Scriptown

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Scriptown was the name of the first subdivision in the history of Omaha, which at the time was located in Nebraska Territory. It was called "Scriptown" because scrip was used as payment, similar to how a company would pay employees when regular money was unavailable. Its original survey placed the location from the Missouri River to North 30th Street, Cuming to Fort Street. [1]

Nebraska Territory Territory of the USA between 1854-1867

The Territory of Nebraska was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 30, 1854, until March 1, 1867, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Nebraska. The Nebraska Territory was created by the Kansas–Nebraska Act of 1854. The territorial capital was Omaha. The territory encompassed areas of what is today Nebraska, Wyoming, South Dakota, North Dakota, Colorado, and Montana.

Scrip substitute for government-issued legal tender or currency

A scrip is any substitute for legal tender. It is often a form of credit. Scrips have been created for payment of employees under truck systems, and for use in local commerce at times when regular currency was unavailable, for example in remote coal towns, military bases, ships on long voyages, or occupied countries in wartime. Besides company scrip, other forms of scrip include land scrip, vouchers, token coins such as subway tokens, IOUs, arcade tokens and tickets, and points on some credit cards.

Missouri River major river in the central United States, tributary of the Mississippi

The Missouri River is the longest river in North America. Rising in the Rocky Mountains of western Montana, the Missouri flows east and south for 2,341 miles (3,767 km) before entering the Mississippi River north of St. Louis, Missouri. The river drains a sparsely populated, semi-arid watershed of more than 500,000 square miles (1,300,000 km2), which includes parts of ten U.S. states and two Canadian provinces. Although nominally considered a tributary of the Mississippi, the Missouri River above the confluence is much longer and carries a comparable volume of water. When combined with the lower Mississippi River, it forms the world's fourth longest river system.

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About

The Omaha Land Company, made of businessmen including representatives from the Lone Tree Ferry Company that founded Omaha City, "secured" land around the city of Omaha in late 1854. [2] This was quickly subdivided and lots were quickly distributed to persuade influential legislators who supported Omaha City becoming the territorial capitol. [3]

Colonel Lorin Miller, later mayor of Omaha, surveyed Scriptown in the spring and summer of 1855. [4] It was bound by 16th street on the east, 24th on the west and Cuming Street on the south to Fort Street on the north. [5]

Lorin Miller (1800–1888) was a pioneer mayor of Omaha, Nebraska. He served as the Mayor from 1865 to 1867. Miller arrived in Omaha on October 19, 1854 and began surveying immediately. He was responsible for surveying Jeffrey's addition, as well as the notorious Scriptown. Prominent Omaha leader George L. Miller, born in 1830, was Lorin's oldest son.

The area was developed quickly, and included a number of prominent homes. Neighborhoods eventually formed from Scriptown included Gifford Park, Kountze Place, Prospect Hill, Saratoga and the Near North Side. These areas were incorporated into the city of Omaha in 1877. [6]

Gifford Park is a historic neighborhood in midtown Omaha, Nebraska. It is roughly bounded by the North Freeway on the east, North 38th Street on the west, Dodge Street on the south and Cuming Street on the north. Its namesake park was added to the City parks network in 1916. The neighborhood is bounded by several historic neighborhoods, including Bemis Park, Gold Coast, and the Near North Side.

The Kountze Place neighborhood of Omaha, Nebraska is a historically significant community on the city's north end. Today the neighborhood is home to several buildings and homes listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is located between North 16th Avenue on the east to North 30th Street on the west; Locust Street on the south to Pratt Street on the north. Kountze Place was annexed into Omaha in 1887. The neighborhood was built as a suburban middle and upper middle class enclave for doctors, lawyers, successful businessmen and other professional workers.

Prospect Hill Cemetery (North Omaha, Nebraska) cemetery in North Omaha, Nebraska, USA

The Prospect Hill Cemetery, located at 3202 Parker Street in the Prospect Hill neighborhood of North Omaha, Nebraska, United States, is believed to be the oldest pioneer cemetery in Omaha. It is between 31st and 33rd Streets and Parker and Grant Streets.

See also

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References

  1. ↑ Nebraska State Historical Society. (1892) Transactions and reports of the Nebraska State Historical Society, Volume 4. p 260.
  2. ↑ (1898) Andreas' History of Nebraska Archived 2005-01-15 at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved 6/7/07.
  3. ↑ Roenfeld, R. (nd) Sam Bayliss on Broadway Archived 2007-09-28 at the Wayback Machine . The Historical Society of Pottawattamie County, Iowa. Retrieved 6/7/07.
  4. ↑ (nd) Johnson's History of Nebraska p. 284. Retrieved 6/7/07.
  5. ↑ (1898) Transactions and reports of the Nebraska State Historical Society: Volume IV. Lincoln, NE: State Journal Printers.
  6. ↑ (nd) Annexation and growth page Archived 2007-09-12 at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved 6/7/07.

Coordinates: 41°17′07″N95°56′32″W / 41.28528°N 95.94222°W / 41.28528; -95.94222

Geographic coordinate system Coordinate system

A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system that enables every location on Earth to be specified by a set of numbers, letters or symbols. The coordinates are often chosen such that one of the numbers represents a vertical position and two or three of the numbers represent a horizontal position; alternatively, a geographic position may be expressed in a combined three-dimensional Cartesian vector. A common choice of coordinates is latitude, longitude and elevation. To specify a location on a plane requires a map projection.


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