Architecture in Omaha, Nebraska

Architecture in Omaha, Nebraska represents a range of cultural influences and social changes occurring from the late 1800s to present.

Background

The area comprising modern-day North Omaha is home to a variety of important examples of popular turn-of-the-century architecture, ranging from Thomas Rogers Kimball's Spanish Renaissance Revival-style St. Cecilia Cathedral at 701 N. 40th Street to the Prairie School style of St. John's A.M.E. Church designed by Frederick Stott at 2402 N. 22nd Street [ [http://www.archiplanet.org/wiki/St._John%27s_A.M.E._Church ArchiPlanet.Org] ] . A young African American architect under Kimball's guidance was Clarence W. Wigington, who designed the Broomfield Rowhouse and Zion Baptist Church. Wigington moved to St. Paul, Minnesota where he became the city's senior municipal architect. In that capacity he designed hundreds of important civic buildings throughout that city, leaving an indelible mark on architecture across the Midwestern United States.

Public works

* Fort Omaha Historic District - Italianate-style
* Minne Lusa Pumping Station, at the Florence Waterworks - Unknown style "demolished"
* The Prettiest Mile in Omaha Boulevard, later named Florence Boulevard
* Kountze Park, site of the Trans-Mississippi Exposition - Grecian and Roman Revival styles "demolished"
* Tech High and North High were both built in the 1920s as large local public high schools. Tech was the largest school west of Chicago when it was built.

Commercial enterprises

*Bank of Florence - A Greek Revival-style building built between 1850 and 1874, located at 8502 N. 30th Street. [(n.d.) [http://www.ci.omaha.ne.us/landmarks/designated_landmarks/landmarks/46/Default.htm Bank of Florence] City of Omaha Landmarks]
*Jewell Building - A Georgian Revival-style commercial building built between 1900 and 1949 at 2221-2225 N. 24th Street. [(n.d.) [http://www.ci.omaha.ne.us/landmarks/designated_landmarks/landmarks/43/Default.htm Jewell Building] City of Omaha Landmarks]
*Webster Telephone Exchange Building - A Jacobethan Revival style commercial building built in 1907 at 2213 Lake Street. [(n.d.) [http://www.ci.omaha.ne.us/landmarks/designated_landmarks/landmarks/45/Default.htm Webster Telephone Exchange Building] City of Omaha Landmarks]
*Omaha Star building - A 1923 Commercial style building housing the "Omaha Star" since 1938

Private residences

*Dr. Samuel Mercer House - A Queen Anne Style house built between 1875 and 1924 at 3920 Cuming Street.
*George H. Kelly House - A Classical Revival house built between 1900 and 1924 at 1924 Binney Street. [(n.d.) [http://www.ci.omaha.ne.us/landmarks/designated_landmarks/landmarks/76/Default.htm Kelly House] City of Omaha Landmarks]
*Havens-Page House - A house built between 1900 and 1924 in the styles of the late 19th and 20th Century Revivals at 101 N. 39th Street. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
*Strehlow Terrace - An apartment complex built in mixed Bungalow, American Craftsman, Classical Revival, and Prairie School styles between 1900 and 1924 at 2024 and 2107 N. Sixteenth Street.
*Keirle House - A classic box style house built in 1905 at at 3017 Mormon Street. [(n.d.) [http://www.ci.omaha.ne.us/landmarks/designated_landmarks/landmarks/126/Default.htm Keirle House] City of Omaha Landmarks.]
*Harry Buford House - Built in 1929 in the Period Revival Style, this house is located at 1804 North 30th Street. [(n.d.) [http://www.ci.omaha.ne.us/landmarks/designated_landmarks/landmarks/75/Default.htm Buford House] City of Omaha Landmarks]
*John P. Bay House - Built in 1887 in the Queen Anne style at 2024 Binney Street. [(n.d.) [http://www.ci.omaha.ne.us/landmarks/designated_landmarks/landmarks/52/Default.htm Bay House] City of Omaha Landmarks]
*Joseph Garneau, Jr./Thomas Kilpatrick House - Built in 1890 at 3100 Chicago Street in the Romanesque Revival style. [(n.d.) [http://www.ci.omaha.ne.us/landmarks/designated_landmarks/landmarks/33/Default.htm Kilpatrick House] City of Omaha Landmarks]
*Melrose Apartments - Built in 1916 at 602 North 33rd Street.
*Saunders School - Built in 1899 in the Neo-Classical Revival style at 415 North 41st Avenue. [(n.d.) [http://www.ci.omaha.ne.us/landmarks/designated_landmarks/landmarks/100/Default.htm Saunders School] City of Omaha Landmarks]
*George F. Shepard House - A Queen Anne/Beaux Arts Style built in 1903 at 1802 Wirt Street. [(n.d.) [http://www.ci.omaha.ne.us/landmarks/designated_landmarks/landmarks/58/Default.htm Shepard House] City of Omaha Landmarks]
*Sherman Apartments - A Neo-Classical Revival style apartment building built in 1897 located at 2501 North 16th Street. [(n.d.) [http://www.ci.omaha.ne.us/landmarks/designated_landmarks/landmarks/96/Default.htm Sherman Apartments] City of Omaha Landmarks]
*Charles Storz House - An Arts and crafts style home built in 1909 at 1901 Wirt Street. [(n.d.) [http://www.ci.omaha.ne.us/landmarks/designated_landmarks/landmarks/87/Default.htm Storz House] City of House Landmarks.]
*Broomfield Rowhouse

Religious institutions

There are several notable Christian churches in North Omaha. They include Calvin Memorial Presbyterian Church, located at 3105 North 24th Street. Formerly known at North Presbyterian Church, the City of Omaha reports, "Calvin Memorial Presbyterian Church is architecturally significant to Omaha as a fine example of the Neo-Classical Revival Style of architecture, taking formal inspiration from several buildings of the 1898 Trans-Mississippi and International Exposition that had been held nearby." [(n.d.) [http://www.ci.omaha.ne.us/landmarks/designated_landmarks/landmarks/90/Default.htm Calvin Memorial Presbyterian Church] City of Omaha Designated Landmarks website.]

Holy Family Church was built at the intersections of 18th and Izard Streets in 1883 for North Omaha's Irish immigrants. Over the years it served Czech and Italian immigrants, and today is targeted at the city's African American Catholics. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, along with St. John's African Methodist Episcopal Church.

Formed in 1880, St. John's was built in 1921 in the Prairie style. An auditorium extension was added to the building in 1947, and auxiliary rooms were finished in 1956. Designed by Omaha architect Frederick S. Stott, the building reflects a progressive attitude on the part of this black congregation at a time when traditional values in religious architecture were prevalent. [(n.d.) [http://www.nebraskahistory.org/histpres/nebraska/douglas2.htm National Historic Register locations] ] [ [http://www.historicomaha.com/nrstjohn.jpgHistoric picture of St. John's AME Church] Omaha Historical Society website.]

Notable former structures

ee also

*Mendelssohn, Fisher and Lawrie
*History of North Omaha, Nebraska
*Landmarks in North Omaha, Nebraska

References

Further reading

* Gerber, K. and Spencer, J.S. (2003) "Building for the Ages: Omaha's architectural landmarks." Landmarks, Inc.
* Landmarks Heritage Preservation Commission. (1984) "Patterns on the Landscape, Heritage Conservation in North Omaha." City of Omaha Planning Department.