Towns and Nature: Omaha, NE: 1899 and 1931 Union Stations and Power Plant

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

Omaha, NE: 1899 and 1931 Union Stations and Power Plant

(3D Satellite)

I included the label rrCBaQ to explicitly note that they did not use Union Station. CB&Q had their own station on the other side of the tracks.

Jim Arvites posted
View looking east of the Burlington Depot on right and the old Omaha Union Station on left with an Omaha streetcar crossing over the CB&Q and Union Pacific tracks at Omaha, Nebraska in August 1911.
(Durham Museum)

Beatrice Area Railroad Enthusiasts posted
Union Pacific Station Omaha, NE

Street View

Marty Bernard posted three photos with the comment: "Omaha Union Station, May 1980 These are scans of Roger Puta's slides."

The station originally boasted thirteen sets of tracks located to the south of the building and served the Union Pacific, Rock Island, Missouri Pacific, Milwaukee, Wabash, Great Western, Illinois Central and North Western Railroads. Combining its efforts with the Burlington Depot made Omaha the fourth largest railroad center in the United States.

The last passenger train departed Union Station in 1971 and the station closed its doors.

There was, for a time, talk of demolishing the building. Wiser counsel prevailed, however, and in 1973, Union Pacific Corporation donated Union Station to the City of Omaha. In 1975, a group of dedicated volunteers fought to save Union Station and made it the home of The Western Heritage Museum. In 1995, Chuck and Margre Durham led the charge for a major renovation of the structure that restored the current Suzanne and Walter Scott Great Hall to its original grandeur. In addition, mechanical systems, to include installation of air conditioning, were completely replaced, a new parking deck erected, and the station’s original Track #1 was covered over to allow for static display of Union Pacific rail cars.

[DurhamMuseum-history]

Fortunately, they realized that the waiting room for the station would make a wonderful Great Hall for a museum. And, like the Field Museum in Chicago, renting the Great Hall has become a revenue stream for the museum.