set fire to the Douglas County Courthouse in downtown Omaha. It followed more than 20 race riots that occurred in major industrial cities and certain rural areas of the United States during the Red Summer of 1919. Background Three weeks before the riot, federal investigators had noted that "a clash was imminent owing to ill-feeling between white and black workers in the stockyards.""For action on race riot peril" ''The New York ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Joe Coe
Joe Coe, also known as George Smith, was an African-American laborer who was lynched on October 10, 1891, in Omaha, Nebraska. Overwhelmed by a mob of one thousand at the Douglas County Courthouse, the twelve city police officers stood by without intervening. Afterward, the mayor called the lynching "the most deplorable thing that has ever happened in the history of the country." Biography and death Coe was a married man with two children who lived on North 12th Street north of downtown Omaha. On October 7, 1891, Lizzie Yates, a five-year-old white child who also lived in North Omaha, accused Coe of assaulting her. Before the verdict was passed rumors swept through Omaha about Coe getting away with the crime, about the girl dying, and about Coe receiving a small punishment. A crowd of men was already gathered at the old Douglas County Courthouse the day when Coe was brought in, to witness an unrelated, scheduled hanging, an official execution. Rumors flew around Omaha that the ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Lynching
Lynching is an extrajudicial killing by a group. It is most often used to characterize informal public executions by a mob in order to punish an alleged or convicted transgressor or to intimidate others. It can also be an extreme form of informal group social control, and it is often conducted with the display of a public spectacle (often in the form of a hanging) for maximum intimidation. Instances of lynchings and similar mob violence can be found in all societies. In the United States, where the word ''lynching'' likely originated, lynchings of African Americans became frequent in the South during the period after the Reconstruction era, especially during the nadir of American race relations. Etymology The origins of the word ''lynch'' are obscure, but it likely originated during the American Revolution. The verb comes from the phrase ''Lynch Law'', a term for a punishment without trial. Two Americans during this era are generally credited for coining the phrase: C ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Douglas County Courthouse (Omaha)
The Douglas County Courthouse is located at 1701 Farnam Street in Omaha, Nebraska, United States. Built in 1912, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. Notable events at the courthouse include two lynchings and the city's first sit-in during the Civil Rights Movement. Five years after it was opened, the building was almost destroyed by mob violence in the Omaha Race Riot of 1919. The 1912 building was designed in the French Renaissance Revival style by local architect John Latenser, Sr. Decorative stonework covers the structure's exterior, and the building serves as a prominent landmark in Downtown Omaha. History First courthouse Three years after the city was founded in 1854, on March 18, 1857 the City of Omaha built a jail and courthouse in an area known as Washington Square. It bounded by 15th, 16th, Douglas and Farnam streets. The original courthouse in Douglas County, with a council room and mayor's court room, several offices and jail cells, ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |