Category Archives: Race riot

A History of Duffy Drugs

Going back to 1886, the southwest corner of 24th and Lake has been vital to North Omaha! Its first Black-owned business didn’t happen until 1968 though. Find out more in this history of Duffy Drugs!

A History of the Blue Lion Center

The Blue Lion is one of North O’s most iconic buildings, holding business, services and opportunities for a century!

A History of Segregated Schools in Omaha, Nebraska

There were and are many segregated schools in Omaha, and this is an account of their history.

“FRAMED” Chapter 18 by Michael Richardson

In Chapter 18 of FRAMED by Michael Richardson, the story continues unfolding. Read this original true story thriller from North Omaha today!

“FRAMED” Chapter 17 by Michael Richardson

This is chapter 17 of FRAMED by Michael Richardson. It introduces the Congressional action against the Omaha Two, and more.

“FRAMED” Chapter 16 by Michael Richardson

This is FRAMED Chapter 16 by Michael Richardson. In this installment, arrests are made and fingers are pointed – again.

“FRAMED” Chapter 15 by Michael Richardson

This is Chapter 15 of FRAMED by Michael Richardson, covering the day Ed Poindexter was arrested.

“FRAMED” Chapter 14 by Michael Richardson

Presented in Chapter 14 of FRAMED by Michael Richardson is a smoking gun!

“FRAMED” Chapter 13 by Michael Richardson

In Michael Richardson’s book FRAMED, Chapter 13 exposes detail galore. This chapter shows how!

“FRAMED” Chapter 12 by Michael Richardson

This is Chapter 12 of FRAMED by Michael Richardson. In it, the author explores the role of Duane Peak and the FBI in the resulting coverup.

“FRAMED” Chapter 10 by Michael Richardson

“Angry Policemen Seek Deadly House Bomber,” screamed the Omaha World-Herald. 25 people in North Omaha were arrested. Here’s the actual list of suspects compiled by the Omaha Police Department. Discover what happened on the day patrolman Larry Minard, Sr. was killed.

“FRAMED” Chapter 9 by Michael Richardson

Adam’s Note: This is Chapter 9 in the series on NorthOmahaHistory.com called Framed: J. Edgar Hoover, COINTELPRO and the Omaha Two Story. It was written by Michael Richardson. Learn more here.   “I will never ever forgive the Black Panther Party for that.” —Ed Poindexter on being called a police agent   On July 2, 1970, a […]

“FRAMED” Chapter 8 by Michael Richardson

This is FRAMED Chapter 8 by Michael Richardson, exposing the history of the FBI framing of the Omaha Two.

“FRAMED”: Chapter 7 by Michael Richardson

This is Chapter 7 of FRAMED by Michael Richardson, detailing the blatant framing of Mondo we Langa and Ed Pointdexter in the years before 1971.

“FRAMED” Chapter 4 by Michael Richardson

The fourth chapter of FRAMED by Michael Richardson continues detailing the FBI cover-up of Black Panthers in Omaha.

A History of KOWH, North Omaha’s Radio Station

In the aftermath of the 1960s riots that ravaged the community, a group of African American investors from North Omaha rallied to invest in technology, and for many, to invest in their home neighborhood. Pulling off a coup, for almost a decade, North Omaha was home to Nebraska’s first radio station and a former bastion of white middle class American culture. Except now it was the home of the city’s Black pride, empowerment and culture.

A History of the 24th and Lake Historic District in North Omaha

North Omaha is screaming full of history, and the new 24th and Lake Historic District is a tremendous example of how that’s so. After its first developments in the 1870s, this intersection evolved to become a hotbed of the African American community; as well as the heart of the Jewish community; a farm supply area; and much, much more. In 2016, 38 buildings were included in a new listing on the National Register of Historic Places. This article is an introduction to the powerful, poignant past of a large jewel in North Omaha’s historical crown.

A History of Mob Violence in Omaha

Mobs have terrorized Omaha since the city was founded in 1854. Defined as “the use of violence and intimidation in the pursuit of political aims,” terrorism was been the weapon of Omaha’s mobs from the beginning. Early on, they were seemingly concerned with horse thieves, claim jumping and break-ins. In more recent times, mobs attacked people in Omaha because of their race and ethnicities. 50 years ago, mobs lashed out at businesses. Notably, there haven’t been any mob terror trials, monuments, or other acknowledgments of the acts of the masses in Omaha throughout its 160+ years of existence.

A History of 16th and Locust Historic District in North Omaha

The N. 16th and Locust Street intersection was a beehive of commercial activity for more than a century. The Locust overpass of the MoPac Railroad was a key. Learn more.

A Timeline of Race and Racism in North Omaha

On October 24, 1889, the Omaha Daily World reported that G.S. Kennedy, an African American mechanic who frequented the bar at the Paxton Hotel, was “somewhat indignant” for being charged a higher price than usual because, as the bartender said, he was Black. My review of other articles from early Omaha shows wasn’t Kennedy’s experience wasn’t exception in […]

A History of the Near North Side Neighborhood in North Omaha

As far as I’m concerned, the history of Omaha’s Near North Side neighborhood is the richest in all of Omaha. It has been home to working class families, poor people, and the wealthy; northern Europeans, African Americans, and eastern Europeans; Lutherans and Catholics, Jews and Black Muslims; slums, family homes, and mansions; looked like a pioneer town, had country gentleman farms, been a suburb, and had slums; professional offices, warehouses, manufacturing plants, local storefronts, printing presses, training centers, supermarkets and pop-up shops; giant churches and synagogues, and tiny storefront temples and more. So much has happened here, and clearly its story is still being written…

A History of the June 1969 Riot in North Omaha

While African Americans have known about police racism for more than a century, white people across the US are beginning to acknowledge the effects of legalized harassment, white privilege, systematic discrimination, the school-to-prison pipeline and other forms of white supremacy that constantly plunder communities and the entire nation of its potential, power and purpose. With a vibrant, vital, and obvious story, Vivian Strong must be remembered today.

A History of North Omaha’s Logan Fontenelle Housing Projects

Once upon a time, there was a massive public housing project located at the intersection of North 24th and Paul Streets in the Near North Side neighborhood. Originally named the “Northside Village Public Housing Project,” the name was officially changed in honor of the famous Omaha tribe leader Logan Fontenelle.

A History of the 1919 Lynching and Riot in Omaha

Omaha has many histories that need to be told. Places, people and events that happened over the last 160 years have been forgotten, neglected or repressed, and that’s what I am most interested in. The story of Will Brown is one such story. It represents the ugly, hateful history of this city that has driven […]

A Street of Dreams

African American patrons of a drug store on N. 24th Street in the 1940s. As this blog tells repeatedly, the history of North Omaha is richer, deeper and more meaningful than anyone gives it credit for. In 1994, NET helped reveal some of this history through a powerful documentary called “A Street of Dreams.” From […]

A History of the Black Association for Nationalism Through Unity (BANTU) in Omaha

One of the places that sparks my imagination greatly is when my varying interests overlap, and that’s why today’s post on BANTU particularly excites me. From the pioneering Civil Rights efforts of Dr. Matthew Ricketts In the 1910s and 1920s, Marcus Garvey’s Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) was active in Omaha, led by young Malcolm […]