Many people don't know what Omaha is, but even more people don't know Omaha's history or importance. For example they don't know about who lived here before we did, or about trails that came through here, or even about famous people that were born here.
Before we lived here Native Americans lived here. The two main tribes were the Omahas and the Pawnees, there were more but they weren't that well known.
Out of all the tribes the Omahas were the most numerous. They were also one of the most powerful tribes in the area. The Omahas relied on farming and hunting buffalo the most.
The Omaha Indians lived in present day Omaha. On March 16, 1854 a treaty was negotiated between the Omaha Chief and the President giving the present day Douglas County to the United States.
A little bit before the treaty was negotiated Jessie Lowe and his friends crossed the Missouri River into today's Omaha, Nebraska. They set up a cabin in today's Omaha, which soon the land would become a city.
Omaha officially began in 1854 with just that one cabin. Within thirty-three years Omaha and the Nebraska Territory became a great common wealth. With Omaha and the whole Nebraska Territory combined they both added up to over one million people.
There are also some trails that came through Omaha. These trails included the Mormon and the Oregon Trail. The main reason that the Mormons were moving west was because they were treated badly in most states in the east. The Mormons were heading to present day Utah so they could practice their religion without any violence or abuse to them. There is a site near Omaha that marks were the Mormon Trail went, some graves of Mormons are buried there too.
Also the Oregon Trail went through Omaha. The main use of this trail was for migrating to the west to find new land and wealth. The Oregon Trail followed the Platte River for most of the time it was in Nebraska. The Platte River was also used by Different kinds of trappers in the 1820's and 1830's.
Did you know that several famous people were born here too? One famous person that was born here was a person called Malcolm X. Malcolm X was born on May 19, 1925 in Omaha, Nebraska. When Malcolm was young he moved to Michigan. Malcolm's dad was killed here not long after they moved here. Malcolm believed that members of the Ku Klux Klan killed his father.
Shortly after the death of his father his mother was issued to a mental hospital because of all the work, stress, and lack of time she had to take care of her family. One major thing that Malcolm did was that he was one of the main founders of the Civil Rights Movement. Malcolm was also an activist, a lecturer, a waiter, writer, a religious leader and more. Malcolm died on February 21, 1965.
Another famous person was Gerald R. Ford. Gerald R. Ford was the thirty-eighth president of the United States after President Nixon resigned on August 9, 1974. Gerald R. Ford was born on July 14, 1913 in Omaha, Nebraska. Ford was at first christened Leslie King Jr. by his father. After his mother divorced his father she changed his name to Gerald R. Ford. When Ford was president he was unpopular by most citizens. Not many people believed in him and he would usually veto any bills from congress. Soon after being elected to office Gerald R. Ford pardoned President Nixon of his crimes. There is no real proof that Gerald R. Ford and Nixon made a deal but it is possible that they did.
The third and richest person of the famous people born here is Warren Buffet. Warren Buffet was born on August 30, 1930 in Omaha, Nebraska, so today he is 76. Warren Buffet is regarded as America's most brilliant investor.
Warren Buffet is the second richest man on the earth next to Bill Gates. Warren Buffet is estimated to be at a net worth of $44 billion dollars. Warren Buffet worked for or owned many extremely famous companies including Coca - Cola, Dairy Queen, and Mc Lean. Also Warren Buffet donates stocks usually worth about 1.4 Million Dollars to Bill Gates so that they won't interfere with each other.
There is also a famous book called Road to Omaha. The book revolves around Omaha and the surrounding area. The book is a sequel to a book called Road to Gandolfo. In the book General Mackenzie Hawkins and Sam Devereaux find a loophole in a treaty which deals with the Wopotami Indians and the land they were forced off of. The location of the land just so happens to be were the Strategic Air Command Base is located today. In the book General Mackenzie Hawkins and Sam Devereaux are faced against major authority figure starting with the president of the United States and going down. Eventually General Mackenzie Hawkins and Sam Devereaux have to kidnap the Pope to start getting what they need to do do. Both General Mackenzie Hawkins and Sam Devereaux have to use their own separate skills to have the loophole in the treaty revealed.
There are also some good facts about Omaha. One is that Omaha is the biggest city in Nebraska. Some thing that Omaha is known for is that it has Offutt Air Force Base in Sarpy County. Two other well known places in Omaha are the Henry Doorly Zoo which is one of the most popular places in the state. Another place is the Joslyn Art Museum.
If you live in or near Omaha you probably know about the Old Market. The Old Market is part of the downtown area. The Old Market is mostly about having an older feel to be able to go to. The Old Market is not as modernized yet it is also being redeveloped.
Omaha is one the leading businesses in cultural, education, and the leading medical center for the region. Some more major businesses are telecommunications, transportation, insurance, and Food Processing. The unemployment rate in Omaha is very low.
So you can call Omaha a lot of things including that it has had famous people born here, to major attractions, to leading industry. Whatever you call Omaha though at least it is Omaha.
