“Memorials – Designed by Artists – Built By Craftsmen”

Omaha has always been a good place to die. Starting in the 1840s when the first trails were cut through the area, people were laid to rest all across the city. With cemeteries scattered across North Omaha, it made sense for a stonecutter to make his work in the community. This is a history of the J.F. Bloom and Company in North Omaha.

Starting in Red Oak

In 1879, a Swedish immigrant did just that. Working from his workshop in Red Oak, Iowa, the young Swede named John Frederick Bloom commuted back and forth to the city. Growing slowly but steadily, in 1897, Bloom moved his business to Council Bluffs.

His business kept growing, a huge showroom and office was built on the northwest corner of North 17th & Cuming Streets. Designed by highly regarded Omaha architect John Latenser, the building was completed in 1910. Latenser also designed the current Central High School, the current Douglas County Courthouse and other popular places within the city. The building was designed in a commercial vernacular style, with polite lines and easily-identifiable elements, including large windows, clear lines and popular materials, including local red brick and stone accents. A design department was added in 1912.

Bloom’s sons joined the business around the same time, and in 1918 when he John Bloom died, they took over.

Growing in Saratoga

In 1926, the J. F. Bloom and Company built a large factory in the Saratoga neighborhood at the intersection of Florence Boulevard and Ames Avenue. A railroad spur from the MoPac Belt Line Railway were built to the plant, and a 20-ton traveling crane made Bloom the largest manufacturer of memorials in the region around Omaha. In 1941, the headquarters for the business were moved next door to the plant, and they’ve stayed there since.

Today, the company is run by the third generation of the family. It continues specializing in monuments and markers, memorials, vases and benches, and more.

In 2018, J. F. Bloom and Co. announced their move out of North Omaha. Their brick building is for sale, and the new headquarters is located out of town. The large factory building was demolished in 2020.

Re-using History

A restaurant is now located in part of the historic building at North 17th and Cuming Streets, and there is discussion about including this building in a soon-to-be-announced historic district in the surrounding area.

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MY ARTICLES ON THE HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE IN NORTH OMAHA

GENERAL: Architectural Gems | The Oldest House | The Oldest Places
PLACES: Mansions and Estates | Apartments | Churches | Public Housing | Houses | Commercial Buildings | Hotels | Victorian Houses
PEOPLE: ‘Cap’ Clarence Wigington | Everett S. Dodds | Jacob Maag | George F. Shepard | John F. Bloom
HISTORIC HOUSES: Mergen House | Hoyer House | North Omaha’s Sod House | James C. Mitchell House | Charles Storz House | George F. Shepard House | 2902 N. 25th St. | 6327 Florence Blvd. | 1618 Emmet St. | John E. Reagan House
PUBLIC HOUSING: Logan Fontenelle | Spencer Street | Hilltop | Pleasantview | Myott Park aka Wintergreen
NORMAL HOUSES: 3155 Meredith Ave. | 5815 Florence Blvd. | 2936 N. 24th St. | 6711 N. 31st Ave. | 3210 N. 21st St. | 4517 Browne St. | 5833 Florence Blvd. | 1922 Wirt St. | 3467 N. 42nd St. | 5504 Kansas Ave. | Lost Blue Windows House | House of Tomorrow | 2003 Pinkney Street
HISTORIC APARTMENTS: Historic Apartments | Ernie Chambers Court, aka Strehlow Terrace | The Sherman Apartments | Logan Fontenelle Housing Projects | Spencer Street Projects | Hilltop Projects | Pleasantview Projects | Memmen Apartments | The Sherman | The Climmie | University Apartments | Campion House
MANSIONS & ESTATES: Hillcrest Mansion | Burkenroad House aka Broadview Hotel aka Trimble Castle | McCreary Mansion | Parker Estate | J. J. Brown Mansion | Poppleton Estate | Rome Miller Mansion | Redick Mansion | Thomas Mansion | John E. Reagan House | Brandeis Country Home | Bailey Residence | Lantry – Thompson Mansion | McLain Mansion | Stroud Mansion | Anna Wilson’s Mansion | Zabriskie Mansion | The Governor’s Estate | Count Creighton House | John P. Bay House | Mercer Mansion | Hunt Mansion | Latenser Round House and the Bellweather Mansion
COMMERCIAL BUILDINGS: 4426 Florence Blvd. | 2410 Lake St. | 26th and Lake Streetcar Shop | 1324 N. 24th St. | 2936 N. 24th St. | 5901 N. 30th St. | 4402 Florence Blvd. | 4225 Florence Blvd. | 3702 N. 16th St. | House of Hope | Drive-In Restaurants
RELATED: Redlining | Neighborhoods | Streets | Streetcars | Churches | Schools

Elsewhere Online

• J. F. Bloom & Co. official website
• Gonzalez, C. (May 29, 2015) “Starting over at 105 years old,” Omaha World-Herald – The story of the rehabilitation of the J. F. Bloom Building at N 17th and Cuming Streets.
• Dawes, M. (2016) “Forest Lawn: Wasserburger Monmument,” Graveyards of Omaha – The story of a remarkable monument by J. F. Bloom.

Special thanks to Roger Brandt and J. F. Bloom and Company for their contributions to this article!

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