Old Market (Omaha, Nebraska)

Old Market Historic District
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. Historic district
Omaha Landmark
The intersection of Howard and 11th Streets in the heart of the Old Market.
Location	Omaha, Nebraska
Coordinates	41°15′20″N 95°55′50″W
Architect	Multiple
NRHP reference No.	79001441
Significant dates
Added to NRHP	March 23, 1979
Designated OMAL	January 22, 1985

The Old Market is a neighborhood located in downtown Omaha, Nebraska, United States, and is bordered by South 10th Street to the east, 13th Street to the west, Farnam Street to the north and Jackson Street to the South. The neighborhood has many restaurants, art galleries and upscale shopping. The area retains its brick paved streets from the turn of the 20th century, horse-drawn carriages, and covered sidewalks in some areas. It is not uncommon to see a variety of street performers, artists, and other vendors.

Historic designation

The area is on the National Register of Historic Places as a historic district, and borders the former site of the Jobbers Canyon Historic District, as well as the extant Omaha Rail and Commerce Historic District and the Warehouses in Omaha MPS. There is a walking tour of historic buildings available from the Omaha Chamber of Commerce. There are also several specifically noted historic buildings within the district.

Historic buildings

Buildings within the Old Market have served a variety of purposes, and were built during various eras. Originally built to sell groceries wholesale and retail to the city of Omaha and beyond, the Old Market district was preceded by the Market House in Omaha's Jefferson Square.

The Old Market district was formed when the Market House still stood. The buildings and businesses included:

• P. E. Iler Block, a contributing property to the district. Built in 1901, the six-story building was originally built as a warehouse. A 1990 rehabilitation converted the building into retail and office space.

• The Windsor Hotel is a three-story brick building built in 1885. The building was converted into rental residential and commercial space, in 1985. The Broatch Building was built in 1880, and expanded in 1887.

• The McClure-Smith Building is a two-story brick building that was built around 1878. Originally a steam bakery, a 1985 rehabilitation converted the building to office and retail space.

• The A. I. Root Building is a three-story brick building constructed, in 1904, as offices. The building was doubled in size by the addition of an equal-size portion, in 1909. In 1993, it was converted to retail and residential spaces.

• The Morse-Coe Shoe Company, now known as the Mayfield Apartments, was built as a five-story warehouse and light industrial building, in 1894. A 2002 rehabilitation converted the structure to a mixed-use of apartments, retail space and parking. The George H. Lee Building was built, in 1903, as warehouse and office space.

Construction

Most of the buildings in the Old Market are brick, and the streets throughout are covered with bricked surfaces, cobblestone and asphalt. There were also cast-iron fronts, metal cornices, stone trim, and metal sidewalk coverings shelters attached to many of the buildings around the turn of the 20th century.

Building details

Name	Built	Location	NRHP?	Notes
Windsor Hotel	1885, 1889	520-524 South 10th Street	Yes
Omaha Fire Station Number One	1902-04	514 South 11th Street	Yes
P.E. Iler Block	1900-01	1113-1117 Howard Street	Yes
Millard Block Number Two	1887	1109-1111 Harney Street	Yes	Designed by the architecture firm Isaac Hodgson and Son.
Mercer Hotel - Gahm Block	1890–92, 1900	1202-1208 Howard Street; 414-418 South 12th Street	Yes	Originally designed by architect Charles F. Beindorff, and completely renovated in 1900 by architect Charles Cleves.
Millard Block	1881-82	1101-1107 Harney Street	Yes
W.J. Broatch Building	1880, 1887	1209-1211 Harney Street	Yes
Steele, Johnson and Company / Baum Iron Company Building	1881	1219-21-23 Harney Street	Yes	Today, Baum continues to operate at this location as the Baum Hydraulic Company.
Poppleton Block	1886	413-423 South 11th Street	Yes
Ernest Myer Building	1912	1015 Howard Street	Yes
Hotel Howard	1909	1002-06 Howard Street	Yes
Lehman Building	1905	1008-1012 Howard Street	Yes
	1934	1014 Howard Street	Yes
Mercer Block Number Two	1887	501-509 South 11th Street	Yes	Designed by architect Henry Voss.
Rocco Brothers / Craftsmen Guild	1895	511 South 11th Street	Yes
Kosters / Gilinsky / French Cafe Building	1891	1013-1017 Howard Street	Yes
Metz Block	1890s	508-10-12 South 10th Street	Yes
Public Market	1905	NE corner of 11th and Jackson
Ames Block	1889	1101-1111 Howard Street	Yes	Designed by the architectural firm of VanBrunt and Howe from Kansas City, Missouri .
Mercer Block Number Three	1905	1102-1112 Howard Street and 414-424 South 11th Street	Yes	Designed by architect Charles Cleves.
Woolworth Building	1887	1114-24 Howard Street	Yes	Designed by the firm of Mendelssohn and Lawrie.
A.I. Root Building	1904, 1909	1210-12-14-16 Howard Street	Yes	Designed by architect F. A. Henninger.
Morse-Coe Shoe Company Building	1894	1119-23 Howard Street	Yes
George H. Lee Building	1903	1115-17 Harney Street	Yes	Designed by architect John Latenser.
	1901 (est)	1205-07 Harney Street	Yes
George Warren Smith Building	1880	1213-15 Harney Street	Yes
	1880	1113 Harney Street	Yes
National Building	1915	406 South 12th Street	Yes
Baker-Corey-McKenzie Building	1919	1120-24 Harney Street	Yes	Designed by the architectural firm of John Latenser & Sons.
P.E. Iler Block	1881	1108-10-12 Harney Street	Yes
Millard-Kirkendall and Jones Building	1887	1102-06 Harney Street	Yes
Omaha Crockery Building	1918	1116-20 Harney Street	Yes	Designed by architect J. Christ Jensen
Smith Building	1877	1113 Farnam Street	Yes
Dewey and Stone Building	1876	1115-17 Farnam Street	Yes
Clark and French Building	1879	1119 Farnam Street	Yes

Redevelopment

ConAgra Foods relocated their headquarters to neighbor the Old Market in 1991, after a contentious battle with local advocates after the City of Omaha demolished the Jobbers Canyon Historic District. On October 1, 2015, ConAgra announced that it would cut about 1,500 jobs and relocate its headquarters to Chicago as part of a restructuring plan.

2016 Old Market explosion

On January 9, 2016, at 2:51 pm local time, a large explosion occurred at M's Pub on the northwest corner of 11th and Howard streets causing a large fire to break out. The fire and subsequent efforts to extinguish it caused a total loss of the 100-year-old building as firefighters worked through the night and following morning. Temperatures at the time were in the sub-zero range causing large-scale freezing of the water from the fire fighting efforts. The explosion is believed to have been caused by a gas line that was accidentally ruptured by contractors on behalf of Verizon installing fiber-optic cables. Although several people were injured during the explosion, there were no fatalities. Eyewitnesses reported injuries sustained by multiple people within the immediate vicinity of the explosion, although these were not broadcast by local media outlets.

Image gallery

Businesses located along Howard street in the Old Market.

Many of the original warehouses in the Old Market have been converted into lofts, such as the buildings above. The building on the right was heavily damaged by the January 2016 explosion and fire.

External links

• Official website for the Old Market in Omaha
• The Omaha Old Market Online
• The Omaha Old Market Online