Omaha page 2

 Omaha page 2 by ric gustafson

Erastus Beadle lived in Omaha in 1857. He wanted to develop a farm west of town. At what is now 102 and West Center, Beadle could look at rolling prairie broken up by trees along the Big Papillion Creek. This creek is now called the Papio Creek. Two hundred feet rising from the Missouri River are bluffs. Windborne soil known as loess deposited in central and eastern Nebraska, much of Iowa and surrounding states. On the east side became loess bluffs. On the west were dry rugged Iowa loess hills. 

The Missouri River floodplain was tall grass, rushes and marshes. The Missouri River bottomland became a valuable part of Council Bluffs and Omaha. 

The Missouri River was dangerous until the US Army Corp of Engineers built six dams and reservoirs. On the Iowa side of the river is Carter Lake. The strange thing about Carter Lake is that it is an Iowa enclave in Nebraska.

Omaha was founded in 1854, The Omaha Indian tribe settled in northeastern and east central Nebraska to modern day South Sioux city to the north and Bellevue to the south. According to tribe legend, the tribe moved west in the Ohio valley and crossed the Mississippi River. Part of the tribe moved up the Mississippi Valley and part of the tribe went downstream into Missouri. By 1775, the tribe was in Dakota County in northeastern Nebraska. Also in the area was the Otoe tribe. Both tribes shared agriculture and hunting. Housing was earth lodges with roofs made up of willow branches and heavy grass cover overlaid with sod. Entry to the lodge was from vestibule that faced east. At the heart of their livelihood was corn raising and bison hunting.

research help: ' Upstream Metropolis' by Lawrence Larsen Barbara Cottrell Harl Dalstrom Kay Dalstrom

Peace and God's blessings. Love Ric