There are a lot of places in North Omaha that are really old. Many of them are recognized by the official sources, including the State of Nebraska and the Douglas County Historical Society. Others are touted by neighborhood associations and history groups. Some aren’t acknowledged at all.
Following is MY list of places in North Omaha that are at least 125 years old, give or take a few places. The earliest places here were established or built by the Mormons in 1846; the most recent were built in 1895. Despite how long this list is, it IS NOT complete! Please share any additions with me in the comments below.
- (circa 1400-1860s) The Pawnee buried their dead along the hilltops from downtown Omaha to the Ponca Hills and further north.
- (circa 1700) The area between North 24th Street and the Missouri River was an Otoe earthlodge village for at least a century.
- (1812) Fort Lisa, near the junction of J.J. Pershing Drive and Ponca Road in the Ponca Hills.
- (1819) Cabannè’s Post, the confluence of Ponca Creek and the Missouri River.
- (1846) Florence Mill, 9102 North 30th Street in the Florence neighborhood
- (1846) Mormon Pioneer Cemetery, 3301 State Street in the Florence neighborhood
- (1846) Florence Park, 3015 State Street in the Florence neighborhood
- (1846) North Market Square, North 29th and Bondesson Street in the Florence neighborhood
- (1856) Bank of Florence, 8502 North 30th Street in the Florence neighborhood
- (1856) House, 8621 North 31st Street in the Florence neighborhood
- (1856) Bird-Ritchie Cemetery near North 60th and Northern Hills Drive
- (1857) Potter Field near Young Street and Mormon Bridge Road near the Raven Oaks neighborhood
- (1860) Prospect Hill Cemetery, 3202 Parker Street in the Prospect Hill neighborhood
- (1861) Shipley Cemetery, North 47th and Ponca Road in the Ponca Hills neighborhood
- (1864) Site of the Mitchell House, 8314 North 31st Street in the Florence neighborhood
- (1868) Fort Omaha parade grounds in the Miller Park neighborhood
- (1896) Fort Omaha House, 6327 Florence Boulevard in the Miller Park neighborhood
- (1870) House, 2902 North 25th Street in the Kountze Place neighborhood
- (1870) House, 3024 Sheffield Street in the Florence neighborhood
- (1870) Former Nebraska School for the Deaf, North 45th and Bedford Avenue in the Miller Park neighborhood
- (1870) Inspirational House of Prayer, 4248 Lake Street in the Orchard Hill neighborhood
- (1871) Saratoga Stables, 2501 Taylor Avenue in the Saratoga neighborhood
- (1871) Pleasant Hill Cemetery, 6412 North 42nd Street in the Crown Pointe neighborhood
- (1873) The Mergen House, 4922 Ames Avenue in the Fontenelle View neighborhood.
- (1875) House, 1119 North 20th Street
- (1878) Fort Omaha quartermaster office and post commissary (present-day Building 6) in the Miller Park neighborhood
- (1878) Creighton Hall, 2500 California Street on the Creighton University campus
- (1879) Fort Omaha guardhouse (present-day Building 4) in the Miller Park neighborhood
- (1879) Fort Omaha headquarters in the Miller Park neighborhood
- (1879) Fort Omaha commanding officer’s house (present-day Building 11B) in the Miller Park neighborhood
- (1880) Hoyer House, 3049 Redick Avenue in the Belvedere neighborhood
- (1880) Fort Omaha officer duplex (present-day Building 12N) in the Miller Park neighborhood
- (1880) Fort Omaha officer duplex (present-day Building 12S) in the Miller Park neighborhood
- (1880) House, 2124 Grand Avenue in the Saratoga neighborhood
- (1880) House, 1510 Cady Avenue in the Lake School neighborhood
- (1880) House, 1425 Cady Avenue in the Lake School neighborhood
- (1880) House, 1522 Cady Avenue in the Lake School neighborhood
- (1880) House, 1520 Cady Avenue in the Lake School neighborhood
- (1880) House, 1526 Cady Avenue in the Lake School neighborhood
- (1880) House, 1422 Cady Avenue in the Lake School neighborhood
- (1880) Hoyer House, 3049 Redick Avenue in the Belevedre neighborhood
- (1881) Memmen Apartments, 2214, 2216, 2218, and 2220 Florence Boulevard in the Lake School neighborhood
- (1881) House, 2811 Charles Street in the Long School neighborhood
- (1881) House, 2812 Hamilton Street in the Long School neighborhood
- (1882) Academy of the Sacred Heart / Duchesne Academy, 3601 Burt Street in the Gifford Park neighborhood
- (1883) House, 1818 North 26th Street in the Long School neighborhood
- (1883) House, 1102 North 24th Street in the Near North Side neighborhood
- (1883) House, 2617 Parker Street in the Long School neighborhood
- (1883) House, 2802 Seward Street in the Long School neighborhood
- (1883) Fort Omaha ordnance magazine in the Miller Park neighborhood
- (1884) Fort Omaha officer housing (present-day Building 3) in the Miller Park neighborhood
- (1884) Fort Omaha officer quarters (present-day Building 9) in the Miller Park neighborhood
- (1884) Fort Omaha officer quarters (present-day Building 11A) in the Miller Park neighborhood
- (1884) House, 1524 North 28th Street in the Long School neighborhood
- (1884) House, 2802 Franklin Street in the Long School neighborhood
- (1885) House, 1844 North 18th Street in the Near North Side neighborhood
- (1885) Mercer Mansion, 3920 Cuming Street in the Walnut Hill neighborhood
- (1885) House, 2815 Charles Street in the Long School neighborhood
- (1885) Putnam House, 1115 North 29th Street in the Long School neighborhood
- (1885) House, 2537 Patrick Avenue in the Long School neighborhood
- (1885) Saunders House, 1612 Burdette Street in the Near North Side neighborhood
- (1885) Walnut Hill Pumping Station pool, North 40th and Hamilton Avenue in the Walnut Hill neighborhood
- (1885) House, 1117 North 20th Street in the Near North Side neighborhood
- (1885) Forest Lawn Memorial Park, 7909 Mormon Bridge Road in the Florence neighborhood
- (1885) House, 2408 Maple Street in the Kountze Place neighborhood
- (1885) House, 2518 Maple Street in the Kountze Place neighborhood
- (1885) House, 2516 Maple Street in the Kountze Place neighborhood
- (1885) House, 2514 North 17th Street in the Long School neighborhood
- (1886) House, 2907 Charles Street in the Long School neighborhood
- (1886) Creighton Observatory, 707 North 24th Street on the Creighton University campus
- (1886) House, 3030 Evans Street in the Bedford Place neighborhood
- (1887) Saint John’s Catholic Church, 2500 California Street in the Kountze Place neighborhood
- (1887) George H. Kelly House, 1924 Binney Street in the Kountze Place neighborhood
- (1887) John P. Bay House, 2024 Binney Street in the Kountze Place neighborhood
- (1887) House, 1605 Locust Street in the Kountze Place neighborhood
- (1887) E. Van Court House, 1902 Wirt Street in the Kountze Place neighborhood
- (1887) Trinity Methodist Episcopal Church, 2017 Binney Street in the Kountze Place neighborhood
- (1887) Delavetga House, 3835 California Street in the Cathedral neighborhood
- (1887) J. O. Corby House, 2004 Binney Street in the Kountze Place neighborhood
- (1887) Fort Omaha quartermaster’s mule barn in the Miller Park neighborhood
- (1887) House, 4131 Lake Street in the Orchard Hill neighborhood
- (1887) Young House, 2022 North 18th Street in the Near North Side neighborhood
- (1888) Seaman House, 3863 California Street in the Cathedral neighborhood
- (1888) Loomis House, 1920 Wirt Street in the Kountze Place neighborhood
- (1888) House, 1814 North 26th Street in the Long School neighborhood
- (1888) Florence Depot, 9000 North 30th Street in the Florence neighborhood
- (1888) Florence Firehouse, 8415 North 29th Street in the Florence neighborhood
- (1888) Matilda K. Gardner House, 1822 Emmet Street in the Kountze Place neighborhood
- (1888) Spethmann House, 1628 Wirt Street in the Kountze Place neighborhood
- (1888) Golden Hill Cemetery, 5109 North 42nd Street in the Central Park neighborhood
- (1888) Zabriskie Mansion, 3524 Hawthorne Avenue in the Bemis Park neighborhood
- (1888) Zabriskie Carriage House, 1111 North 36th Street in the Bemis Park neighborhood
- (1889) House, 2318 North 22nd Street in the Near North Side neighborhood
- (1889) Homan House, 3647 Charles Street in the Walnut Hill neighborhood
- (1889) The Prettiest Mile in Omaha, Florence Boulevard in the North Downtown, Near North Side, Lake School, Kountze Place, Saratoga and Miller Park neighborhoods
- (1889) Barn, 5815 Florence Boulevard in the Miller Park neighborhood.
- (1889) Florence Water Works (MUD water plant) pools in the Florence neighborhood
- (1889) Danish Springwell Cemetery, 6326 Hartman Avenue in the Laurel Hill neighborhood
- (1889) House, 2811 Franklin Street in the Long School neighborhood
- (1889) House, 1019 North 29th Street in the Long School neighborhood
- (1889) Mason House, 4025 Izard Street in the Walnut Hill neighborhood
- (1890) House, 1538 North 17th Street in the Near North Side neighborhood
- (1890) Campion House, 518 Florence Boulevard on the Creighton University campus
- (1890) Commercial building, 1114 Florence Boulevard in the Near North Side neighborhood
- (1890) House, 2410 North 17th Street in the Lake School neighborhood
- (1890) House, 4129 Lake Street in the Orchard Hill neighborhood
- (1890) House, 1102 North 29th Street in the Long School neighborhood
- (1890) House, 2604 North 15th Street in the Lake School neighborhood
- (1890) Buck House, 3820 Chicago Street in the Walnut Hill neighborhood
- (1890) House, 5016 Florence Boulevard in the Miller Park neighborhood
- (1890) Burdick House, 1618 Emmet Street in the Kountze Place neighborhood
- (1890) Rowhouses, 1001 North 29th Street in the Montclair neighborhood
- (1890) Garneau-Kilpatrick House, 3100 Chicago Street in the Gifford Park neighborhood
- (1890) First United Presbyterian Church, 2108 Emmet Street in the Kountze Place neighborhood
- (1890) House, 5214 North 40th Street in the Central Park neighborhood
- (1890) House, 2604 North 15th Street in the Lake School neighborhood
- (1890) House, 4230 Erskine Street in the Orchard Hill neighborhood
- (1890) House, 4243 Erskine Street in the Orchard Hill neighborhood
- (1890) House, 1419 Cady Avenue in the Lake School neighborhood
- (1890) House, 1421 Cady Avenue in the Lake School neighborhood
- (1890) House, 1423 Cady Avenue in the Lake School neighborhood
- (1891) John A. Creighton Boulevard in the Miami Heights, Malcolm X Memorial and Bedford Place neighborhoods
- (1892) House, 4205 Erskine Street in the Orchard Hill neighborhood
- (1894) Haskell House, 2216 Maple Street in the Kountze Place neighborhood
- (1895) House, 2424 Maple Street in the Kountze Place neighborhood
- (1895) House, 4304 Erskine Street in the Orchard Hill neighborhood
- (1895) House, 1722 North 28th Street in the Long School neighborhood
- (1895) House, 1521 Yates Street in the Near North Side neighborhood
These are the oldest sites I have found in North Omaha. Do you know of places that should be in this list? Share your thoughts in the comment section below!
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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
PEOPLE: ‘Cap’ Clarence Wigington | Everett S. Dodds | Jacob Maag | George F. Shepard | John F. Bloom
HISTORIC HOUSES: Mergen House | Hoyer House | Campion House | North Omaha’s Sod House | James Comey Mitchell House | Charles Storz House | George F. Shepard House | 2902 N. 25th St. | 6327 Florence Blvd.
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
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
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
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.
RELATED: Redlining | Neighborhoods | Streets | Streetcars | Churches | Schools
Bonus Locations
- (1896) Fort Omaha’s Bourke Gate in the Miller Park neighborhood
- (1897) Schlitz Brewing Company Store, 611 North 16th Street in the North Downtown neighborhood
- (1897) Sherman apartments, 2501 North 16th Street in the Lake School neighborhood
- (1897) Tavern, 4024 North 24th Street in the Saratoga neighborhood
- (1898) Rome Miller Mansion, 4823 Florence Boulevard in the Saratoga neighborhood
- (1898) House, 2420 Templeton Street in the Saratoga neighborhood
- (1900) House, 7624 North 28th Avenue in the Florence neighborhood
- (1900) House, 8315 North 28th Avenue in the Florence neighborhood
- (1900) House, 2418 Maple Street in the Kountze Place neighborhood
- (1900) House, 3011 Craig Avenue in the Florence neighborhood
- (1900) House, 3112 King Street in the Florence neighborhood
- (1900) House, 2216 Spencer Street in the Kountze Place neighborhood
- (1900) House, 2512 Emmet Street in the Kountze Place neighborhood
- (1900) House, 2510 Ames Avenue (date adjusted; original est 1870)
- (1900) House, 4728 North 38th Street in the Central Park neighborhood
- (1900) House, 4004 Fort Street
- (1900) 4308 Erskine Street in the Orchard Hill neighborhood
Great list. I printed it and will do a drive-by search. Thanks. But I noticed two errors …. the 1889 (date is correct) Springwell Danish Cemetery is listed twice. And the Riley Building (1012 Douglas, now apartments and a Pinnacle Bank branch) was built in 1889. Galen Lillethorup (Former president of the Springwell Cemetery Board and former co-owner of the Riley Building.)
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Hey Galen, thanks for your note! I love the cemetery so much I included it twice – but I’ve fixed that now. Also, I didn’t include the Riley because its south of Dodge – I try to stay focused on north of Dodge. But I’ve updated the list here with some more gems – my goal is to rename the list “117 over 117”!
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sue here…..Adam…I love the list…I saw that your list stays north of Dodge St. but how far west? We live at 2540 No. 65th Ave. in Benson. Our house was built in 1892-93 and know that there is at least 1 house on our block that is older than ours……LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the Forgotten Omaha fb page! thank you for all of your hard work preserving history!
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Hi Sue, and thanks for your note! In theory, I look at everything east of 72nd Street, definitely including Benson. However… I haven’t scanned the neighborhood in-depth though, and I know I’m missing places! I’ll add your address right away – thank you! Feel free to share anything else you want me to know? Woohoo!
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Excellent list and I love Omaha History. I wanted to pass on some info. 116 N. 38th Ave – built in 1887 – Dr. Richard Young lived there and saw some of patient in the parlor.
take care. If I can help out in anyway please feel free to contact me.
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Just off Florence Boulevard, on Ogden Avenue, 2nd lot east of Pearl Methodist Church, is 2315 Ogden. I don’t know when it was built, but when my family bought it in 1916, it wasn’t brand new. Hattie C. Thom, and her son, Harold H. Thom, purchased it so the family had a permanent home even if Harold didn’t come back from the war. At the time Harold entered the Army, the family included his mother, Hattie, his son, Harold Craigen Thom, and his sister, Grace. His father, Alexander M. Thom, traveled for work, and wasn’t always there. Later, Grace married James F. Oglesby, and their two children, Esther O. Roose and James (not junior) were raised there, especially after father James passed away in 1926. When Harold married Dorothy Craig (from Des Moines, IA) in 1947, he brought her home to 2315. And that’s where I arrived (home from Immanuel Hospital) in 1949, and my sister, Bonnie, as well, in 1951. Dad passed away in 1974, mom sold the house in 1979. I would love to know of previous history of the place, even though it isn’t ‘mine’ any more; it will always be ” the house that built me”. Laurie Thom Ruby, NHS ’67.
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I lived at 3030 Curtis Avenue all through the 70’s and 80’s. There was a house between 30th and 31st on the south side of Redick built Victorian style that I wish you would of gave the history of. It was the third house down from 31st Street. It was closed up the whole time.
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Hi Becky, and thanks for your note. You’re talking about the Hoyer House at 3049 Redick Ave. Its a two story with a wide wraparound porch that was built in 1880, and should definitely be listed in this article. I’ll do some digging and see if I can find enough details to write an article about it. Thanks for the reminder!
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I researched and wrote a whole article for you Becky, and I hope you like it. Its at https://northomahahistory.com/2019/11/27/a-history-of-the-hoyer-house-at-3049-redick-avenue-in-north-omaha/
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Hello just saw this article and was wondering if u know the history of 2512 emmet street as this is my house!
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House on 4415 Franklin st was built in 1892. If possible if you know of where i can search to find more information on the house at that location. I used to live their when i was younger and had some unexplainable experiences while living there. Kept trying to dig around to get some history and i couldn’t find anything. Thanks
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I feel 3067 Mason street should be on here ….that house was built in 1884. If I am not mistaken it started as a funeral home and later became a family home. That place is haunted. A lot of paranormal activity goes on at night in that house. My family and I rented it for a few short months before we couldn’t handle not being able to sleep at night…
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Except that house is nowhere near North Omaha. Nice that its old and has ghosts though!
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Great reading Adam. Thanks for sharing. I use to live at 3060 Ida and i have not been able to find anything about it but i heard it was built around 1924 or 1928 by some one who invented a part of the coupling device for the Union Pacific Railroad. And he built the house for a mistress. Sounds interesting. Have you herd anything about this house?
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Hi David, and thanks for your note. That house at 3060 Ida Street was built on the edge of the Florence Field neighborhood in 1926. That land was part of a large orchard probably planted in the 1870s by James Monroe Parker, a pioneer banker and huge landowner in Florence. His cabin was once located on Vane Street, and was eventually redeveloped into a mansion, then demolished to make way for a suburban tract house. The rest of Florence Field including the orchard was eventually developed, and today there’s no sign the pioneer roots there—although some people claim to have fruit trees from the orchard in their yards, they would be more than 160 years old now, and that seems unlikely. Hope all that is useful! If you’re interested, check out these articles:
* A History of Florence Field — https://northomahahistory.com/2017/05/25/a-history-of-florence-field-in-north-omaha/
* A History of the Parker Mansion — https://northomahahistory.com/2016/10/07/north-omaha-mansions-14-parker-mansion/
* A Biography of James Monroe Parker — https://northomahahistory.com/2018/05/18/a-biography-of-james-m-parker/
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