Livestock Exchange Building (Omaha)

Infobox_nrhp | name =Livestock Exchange Building
nrhp_type =


caption = The Livestock Exchange Building.
location= Omaha, NE
lat_degrees = 41 | lat_minutes = 12 | lat_seconds = 35.78 | lat_direction = N
long_degrees = 95 | long_minutes = 57 | long_seconds = 6.37 | long_direction = W
area =
built =1926
architect= Prinz, George; Peter Kiewit and Sons
architecture= Renaissance
added = July 07, 1999
governing_body = Local
refnum=99000751 cite web|url=http://www.nr.nps.gov/|title=National Register Information System|date=2007-01-23|work=National Register of Historic Places|publisher=National Park Service]

The Livestock Exchange Building in Omaha, Nebraska was built in 1926 at 4920 South 30 Street in South Omaha. [Larsen, L. and Cottrell, B. (1997) "The Gate City: A History of Omaha." University of Nebraska Press. p. 76] It was designed as the centerpiece of the Union Stockyards by architect George Prinz and built by Peter Kiewit and Sons in the Romanesque and Northern Italian Renaissance Revival styles. In 1999 it was designated an Omaha Landmark and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. [(nd) [http://www.nationalregisterofhistoricplaces.com/ne/Douglas/state2.html National Register of Historic Places - Nebraska; Douglas County] . National Park Service. Retrieved 6/22/07.] The Union Stockyards were closed in 1999, and the Livestock Exchange Building underwent an extensive renovation over the next several years.

History

According to the City of Omaha Landmarks Heritage Preservation Commission, the Livestock Exchange Building was the largest and most visually prominent building constructed in South Omaha and operated for more than 100 years. Completed for the Union Stockyards Company in May 1926, the Livestock Exchange Building was the most significant structure associated with the Omaha Stockyards and served as the center of the livestock industry in Omaha. Chicago and Omaha were the two largest centers for livestock processing in the nation, and the industry was the most important in the city. In 1957 the stockyards and meatpacking industry employed half the workforce of Omaha. [ [http://www.ci.omaha.ne.us/landmarks/designated_landmarks/landmarks/129/Default.htm "Livestock Exchange Building"] , City of Omaha Landmarks Heritage Preservation Commission, accessed 11 Jul 2008]

Once the center of business and trading in the midst of convert|260|acre|km2 of livestock pens, the Livestock Exchange Building housed offices, a bakery, cafeteria, kitchen, soda fountain, cigar stand, telephone and telegraph offices, apartments and sleeping rooms, a clothing store and a convention hall. There are two ballrooms located on the 10th floor, with 22-foot ceilings in an elegant Romanesque and Northern Italian Renaissance Revival style. The North Ballroom has a built-in bar, stage and hardwood floors. The South Ballroom has a balcony, three private boardrooms and a large dance surface. [(nd) [http://www.brandeiscatering.com/livestockexchange.html Livestock Exchange Building] . Brandies Catering. Retrieved 6/22/07.] [(nd) [http://www.ci.omaha.ne.us/landmarks/designated_landmarks/landmarks/129/Default.htm "Livestock Exchange Building"] , City of Omaha Landmarks Heritage Preservation Commission, Retrieved 6/22/07=]

A complex public-private renovation was completed in 2005. The building was converted to mixed-use, yielding more than 100 apartments, plus community and commercial space. Its historical character was preserved and it will be the center of a new neighborhood. The surrounding area will be redeveloped for mixed commercial, medical and light industrial uses. [(nd) [http://www.hud.gov/local/ne/library/archivedstories/fs2005-08-29.cfm "Renovation of the Historic Livestock Exchange Building in Omaha"] , US Department of Housing and Urban Development, Retrieved 6/22/07] One of the most recent additions is the newest iteration of the South Omaha Library, a partnership between the City of Omaha and the Metropolitan Community College. The College has also opened a new campus on the site of the former stockyards.

ee also

* History of Omaha
* Union Stockyards (Omaha)
* Union Stockyards Company

References

External links

* [http://www.livinghistoryfarm.org/farminginthe50s/money_15.html "Sales Day".] - Description of selling animals at the Livestock Exchange Building in the 1950s.
* [http://www.memories.ne.gov/cdm4/document.php?CISOROOT=/opl&CISOPTR=464&REC=3 Historic postcard] of the original Livestock Exchange Building.