Old Post Office (Omaha, Nebraska) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Old Post Office |
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The old Omaha Post Office.
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| General information | |
| Architectural style | Richardson Romanesque |
| Town or city | Omaha, Nebraska |
| Country | United States |
| Construction started | 1898 |
| Completed | 1906 |
| Demolished | 1966 |
| Cost | $2,000,000 |
| Client | United States Postal Service |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | John Latenser, Sr. |
| Engineer | O.J. King |
The Old Post Office was a large building located in Omaha, Nebraska, at 16th and Dodge Streets. It was built in 1898 but was taken down, or demolished, in 1966. When this building and the Old City Hall were demolished, it made people in Omaha realize how important it was to save historic buildings. This led to a big movement for historic preservation in the city.
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Building the Old Post Office
Construction on the Old Post Office started in 1892. The government provided $1.2 million to build it. The first floor of the building was covered with beautiful pink granite from St. Cloud. The next three floors used sandstone.
Each of the five entrances had polished granite columns holding up stone archways. The main entrance was on the east side. The building also had a tall, 190-foot (about 58-meter) clock tower with clocks on all four sides. A copper roof covered most of the building. In the center, there was an open space called an atrium court, which had a large 100-foot (about 30-meter) square skylight. In its early years, people sometimes called the building "The Custom House."
The Old Post Office officially opened in 1898. However, due to some delays, it wasn't fully finished until 1906.
Why the Post Office Was Demolished
In the 1930s, some leaders in Omaha started to think the Old Post Office looked old-fashioned. They also believed the land it sat on was very valuable for new businesses. So, they began talking about tearing it down.
In the early 1960s, the General Services Administration, a government agency, said the building was too expensive to keep up. They quickly built a new post office. Even though people suggested different ways to fix up the old building, the First National Bank of Omaha decided to demolish it in 1966.
One interesting idea came from Joseph A. Suneg in 1939. He was designing a new church and suggested saving the granite blocks from the post office. He wanted to mark them, store them, and then use them to build a new church that looked like the old post office.
Remembering the Old Post Office
More than 50 years after the building was torn down, the Douglas County Historical Society created a special place. It's called the Ethel C. Flannigan Memorial Architectural Garden. This garden displays four large granite pieces that were saved from the 1898 building.
After the Old Post Office was demolished, the City of Omaha approved a plan for First National Bank to build a new office tower and a Hilton Hotel on the same spot. The city also allowed these new buildings to block 16th Street. This street was important because it connected the downtown area with North Omaha. Some people felt that closing 16th Street made it harder for people from the mostly African-American North Omaha area to access the downtown commercial district.
Legacy of the Old Post Office
The demolition of the Old Post Office made many people in Omaha concerned about losing their historic buildings. Because of this, a group called Landmarks, Inc. was formed in 1965. This group has since worked hard to help save many of the city's important landmarks.
