A History of Streets in North Omaha

“Omaha’s streets suck!”
“My car almost fell into a pothole!”
“My muffler is back down that street!”

If you have said or heard any of these complaints, you know you aren’t the first one. But did you know there are at least 160 years of complaints similar to them?

Omaha was slow to pave its streets. Founded in 1854, the first street paving in the city didn’t happen for a decade, and even then was only downtown and was only made of wood. Omaha was a dusty and muddy big town for a long time.

When the city did begin paving, they used all kinds of things. Before 1890, streets were covered with blocks made from cypress and cedar trees, Galesburg brick, Woodruff sandstone, Colorado sandstone, Sioux Falls granite, and asphalt. That year, the City of Omaha got serious about covering the old dirt roads that made the grid then. However, it took them a long time.

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The First Roads

American Indian tribes moved freely throughout North Omaha for thousands of years before Europeans showed up. Their hunting paths are long gone, but by following the geography of the land its easy to guess that the earliest roads made by Europeans followed those trails. For instance, the Florence Boulevard travels along the top of a ridge, which is where tribes may have had a hunting path.

The first roads in North Omaha made by Europeans and European Americans generally went through the area to somewhere else. The Whitman Trail, which was the precursor to the Oregon Trail, crossed the southern part of North Omaha along present-day California Street. Manuel Lisa, a Spanish fur trader for a French company, had a fort in North Omaha which surely had trails to it that have been lost to time.

The Streets of Winter Quarters

The grand entry of European road-making in North Omaha, though, is clearly defined. Although their first effort called Cutler’s Park was a bust, the Mormons made a massive contribution to the design of the area by using a grid-pattern to lay out their town of Winter Quarters in the Indian Territory that became Nebraska in 1846. The street names in their town included Cutler, Cahoon, Pratt, Woodruff, Russel, Smith, Joseph, Hyram, Carlos, Spencer, Hunter, Eldrege, and Chase Streets. These streets ran east to west from the Missouri River, while the two north-south throughfares ran for a mile parallel to the the river, and were called First Main Street and Second Main Street.

Other early roads in North Omaha included Winter Quarters Road, which became Florence Boulevard; Saunders Street, which became North 24th; Sherman Street, which became North 16th; and Ames Avenue, which was originally Commercial Street in the Town of Saratoga. Another road from Saratoga became Carter Boulevard, including its infamous Dead Man’s Curve. There were also roads to other early small towns, including Briggs and DeBolt. All of these were eventually absorbed into the City of Omaha’s street grid, and their historic appearances (names, curves, etc.) disappeared.

It took a long time for the streets in Omaha to get paved.

Military Road

After the Mormons laid out the first streets in North Omaha, in 1850 the US Army laid the first major formal road through the area. Today we call it Military Avenue, since it was made to move supplies to the military forts and posts in western Nebraska. The Overland Trail hauled over the same route in the 1860s, widening the road and ensuring its longevity.

Learn more in my article “A History of Military Road in North Omaha” »

Early Paved Streets

Early Omaha wasn’t a progressive place filled with Victorian-era civic-minded boosters who wanted to make everything beautiful for everyone. Instead, it was a scruffy and determined pioneer profit center where goods were stored to stock the wagon trains that populated the western territory of the United States. Because of that, it took more than 25 years after the city’s founding to get serious about paving the streets.

In 1880, the city had 118 miles of streets and supposed only half of these were paved until 1883. In North Omaha, North 24th Street was paved in Cedar blocks in 1890. That year, Spaulding was paved with the same from North 24th to the Belt Line Railway. Bristol was paved with brick from North 24th to North 30th Streets. Further south, Grace Street was paved with granite from North 24th to North 16th Street, and with sandstone from North 16th to North 14th. Wirt, Lake and Clark Streets were paved with Cedar blocks from North 24th to North 16th.

At the same time streets on the north end of Omaha were getting paved, there were streetcar tracks being installed throughout the community. Originally pulled by horses, the more popular electric streetcar tracks eventually won out. The companies would basically come along, remove all the paving for a street along the tracks’ route, then replace the paving after they were finished. Pictured above are tracks on North 29th Street, which was the original north-south route instead of North 30th, south of Ames Avenue. That was obviously later corrected.

Before 1890, almost nothing else north of Spaulding was paved. North of Cuming Street, nothing west of North 24th Street was paved, except for Cuming, which was paved privately all the way from North 16th to North 40th by Samuel Mercer for his Walnut Hill neighborhood. The vast majority of streets in North Omaha were dirt roads in 1890. Brand new developments, single homes on small spreads, and the small number of businesses were all on dirt roads.

In 1890, the Omaha City Council started prioritizing street paving. However, they weren’t particularly fast or determined about it. Instead, they plodded along and paved where they wanted to, as they wanted to. Although citizens complained, there wasn’t a lot of progress.

15 years later, little progress had been made. According to a paving map from that year, the most substantial progress was made on North 16th, which was paved from Dodge to Fort with asphalt and stone. North 30th was paved from Bristol to Florence with brick, stone and macadam, which was tar-covered gravel. North 20th Street was paved in brick from downtown north to Lake Street. North 24th Street was asphalt from downtown to Lake Street and brick from Lake to Ames Avenue. Near that intersection, Commercial Avenue was paved in stone, but Ames Avenue was still dirt.

By this point in 1905, the only streets between 16th and 24th that had any paving on them were Nicholas, Paul, Clark, Grace, Lake, Corby, Binney, and Emmet Streets. They had a variety of surfaces, including wood block, sandstone, and granite.

West of 24th and north of Dodge, the only east-west streets with any paving were Cuming, parts of Burt, Hawthorne Avenue in the exclusive Bemis Park neighborhood, Parker, Bristol, Evans, Spaulding, and the intersection of 30th and Ames. These were also covered in a variety of surfaces, with wood being the most popular. The only exception was North 40th, which was paved in asphalt from Dodge to Hamilton Street, then Hamilton to Military was covered in brick, and Military Avenue was covered in brick and stone to the city limits at North 48th Street.

110 years ago, all of the rest of Omaha was covered by dirt roads. Instead of gravel and cracked avenues, the main features of North Omaha’s streets were mud ruts, snow-covered drives, grass-covered lanes and holes big enough to hold pots.

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Types of Streets in North Omaha

There are many ways streets are referred to in North Omaha.

Every roadway in Omaha is governed by the City government, and they dictate how and why particular types of streets exist. According to City of Omaha ordinances, when the word “Circle” is used, it refers to a street that’s a cul-de-sac, a dead-end street or a street that has its entrance very close to its exit. The City uses the word “Parkway” for a street that carries noncommercial traffic with extensive landscaping. “Boulevard” is used for streets and rights-of-way that are part of the Omaha Park System. The word “Drive” is for streets that are curvy and don’t fit the normal east-west or north-south pattern. A “Court” is the name for a thoroughfare or access road that is not a public right-of-way but has the same alignment and characteristics as a public avenue.

At one point in Omaha history, being an “Avenue” meant that a roadway was wider than usual, and was supposed to be tree-lined. Being a “Street” meant that the roadway was designed for efficiency. Streets were supposed to have limited parking and stop signs; avenues were supposed to be for parking and signage, relaxing all driving. This prescription didn’t prove accurate though, and the system was abandoned.

A List of Types of Streets in North O

• Street—Connects multiple points; below 35 mph. In North Omaha, these can also be unimproved or substandard, covered with asphalt, concrete, gravel or dirt.
• Avenue—Connects multiple points; below 25 mph. Usually only runs north-south.
• Boulevard—A street with a median down the middle or on both sides; likely part of Omaha’s official Boulevard System.
• Road—Will usually be unimproved or substandard, covered with asphalt, concrete, gravel or dirt.
• Drive—Often looping, winding or otherwise not straight. Can be very long; often short and only in one neighborhood.
• Lane—Often a limited distance, and frequently leading to a private driveway.
• Way—Often private.
• Circle—Also called a “cul de sac”, it ends in a small circle or loop.
• Highway—A major public road designated by the State of Nebraska or United States Department of Transportation; may be a major 4-lane street or a freeway (Highway 75 goes along the North Freeway and North 30th Street)
• Freeway—A major public road designated by the State of Nebraska; high speed with no pedestrian or animal traffic allowed
• Expressway—Two or more lanes on each side, no tolls, with limited intersections, cross streets or traffic lights.
• Parkway—Two or more lanes on each side with a planted median and sidewalks with trees; no tolls, with limited intersections, cross streets, and traffic lights.
• Court—Also called a “place”, it usually dead ends with no outlet
• Interstate—Part of the national highway system that surrounds and bisects Omaha
• Alley—A narrow road between houses and buildings connecting streets; not always driveable; generally poorly kept in North Omaha.

Boulevards in North Omaha

In 1889, the City of Omaha planning commission decided to get serious about establishing parks throughout the city. Horace Cleveland, a nationally popular landscape architect, was hired to develop the plan, and North Omaha benefitted a lot from his work. Today, more than 125 years later, several winding, tree-lined boulevards still grace the community.

The first and most renowned piece of the puzzle was called The Prettiest Mile in Omaha Boulevard. Its graceful, wide roadways were lined by long lawns and flower-bedazzled medians which split north-south traffic into different lanes. Homes along this stretch were sold as part of the Norwood Addition, and maintain much of their behemoth beauty. Today, this section forms the northernmost stretch of Florence Boulevard between the Storz Expressway and Reed Street. Florence Boulevard extends southward through the beautiful Kountze Park neighborhood, and goes downtown along North 20th and North 19th Streets.

Other boulevards in North Omaha include Lincoln Boulevard, which was named after Abraham Lincoln. It runs through the Bemis Park neighborhood east-west from North 33 Street to Mercer Boulevard. Mercer the connects to the John A. Creighton Boulevard, which was named after the city’s famous banker and runs south-north from Mercer Park through the Pleasant Hill neighborhood north and east through Adams Park. It merges into Paxton Boulevard at Sprague Street, which was named after the Omaha industrial tycoon. Paxton then melds into Fontenelle Boulevard, which goes through the park of the same name and towards Benson.

In the far-north section of the community, the John J. Pershing Drive Named is named after a famous World War I general. It runs south-north from East Omaha from Abbott Drive at North 16th Street, then between the river and Florence, under the Mormon Bridge past Dodge and Hummel Parks, finally ending at Ponca Road. Originally part of a 1915 “back-to-the-river” plan in which a boulevard would follow the entire length of the Missouri River from North Omaha through Downtown to South Omaha.

The Florence Boulevard, mentioned earlier, was designed to connect to Minne Lusa Boulevard, which criss-crossed Miller Park on the old Birch Drive and connected to Belvedre Boulevard. That strip carried cars to Fontenelle Boulevard. The Carter Drive extended from Florence Boulevard, shooting towards Cornish Boulevard to wind into Omaha’s Levi Carter Park.

All of these boulevards were originally part of a plan to tie together North Omaha’s beautiful parks, including Kountze, Adams, Miller, Carter Lake and Fontenelle, with other parks and boulevards throughout the city. Many of them still serve that purpose, and although some have been altered, many still maintain the vision H.W.W. Cleveland laid out in 1889.

In the 1910s, the City of Omaha entertained an ambitious plan to build a 19-mile-long River Drive that would connect Omahans with the Missouri River. Although it was never fully completed, there is a remanent of the test section between the J.J. Pershing Drive and the Missouri River, as well as a section that was completed north of the Mormon Bridge to Ponca Road. Other notable additions to the system that weren’t part of the historic plans are the Abbott Drive, which was paved in the 1950s, and the Sorenson Parkway, which was completed in the 2000s.

Boulevards in North Omaha

• Belvedere Boulevard
• Florence Boulevard
• Fontenelle Boulevard
• John A. Creighton Boulevard
• Lincoln Boulevard
• Minne Lusa Boulevard
• Paxton Boulevard
• Mercer Park Boulevard
• Mercer Boulevard
• Carter Boulevard
• North Ridge Drive
• Florence Heights Boulevard
• JJ Pershing Drive

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Bridges and More

After the Mormons settlers of Winter Quarters left the area in 1847, the town had a few residents left. However, it was in the 1850s that James Mitchell acquired the property and launched a town named after his daughter. While he established new street names, he also created plans for a new bridge to span the Missouri River. A bridge company was formed, but nothing was built under their watch. It wasn’t until 1936 when it was attempted, but that didn’t work. In 1952, the first span of the Mormon Bridge was finished, and in 1975, the second. It operated as a toll bridge until 1979. The bridge continues to operate today.

The Locust Street viaduct was an important roadway in North Omaha for several decades. Built between 1916 and 1918, the viaduct extended from North 14th Street to North 11th Street. Carrying traffic from North Omaha to the Carter Lake area, the viaduct traversed over the Missouri Pacific Railroad, which headed to a roundhouse in this area. In 1990, a train hit one of the upright supports for the viaduct, smashing the train and making the viaduct structurally unsafe. It was torn down shortly after, and replaced with a regular roadway.

There was a railroad trestle over North 16th Street at Commercial Avenue to prevent traffic from being stopped with the Missouri Pacific Railroad which crossed there at one point. It was removed in the 2000s.

Bridges and Trestles in North Omaha

• Illinois Central Bridge over the Missouri River (demolished)
• Union Pacific Bridge over Carter Lake (demolished)
• Locust Street Bridge over Carter Lake (demolished)
• Missouri Pacific Bridge over Carter Lake (demolished)
• Missouri Pacific Trestle over North 16th (demolished)
• Chicago and Northwestern Trestle over North 30th (demolished)
• Omaha Road Trestle over Minne Lusa Boulevard
• Missouri Pacific Trestle over Cuming Street (demolished)
• OPPD Bridge over Minne Lusa Creek
• Locust Street Viaduct (demolished)
• Nicholas Street Viaduct (demolished)

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North Omaha Street Directory

According to the City of Omaha, the Public Works Department does street repairs, snow removal and street sweeping on more than 4,500 miles of streets. Some of the east-west streets include the following.

• Dodge Street was named for politician Augustus C. Dodge.
• Capitol Avenue was named for Capitol Hill, site of the Nebraska Territory Capitol.
• Davenport Street was named for Davenport, Iowa.
• Chicago Street was named for Chicago, Illinois.
• Cass Street was named for politician Gem Lewis Cass.
• Cottage Grove Avenue was a general name with no meaning.
• California Street was named for the state of California.
• Webster Street was named for politician Daniel Webster.
• Decatur Street was named for Stephen Decatur, who nobody apparently knows much about.
• Burt Street was named for politician Francis Burt.
• Bemis Street was named for politician, businessman and landowner George Bemis.
• Cuming Street was named for politician Thomas B. Cuming.
• Lincoln Boulevard was named for president Abraham Lincoln.
• Izard Street was named for politician Mark W. Izard.
• Hawthorne Street may have been named for author Nathaniel Hawthorne.
• Nicholas Street was likely named for the pioneer-era Nicholas Hotel.
• Indiana Street was named for the state of Indiana.
• Western Avenue may have been named for the direction it was heading.
• Caldwell Street was named for businessman and politician Smith S. Caldwell.
• Lafayette Avenue was named for a French hero of the American Revolutionary War, the Marquis de La Fayette.
• Hamilton Street was named for businessman and politician Charles W. Hamilton.
• Underwood Avenue was named for businessman W. A. Underwood, who built the Florence Water Works.
• Fontenelle Boulevard was named for Logan Fontenelle, a leader of the Omaha Nation.
• Florence Boulevard was named for the Town of Florence.
• Paul Street
• Charles Street was also named for businessman and politician Charles W. Hamilton.
• Seward Street was named for lawman H. L. Seward.
• Franklin Street was likely named for Benjamin Franklin.
• Clark Street was either named for businessman S.H. Clark or military leader and explorer William Clark.
• Grace Street
• Lizzie Robinson Avenue was named for a religious leader.
• Patrick Avenue was named for landowner J.N.H. Patrick.
• Yates Street was named for businessman Henry W. Yates.
• Burdette Street was named for writer, speaker and clergyman Robert Burdette.
• Grant Street was named for president Ulysses S. Grant.
• Victor Avenue may have been named for newspaperman Victor Rosewater.
• Erskine Street may have been named for the town of Erskine, Scotland.
• Willis Avenue may have been named for businessman Richard Willis.
• Sherwood Avenue may have been named for the Sherwood Forest in England.
• Cady Avenue may have been named for politician Addison E. Cady.
• Lake Street was named for was named for lawyer, judge and landowner George B. Lake.
• Ohio Street was named for the state of Ohio.
• Miami Street was named for the city in Ohio.
• Corby Street was named for politician and builder Joseph O. Corby.Joseph O. Corby.
• Locust Street was named for the species of tree.
• Maple Street was named for the species of tree.
• Binney Street may have been named for politician Horace Binney. It was also called Cassius Street.
• Blondo Street was named for fur trader Maurice Blondeaux.
• Wirt Street may have been named for politician William Wirt.
• Spencer Street may have been named for businessman E. R. Spencer. It was also called Cameron Street.
• Bedford Avenue was named for politician, businessman and landowner Jefferson W. Bedford.
• Bristol Street may have been named for the town of Bristol, England.
• John J. Creighton Boulevard was named for a businessman and civic leader.
• Saddle Creek Drive was named for the creek it covered up.
• Lothrop Street may have been named for politician George Lothrop Rouse.
• Emmet Street was named for Irish political leader Robert Emmet.
• Birch Street was named for the species of tree.
• Pinkney Street may have been named for statesman William Pinkney.
• Evans Street may have been named for businessman John H. Evans.
• Pratt Street was named for politician Augustus Pratt.
• Manderson Street was named for lawyer and politician Charles Manderson.
• Laird Street may have been named for politician James Laird.
• Spaulding Street was named for politician and educator S. K. Spaulding.
• Ruggles Street was named for military leader George D. Ruggles.
• Commercial Avenue was an originally named street in Saratoga, Nebraska Territory.
• Sprague Street may have been named for military leader John W. SpragueJohn W. Sprague.
• A. V. Sorensen Parkway was named for politician and businessman Axel Vergman Sorensen.
• Northwest Drivemay have been named for the direction it was heading.
• Abbott Drive was named for businessman Chris J. Abbott.
• Paxton Boulevard was named for businessman William A. Paxton.
• Sahler Street was named for judge John H. Sahler.
• Boyd Street was named for politician, civic leader and businessman James E. Boyd.
• Cornish Boulevard was named for politician, businessman and landowner Edward J. Cornish and his wife, Selena.
• Taylor Street was named for businessman E. B. Taylor or for president Zachary Taylor.
• Ames Avenue was named for businessman and landowner Oakes Ames.
• Meredith Street was named for lawyer, politician and businessman John R. Meredith.
• Fowler Street
• Templeton Street was named for businessman W. G. Templeton.
• Larimore Street
• Carter Boulevard was named for businessman Levi Carter.
• Grand Avenue was originally called Goodwill Avenue, which was named for politician Taylor G. Goodwill. At different points, it was also called Grant, Tuttles, Park and Irey Avenue.
• Redman Avenue was named for politician and education leader Joseph Redman.
• Saratoga Street was named for the Town of Saratoga.
• Browne Street was likely named for businessman Will Browne.
• Camden Street was likely named for the Borough of Camden in London, England.
• Fort Street was named for Fort Omaha. It was also called Garfield, Hagedorn, and Baker Street.
• Ogden Avenue was named for businessman W. B. Ogden.
• Jaynes Street was named for businessman H. S. Jaynes.
• Ellison Avenue may have been named for judge Andrew Ellison.
• Hartman Street may have been named for politician Chris Hartman.
• Himebaugh Avenue was named for civic leader and businessman Pierce C. Himebaugh.
• Arcadia Avenue may have been named for an area in Greece.
• Laurel Street may have been named for the plant.
• Ville de Sante Drive was named for the apartments it runs by.
• Crown Point Avenue may have been named for Crown Point, a town in New York.
• Minne Lusa Boulevard was named for the Minne Lusa Pumping Station.
• Stone Avenue was named for businessman E. L. Stone.
• Belvedere Boulevard was named for an architectural term belvedere, which is derived from the Italian phrase vista bella, meaning beautiful view.
• Kansas Avenue was named for the state of Kansas.
• Airport Drive was named for Eppley Airport.
• Orville Plaza was named for aviator Orville Wright.
• Nebraska Avenue was named for the state of Nebraska.
• Arthur C. Storz Expressway was named for a businessman.
• Curtis Avenue may have been named for military leader Samuel Ryan CurtisSamuel Ryan Curtis.
• Henninger Drive may have been named for architect F. A. Henninger.
• Vernon Avenue was named for the Vernon Heights addition it runs through.
• Redick Street was named for lawyer, politician, landowner, and judge John I. Redick.
• Martin Street was named for businessman Charles Martin.
• Bauman Avenue was named for businessman and landowner Otto Bauman.
• Huntington Avenue
• Newport Street
• Mary Street
• Oregon Trail was part of a northern connector to the regular Oregon Trail in the 1840s. In the mid-1850s, it became part of what is now called Military Avenue.
• Military Avenue was laid out by the US Army in 1855.
• Titus Avenue
• Dock Street was named for the former site of a dock on the Missouri River.
• Ida Street
• Whitmore Street may have been named for businessman E. E. Whitmore.
• Malcolm X Avenue was named for the civil rights leader.
• Vane Street
• Read Street
• Country Club Road was named for the Omaha Country Club, which was originally located here.
• Iowa Street was named for the state of Iowa.
• Ernst Street
• Summit Street
• Wyoming Street was named for the state of Wyoming.
• Girard Street was likely named for businessman Stephen Girard.
• Sharon Street
• Scott Street
• Weber Street
• Hanover Street
• Forest Lawn Avenue was named for the Forest Lawn Cemetery.
• Potter Street
• Starlite Drive was named for the former Starlite Drive-In movie theatre.
• Craig Avenue was originally called Washington Avenue and was named in honor of president George Washington.
• King Street
• Reynolds Street
• Young Street
• Grebe Street was named for lawman, politician and businessman Henry Grebe.
• J. E. George Boulevard was named for businessman John Edward George.
• Mormon Street was named in honor of the original settlers of the area.
• State Street was named for the street of the same name in Chicago.
• Willit Street
• Park Marina Street was named for the marina in Dodge Park.
• Tucker Street
• Clay Street
• Bondesson Street may have been named for businessman John Bondesson.
• Fillmore Street was named for president Millard Fillmore.
• Howell Street may have been named for pioneer Henry Howell.
• Hunt Street
• Mormon Bridge Road was named for the Mormon Bridge.
• Bridge Street was named for the bridge planned to cross the Missouri River in 1856.
• Raven Oaks Drive
• Ferry Street was named for the former site of the Florence Ferry across the Missouri River.
• Battlefield Drive
• Cook Street
• Sargent Street
• Hummel Street was named for government worker Joseph B. Hummel.
• Calhoun Road was named for politician John C. Calhoun.
• John J. Pershing Drive was named for a military leader.
• Sherman Avenue, now called North 16th Street, was named for military leader William Tecumseh Sherman.
• Saunders Avenue, now called North 24th Street, was named for politician Alvin Saunders.
• North 30th Street was once called North 31st Street and Second Main Street in Florence.
• Florence Boulevard was originally called Winter Quarters Road.

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Major Intersections

There are more than a dozen major intersections in North Omaha. Some are historically relevant but have become unimportant; others have only grown and grown; and still others just exist. Their importance today varies by degree. In this listing, I will avoid the downtown area by starting at Cuming Street and going north to I-680; then going west to North 72nd Street. Some of these intersections are listed here. I know I’m missing some historically significant intersections – please share your suggestions with me in the comments section below!

• N. 14th and Cuming Street
• N. 16th and Cuming Street
• N. 16th and Locust Street
• N. 16th and Commercial
• N. 16th and Carter Drive
• N. 16th and Lake Street
• N. 16th and Fort Street
• Abbott Drive and E. Locust Street
• Florence Boulevard and Ames Avenue
• N. 20th and Lake Street
• N. 24th and Cuming Street
• N. 24th and Lake Street
• N. 24th and Sprague Street
• N. 24th and Ames Avenue
• N. 24th and Fort Street
• N. 30th and Dodge Street
• N. 30th and Cuming Street
• N. 30th and Parker Street
• N. 30th and Lake Street
• N. 30th and Ames Avenue
• N. 30th and Fort Street
• N. 30th and Forest Lawn Avenue
• N. 33rd and Ames Avenue
• N. 40th and Miami Street
• N. 40th and Bedford Street
• N. 40th and Hamilton Street
• N. 40th and Lake Street
• N. 40th and Cuming Street
• N. 40th and Dodge Street
• N. 42nd and Ames Avenue
• N. 42nd and Grand Avenue
• N. 42nd and California Street
• N. 48th and Ames Avenue
• Military Avenue and Hamilton Street
• Cuming and Saddle Creek Road
• Fontenelle Boulevard, Military Avenue and Northwest Radial Highway
• N. 50th and Underwood Drive
• Saddle Creek Road and Dodge Street
• N. 50th and Dodge Street
• N. 56th and Ames Avenue
• N. 60th and Ames Avenue
• N. 60th and Maple Street
• Maple Street and Military Avenue
• N. 70th and Maple Street
• McKinley and Mormon Bridge Road

Renamed Streets in North Omaha

One of the honors the City of Omaha has given to people throughout the city is to rename streets or segments of them after the living and the dead. Following are some of the streets the City of Omaha has renamed in North Omaha.

• Lizzie Robinson Avenue replaced Erskine Street from North 24th to North 27th Street in 1992. Robinson was an influential leader in the Church of God in Christ. Learn more here »
• Rodney S. Wead Street replaced North 52nd Street from Ames Avenue to Fowler Avenue in 2018. Wead was an influential community leader. Learn more here »
• Symone D. Sanders Street replaced North 22nd Street at Sprague Street in 2022. Sanders is a noted political commentator and former political operative in the Democratic Party. Learn more here »
• Dan Goodwin Sr. Street replaced North 24th Street from Spencer to Wirt Streets in 2019. Goodwin is an influential entrepreneur and community leader. Learn more here »
• Terence “Bud” Crawford Street replaced Larimore Avenue from North 31st Avenue to North 33rd Street in 2018. Crawford is a professional boxer with multiple titles. Learn more here »
• Kyle Wayne LeFlore Street replaced North 29th Street from Meredith to Fowler Avenue in 2018. LeFlore was a US Army Sergeant on leave at home when he was killed by gunfire. Learn more here »
• Preston Love Sr. Street replaced North 24th from Lake to Ohio Streets in 2018. Love was an influential musician, noted journalist and local historian. Learn more here »
• LaRose R. Beasley Street replaced Ohio Street from North 24th to North 22nd Street. Beasley is an influential entrepreneur in North Omaha. Learn more here »
• Johnny Rodgers Street replaced Burt Street from North 30th to North 33rd Street in 2015. Rogers was a noted NFL player, star Cornhusker player, and Tech High football star. Learn more here »
• Bob Gibson Boulevard replaced from Deer Park Boulevard in 1999. Gibson was a noted MLB player and a Tech High star in several sports. Learn more here »
• Marlin Briscoe Way replaced “M” Street in 2014. Briscoe was a noted NFL player and South High football star. Learn more here »
• Bertha Calloway Street replaced Lake Street from North 22nd to 24th Street in 2016. Calloway was the founder of the Great Plains Black History Museum and an important civil rights activist. Learn more here »
• John Beasley Street replaced North 30th from Lake to Grant Street. Beasley is a renowned actor in movies, theater and television. Learn more here »
• Rudy Smith, Sr. Street replaced Lake Street from North 34th to 36th Street in 2022. Smith was a noted local photojournalist and civil rights activist. Learn more here »
• Gene R. Haynes Street replaced North 36th Street at Ames Avenue in 2014. Haynes is a lifelong educator and longtime leader of North High School. Learn more here »
• Lillian Clamens (Cobbin) Street replaced Caldwell Street from North 24th to North 27th Street in 2021. Clamens was a soldier killed in Iraq.
• Cathy Hughes Boulevard replaced a section of Paxton Boulevard in 2018. Hughes is a successful international business leader and entrepreneur. Learn more here »
• Dorothy Eure Avenue and Lerlean Johnson Avenue replaced North 30th and Cuming Streets in 2015. Eure and Johnson were leaders of the movement to integrate Omaha Public Schools. Learn more here »
• Dr. Bernice Stephens Dodd Street replaced North 25th Street from Lake from Wirt Street in 2004. Dodd was the longtime leader of the Omaha Opportunities Industrialization Center. Learn more here »
• Ernie Chambers Sr. Drive replaced Florence Boulevard from Ames Avenue to Sprague Street in 2020. Chambers is the longest serving member of the Nebraska State Legislature. Learn more here »
• John E. Mitchell Sr. Street replaced Fort Street from North 24th to North 25th Street in 2013. Mitchell was the founder of the Tabernacle of Faith Church of God in Christ. Learn more here »

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Historic Street Names

Some of the streets in North Omaha don’t have their original names anymore. Instead, they were named, renamed and rededicated several times over the years.

The area called Central Park today started out as a country intersection for farmers in the north and northwest parts of Douglas County. Today, the intersection of North 42nd and Grand Avenue barely shows any signs of having thrived. However, in its day there were businesses, a school, a church and more there. Given its once-remote nature, it should come as no surprise then that while Grand was once called Tuttle, there were also streets named 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th. Today, they are called Saratoga, Browne, Camden and Fort, respectively. Grand Avenue acted like a main street for this neighborhood. Two little stubs of Maple Street near North 16th were originally called Central Street.

The City of Florence

Florence is old, and because of that it had streets that aren’t around anymore, or that have been renamed.

Running north-south, the streets in old Florence were named and numbered, but with different numbers than today. Starting at the Missouri River and proceeding west, the streets were Mill Street, 1st Street, 2nd Street, 3rd Street, 4th Street, 5th Street, then Main Street, Bluff, Street Prospect Street, Buffalo Street, and Elk Street.

Before Florence was established in 1854, there was a town on the same site called Winter Quarters. It was laid out in 1846 on a similar grid pattern as Florence, but had different names. The two north-south streets in Winter Quarters were called First Main Street and Second Main Street. The east-west streets, from the north, were Cutter Street, Cahoon Street, Pratt Street, Woodruff Street, Russell Street, Smith Street, Joseph Street, Hyram Street, Samuel Street, Carlos Street, Spencer Street, Hunter Street, Eldege Street, and Chase Street.

When the City of Omaha annexed Florence in 1917 it kept a few of the street names already used there. However, many were renamed. None of the Winter Quarter names are still in use in their original ways from 1846.

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North Omaha’s Streets as Weapons

While it seems like a community’s streets would become sacrosanct at some point, that hasn’t been the case in North Omaha. Instead, the City of Omaha has used the community as a drawing book where they could erase and rewrite streets and neighborhoods at will to suit their grandiose visions for the city. That’s meant the obliteration of neighborhoods, the demolition of A LOT of historical structures, and the erasure and reconfiguration of many streets throughout the years.

North Freeway / Interstate 580

One of the most controversial street projects in Omaha was the creation of the North Freeway. Originally envisioned as an interstate highway to connect I-480 with I-680 called I-580, it was stopped more than two miles south of its pathway by resistant neighborhoods and political force. Destroying more than 2,000 homes, churches, businesses and other buildings, the construction of this highway took almost 20 years. The construction of this strip is attributed with ripping Omaha’s main African American neighborhood into two sections and effectively undermining the success of the area for the last three decades.

Instead of reaching north to I-680, the North Freeway was connected by the new Sorenson Parkway and to the new Arthur Storz Expressway.

North 16th Street

For a century, North 16th Street was one of the most important streets in Omaha. It was so important, it was renamed for one of Omaha’s heroes for many years. The original location of country estates and grand mansions, it gave way to swanky apartments and vital industries. Eventually it settled into suburban bliss.

Another controversial and obviously discriminatory way that the City of Omaha used streets in North Omaha was the construction of the Hilton Hotel in downtown Omaha. Originally proposed as a mega-hotel that would be a boon to the city by bringing its hotel stock into the 20th century, the Hilton Corporation told city planners it would need a two-block section to create an effective footprint for its building.

They blocked off North 16th Street.

The 1960s riots in North Omaha scared white Omahans into believing their businesses, culture and security in downtown Omaha was in jeopardy. Rather than addressing the economic, social, educational and cultural stagnation brought on by white flight from North Omaha, the City’s leaders were bound and determined to enforce racial segregation. So, in a cynical and veiled attempt at placating their white constituents, Omaha’s white city planners walled off one of the three major roadways leading commerce into North Omaha. They used the Hilton Hotel to literally block traffic on North 16th.

Today, more than 40 years later, that abomination still stands as a Doubletree Hotel, and North Omaha still suffers because of this white supremacist planning today.

Streets have been used as weapons against North Omaha repeatedly in the last half century. Incapable of defeating North Omaha’s African American culture and spirit, white pathology drove city leaders to divide and conquer the community through a web of highways, parkways, expressways and road blockages. These concrete appendages of white supremacy wiggle throughout the area today, still enforcing their hate-filled contemptuousness on every person in North Omaha, including whites, Blacks, low-income and working class people. Fewin the community have benefited. Now, outside the community? That’s a different question…

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Recent Times

The future of North Omaha’s streets is still being written. While its true there are a few brick streets left, its also true there are gravel streets throughout North Omaha, including in East Omaha, in the Saratoga neighborhood, and scattered around far North Omaha. That doesn’t sound very futuristic. In the meantime, the City and its redevelopment plans have destroyed some of North Omaha’s traditional grid pattern streets in the Near North Side neighborhood. Instead, they’ve installed cul-de-sacs in the neighborhood, awkwardly breaking up more than 100 years of positive patterns.

Is this going to continue? Does the City want to eliminate North Omaha’s grid patterns? What’s the point of leaving a few brick-covered streets in North Omaha? Only time will show us, and even then we’ll have to wait and see what the future brings…

You Might Like…

• Hospitals in North Omaha
• Apartments in North Omaha

MY ARTICLES ABOUT THE HISTORY OF STREETS IN NORTH OMAHA
STREETS: 16th Street | 24th Street | Cuming Street | Military Avenue | Saddle Creek Road | Florence Main Street
INTERSECTIONS: 42nd and Redman | 40th and Ames | 40th and Hamilton | 30th and Ames | 24th and Fort | 30th and Fort | 24th and Lake | 16th and Locust | 20th and Lake
STREETCARS: Streetcars | Streetcars in Benson | 26th and Lake Streetcar Barn
OTHER: North Freeway

MY ARTICLES RELATED TO THE GOVERNMENT OF OMAHA
Streets | Schools | Parks | Public Housing | Police | Firefighters | Eppley Airfield | Streetcars | Public Library
RELATED: CCC Camp | North Freeway

Elsewhere Online

• Street Names in Omaha, Douglas County Historical Society
• City of Omaha Street-Related Codes and Ordinances
• Unimproved Streets, City of Omaha
• General Ordinances Passed by the City Council of the City of Omaha from April 1890 to April 1891.

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BONUS PICS!