South Omaha, Nebraska


South Omaha is a former city and current district of Omaha, Nebraska, United States. During its initial development phase the town's nickname was "The Magic City" because of the seemingly overnight growth, due to the rapid development of the Union Stockyards. Annexed by the City of Omaha in 1915, the community has numerous historical landmarks many are within the South Omaha Main Street Historic District.

Definition

The traditional borders of South Omaha included Vinton Street to the north, Harrison Street to the south, the Missouri River to the east, and 42nd Street to the west.

History

The area that would become South Omaha was rural until the early 1880s, when cattle baron Alexander Hamilton Swan decided to establish a stockyards operation just south of Omaha. The South Omaha plat was registered on July 18, 1884. Two years later, South Omaha was incorporated as a city. By 1890, the city had grown to 8,000 people, a rate of growth that earned it the nickname of "The Magic City".
In less than 10 years, South Omaha had developed as a regional stockyards and meatpacking center. As its industrial jobs did not require high-level language skills, it drew thousands of immigrant workers, mostly from eastern and southern Europe. This area of the city showed ethnic succession, as different waves of immigrants established certain territories as their own during their first settlement. Some descendants moved out of the area into other parts of the city, and newer immigrant groups filled the neighborhoods behind them.
South Omaha was annexed by Omaha on June 20, 1915. At that time it was 6.4 mi² and had 40,000 residents. In 1947, there were 15,000 people working in meatpacking. Structural changes to the meatpacking industry in the 1960s, including decentralization of operations, cost the city 10,000 jobs.

Cultural diversity

South Omaha was, and continues to be, culturally diverse. Many residents are descended from the Czech, Irish, Italian, Latino, Lithuanian, and Polish immigrants who made up the original workforce in the meatpacking industry; they were primarily Roman Catholic in religion. In recent decades, South Omaha has seen an influx of new immigrants representing Hispanic and Sudanese populations.

Places of worship

The early diversity is evident in the variety of religious institutions established by the various ethnic communities, which established national Roman Catholic and other places of worship, including
Catholic Churches:
Orthodox churches:
In the late 19th century, a Jewish synagogue was established in South Omaha.

Periodicals

In addition to the churches, in the early part of the 20th century, the Lithuanian community published a newspaper, known as the Bell of the West.

Landmarks in South Omaha

Place nameYear builtLocationNational Register of Historic PlacesOmaha Landmark
Arthur G. Rocheford Building19131717 Vinton StreetYesYes
Breckenridge-Gordon House19053611 Jackson StreetNoYes
Broatch Building18801209 Harney StreetNoYes
Center School 18931730 South 11th StreetYesYes
Columbian School18923819 Jones StreetYesYes
Elsasser Bakery19331802-1804 Vinton StreetYesYes
Epeneter House1905502 North 40th StreetNoYes
Ford Hospital1916121 South 25th StreetYesNo
Franklin SchoolYesNo
Gallagher Building18881902-1906 South 13th StreetYesYes
Georgia Row House18901040-1044 South 29th StreetYesNo
Gottlieb Storz House19053708 Farnam StreetYesYes
Grossman ApartmentNoYes
Guy C. Barton HouseYesNo
Hanscom Park1876NoNo
Hicks HouseNoYes
Hicks TerraceNoYes
Immaculate Conception Church and SchoolYesNo
Joel N. Cornish HouseYesNo
Kimball HouseNoYes
Kuncl-Hruska HouseNoYes
Little BohemiaBounded by South 10th Street on the east, South 16th Street on the west, Pierce Street on the north, and Martha Street on the southNoNo
Little ItalyBounded by Pacific Street on the north, Center Street on the south, South 10th Street on the west and the Missouri River on the east.NoNo
Livestock Exchange Building19264920 South 30th StreetYesYes
Mason School1012 South 24th StreetYesYes
Mason Terrace & Van Closter ResidenceNoYes
McLaughlin HouseNoYes
Megeath HouseNoYes
Monmouth Park SchoolIt was razed in 1995.YesNo
Neble HouseNoYes
Packer’s National Bank BuildingYesYes
Park SchoolYesYes
Porter HouseYesYes
Prague HotelYesNo
Robbins SchoolNoYes
Rosewater SchoolYesYes
Saint Joseph Parish ComplexYesYes
St. John's Collegiate ChurchNoYes
St. Martin of Tours Episcopal ChurchYesYes
St. Matthias Episcopal ChurchYesNo
St Philomena's Cathedral and Rectory - now known as St Frances Cabrini ChurchYesYes
Slater HouseNoYes
South Omaha Bridge1936Located on Hwys 275/92 over the Missouri RiverYesNo
South Omaha Main Street Historic District1883South 24th Street between M Street on the north and O Street on the southYesNo
South Omaha Public Library1904Razed in 1953.NoNo
Steiner Rowhouse No. 1YesNo
Steiner Rowhouse No. 2YesNo
Swoboda BakeryYesNo
Union State Bank BuildingNoYes
Vinton SchoolYesYes
Vinton Street Commercial Historic DistrictAlong Vinton Street between Elm Street on the west and South 17th Street on the eastYesYes
Wattles HouseNoYes
Zabriskie HouseYesYes

Notable people