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Black firefighters have a long history in Omaha, stretching back more than 100 years to the 1890s. Initially segregated, the Omaha Fire Department formally integrated its force in 1954, the same year as the historic Brown v. Board of Education…

Education has long been a key to African American community uplift in Omaha and across the Great Plains, despite the pervasive reality of segregation and discrimination. Black parents, students and their allies have consistently pressed for greater…

Omaha was home to a wide range of black fraternal groups. The Elks and Masons were particularly strong in the city during the mid-twentieth century. Fraternal groups provided a social outlet, as well as opportunities for community betterment. …

Florence Pinkston-Mitchell was a prominent piano teacher in North Omaha for many years during the mid-twentieth century. Art and music lessons were an important part of a child’s education for most middle-class African Americans. Over the years,…

North Omaha’s Dreamland Ballroom, located on 24th Street near Lake Street, was a prominent stop on the national and regional jazz and r&b circuit from the 1930s through the 1960s. Most of the leading acts played the Dreamland during these years. Do…

In 1953, the DePorres Club mounted a successful campaign against Reed’s Ice Cream for discriminatory hiring practices. Here, members of the organization picket outside of Reed’s and talk to community members about their protest. Note the sign held…

Coming out of the civil rights era in the mid- and late-1970s, there was a lot of emphasis placed on community improvement and racial uplift. This image of young people participating in a “Community Clean-up Day” captures that spirit.

From its founding in 1947 through the 1950s, the DePorres Club was the leading civil rights organization in Omaha. Organized by Fr. John Markoe at Creighton University, this student-led integrationist group led some of the earliest civil rights…

Dating back to the early part of the 20th century, African Americans in Omaha have attempted to band together to provide for the needs and care of the elderly in the community. This image, which dates back to 1913, features several women who worked…

This is the team photo of the 1906 University of Nebraska football team. The team included two African American players, R.S. Taylor and W. N. Johnson.