Researching the history of a building requires the whole panoply of genealogical research skills and then some!
Key resources:
- Building permits
Normally kept in the city planning department. Unfortunately for Omaha researchers, some years ago the city's chief building inspector made the decision to throw all those records out--records spanning more than 100 years, from the 1880s to the 2000s. Permits for the Dundee neighborhood were the only ones to survive.
- Water permits, opens a new window (1880-1968; in progress)
Originals held at the Genealogy & Local History Room. Water permits can often substitute for building permits as an indication of when a house was constructed since a connection to the water supply was usually arranged soon after the house was built. Online index (in progress) includes date, address, and homeowner.
- City directories (available at the Genealogy & Local History Room)
- Omaha city directories, 1866-current
- Bellevue/Sarpy County city directories (1963-89; 1991-2007; 2009-current)
- Council Bluffs city directories (1933-35; 1940; 1945-46; 1954-55; 1957-59; 1961-89; 1991-2009; 2011; 2013-current)
- Fremont city directories (1957; 1960-61; 1963-66; 1968-70; 1972-73; 1975; 1977-80; 1982-83; 1985; 1987; 1989-91; 1993)
- Lincoln city directories (1932; 1935; 1941; 1953; 1955-56; 1958-71; 1973-75; 1977-83; 1985-2004; 2007-current)
- Nebraska City directories (1926-27; 1977-78; 1980; 1986; 1988-89; 1992-94)
- County, city, and neighborhood histories and clipping files, available in Nebraska Reference Collection, Genealogy & Local History Room
- Historic Omaha buildings , opens a new window
- Maps and atlases
- Digital Map Collection, opens a new window
- Fire Insurance Maps Online (FIMo), opens a new window
- Newspapers
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Gilbert M. and Martha H. Hitchcock Omaha World-Herald Digital Archives (1878-1983), opens a new window
- Search for an address to find sales information, building news, permit records, and more. Access from home with a library card.
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Daily Record (Nov. 11, 1931 - Dec. 31, 2021; unindexed). Available at the Genealogy & Local History Room.
- Paper of record for Douglas County: building permits and other legal notices.
- Other newspapers on microfilm, opens a new window (unindexed). Available at the Genealogy & Local History Room.
Relevant articles:
A Place in History: Researching Your Nebraska Property
, opens a new windowGuide to where and what to search when researching the history of your property, including useful links and organizations in Nebraska.
National Register of Historic Places, opens a new window Since its inception in 1966, more than 80,000 properties have been listed in the National Register. Together these records hold information on more than 1.4 million individual resources--buildings, sites, districts, structures, and objects. Research in this collection, or find out how to get your property listed.
National Trust for Historic Preservation
, opens a new windowUseful links and resources for the owners of historic properties--or anyone interested in old buildings! The Top 10 Places to Find Old Photos of Your House
, opens a new windowGood ideas for finding pictures of your property from yesteryear. The author of this blog, Marian Pierre-Louis, is a house historian who specializes in the historic homes of New England. Who Lived In a House Like This?
, opens a new windowAlthough this guide to researching house history focuses on New York City, it provides excellent advice applicable to any location.
