While the Dreamland Ballroom gets all the press, it wasn’t the only jazz club in North Omaha. Located in the heart of the Near North Side neighborhood at N. 24th and Lake Streets, Club Harlem was a hopping place to be. This is a history of Jim Bell’s Harlem in North Omaha.

Who Was Jim Bell?

For a generation, Jim Bell (1884-1959) was Omaha’s main African American entrepreneur and entertainment guru. He was a big man from the South, and constantly took a gamble on opening businesses in the Near North Side. His efforts included several restaurants, a few clubs, a saloon, and other ventures. North Omaha establishments including De Luxe Cafe, the Midway Cafe and the Off Beat Cafe were all run by Jim or his wife Carrie (1883-1964). He also owned Murphy’s Chicken Palace at 42nd and Center, too.

But everyone knew that Mrs. Bell was the one who actually ran the show: She managed the employees, kept the books, scheduled the performers, and made sure everything ran smoothly. Their only child, a daughter named Dorothy, was lavished with attention and made a lot of girls in the neighborhood jealous.

What Was Club Harlem Like?

For several years, Club Harlem was a great place to party. In his autobiography, Preston Love, Sr. remembered it complete with,

“a full line of chorus girls, a twelve-piece orchestra, and top-grade comedians, singers, emcees, and other acts for the floor show.”

The horns blared out the doors, crowds of Black and white jazz fans waited impatiently to cram in, and bunches of kids stood around the back door trying to get a listen. On any given Friday and Saturday night through the 1930s, Jim Bell’s Club Harlem was one of the very best places to listen to live jazz in Omaha.

Opening in 1933, Club Harlem was the fanciest nightclub in Omaha. A massive group of chorus line dancers and a regular twelve piece orchestra framed every night’s performance with excellent comedians, singers, and emcees. The Bells brought in semi-big name performers and up-and-coming local talent. A 1938 Central High newspaper reported that, “Jim Bell’s Harlem the favorite after-the-dance spot of Centralites.”

Preston Love also wrote,

“The lure of Club Harlem was like a giant magnet near a pile of nails. Every night would find a crowd of teenagers glued to the back windows in the alley behind the club… Occasionally Jim Bell would slip out the back door and shoo us away, but we were usually permitted to stay and ogle until we got tired and dispersed to our respective homes.”

The twelve-piece big band playing at Club Harlem included trumpets, trombones and a rhythm section that included an acoustic guitar, acoustic bass, drums, and a piano. The popularity of Club Harlem drew wealthy white people from the Gold Coast, Kountze Place, and Dundee to the 24th and Lake district, along with work class and middle class Black people from the Near North Side.

Popular singer Wyonnie “Mr. Blues” Harris got his start at Jim Bell’s Club Harlem. While singing the blues, he also showed his remarkable dancing skills. During the next five years, Harris became the top singer in Omaha. Partnering with Velda Shannon, they became popular enough to travel to New York to sing in Harlem.

When soldiers started returning from World War II, they wanted different music than Jim Bell’s Harlem offered. Soon after, the numbers started dropping dramatically at Jim Bell’s Harlem. By late 1948, the club had been retooled and was relaunched as Swingland. By 1952, the building was sold and a new club opened.

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You Might Like…

• A History of 2410 Lake Street in North Omaha
• A History of Social Clubs in North Omaha

MY ARTICLES ABOUT THE HISTORY OF MUSIC IN NORTH OMAHA
PEOPLE: George T. McPherson | Dan Desdunes | Flora Pinkston | Jimmy Jewell, Sr. and Jimmy Jewell, Jr. | Jim Bell | Paul Allen, Sr. | Josiah “P.J.” Waddle | Frank “Red” Perkins | George Bryant
PLACES: 24th and Lake Historic District | Dreamland Ballroom | Carnation Ballroom | Stage II Lounge | Club Harlem | The Off Beat Club | King Solomon’s Mines | Allen’s Showcase | Druid Hall
EVENTS: Stone Soul Picnic | Emancipation Day & Juneteenth | Native Omahans Festival

Sources

• Love, P. (1997) A Thousand Honey Creeks Later: My Life in Music from Basie to Motown—and Beyond. Wesleyan University Press.
• “Wynonie Harris“, Encyclopedia of the Great Plains.

BONUS PICS!