AT&T Building (Omaha)

AT&T Building
The AT&T Building in 2008
General information
Status	Completed
Location	Omaha, Nebraska, U.S.
Coordinates	41°15′32″N95°56′30″W / 41.2589847°N 95.9417211°W / 41.2589847; -95.9417211
Completed	1918 1968 (West addition)
Height
Height	334 feet (102 m)
Roof	265 ft (81 m)
Technical details
Floor count	16
Other information
Public transit access	Metro Transit
Northwestern Bell Telephone Company Regional Headquarters
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Location	Omaha, Nebraska
Coordinates	41°15′34″N95°56′30″W / 41.259486677668065°N 95.94170188731309°W / 41.259486677668065; -95.94170188731309
Built	1962–1964
Architect	Leo A. Daly
Architectural style	Modern Movement
NRHP reference No.	09000526
Added to NRHP	July 17, 2009
References
[1]

The AT&T Building, historically known as the Nebraska Telephone Building and the NorthwesternBell Telephone Company RegionalHeadquarters, is a 334 foot (102 m), 16-story high-rise building in Downtown Omaha, Nebraska, United States. The North addition was added to the National Register of Historic Places on July 17, 2009. The building now houses apartments. The building to the South is now used for Lumen's Omaha operations. The original 15-story building was built in 1918 for the Nebraska Telephone Company. A 12-story addition was built in 1964 to the North. In 1968, an addition to the West was built. It was the headquarters Northwestern Bell headquarters until 1981 when it moved to the current Omaha World-Herald Building.

History

The AT&T Building in Downtown Omaha was originally known as the Nebraska Telephone Building. Construction for the building began in March 1917. ^[2] The building was built by Lanquist & Illsley of Chicago. ^[3] The Nebraska Telephone Building officially opened in 1918. ^[4] Three years later, in 1921, the Nebraska Telephone Company and several other companies merged to create Northwestern Bell, and would use the building as its headquarters. ^[5]

On July 11, 1962, a 12-story addition North to the other building was announced. ^[6] Construction began later that year and the building was topped-out in April 1963. ^{[7] [8]} The building opened in 1964. In January 1967, a 15-story addition to the West of the building was announced. ^[9] The addition was built by Hawkins Construction company. ^[10] During construction of the addition, Northwestern Bell employees went on strike outside of the building. ^[11] The building was completed in October 1968. ^[12]

In 1981, Northwestern Bell completed and moved into its new headquarters in the current Omaha World-Herald Building. In 1991, Northwestern Bell was merged into its parent company, US West. ^[13]

The building to the North was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on July 17, 2009. ^[14] In 2013, that same building was converted into apartments. ^[15]

See also

• Economy of Omaha, Nebraska
• List of tallest buildings in Omaha, Nebraska

References

1. "Emporis building ID 129554". Emporis . Archived from the original on March 6, 2016.
2. "Progress of Buildings". The Omaha Daily News. 1917-03-25. p. 30. Retrieved 2025-07-03.
3. "Contract Let for Home of Nebraska Telephone Company". The Omaha Evening Bee. 1917-09-21. p. 7. Retrieved 2025-07-03.
4. "The telephone comes to Omaha". Lincoln Journal Star. 2015-01-25. pp. D4. Retrieved 2025-07-03.
5. "Northwestern Bell Telephone Company Regional Headquarters (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. Retrieved 2025-07-03.
6. "Phone Firm to Build $3,500,000 Addition". Evening World-Herald. 1962-07-11. p. 1. Retrieved 2025-07-03.
7. "Northwestern Bell Telephone Reports On Growth During 1962". Butte Gazette. 1963-01-10. p. 5. Retrieved 2025-07-03.
8. "Steel Girder Carries Flag on Top of Phone Building". Evening World-Herald. 1963-04-11. p. 10. Retrieved 2025-07-03.
9. "Phone Co. Will Erect 15 Stories". Omaha World-Herald. 1967-01-08. p. 83. Retrieved 2025-07-03.
10. "Bell Awards Building Job". Omaha World-Herald. 1967-08-17. p. 4. Retrieved 2025-07-03.
11. "1,400 Omaha Workrs Join Telephone Strikers". The Lincoln Star. 1968-04-19. p. 3. Retrieved 2025-07-03.
12. "Downtown Omaha Is Putting On a New Face". Omaha World-Herald. 1968-10-28. p. 10. Retrieved 2025-07-03.
13. "US West Keep Omaah Presence After Depatures". Omaha World-Herald. 1991-06-16. p. 10. Retrieved 2025-07-03.
14. "Dial H for historic Bell building". Omaha World-Herald. 2009-10-24. p. 11. Retrieved 2025-07-03.
15. "Northwestern Bell Telephone Company Regional Headquarters (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. Retrieved 2025-07-03.