Editing Omaha, Nebraska (section)

===Pioneer Omaha===
Before it was legal to claim land in [[Indian Country]], [[William D. Brown]] operated the [[Lone Tree Ferry]] that brought settlers from Council Bluffs, Iowa to the area that became Omaha. Brown is generally credited as having the first vision for a city where Omaha now sits.<ref name="Administration1">[[Federal Writers' Project]] of the [[Works Progress Administration]]. (1970) ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=tCrgpwHv7wEC&q=Nebraska:+A+guide+to+the+Cornhusker+state Nebraska: A Guide to the Cornhusker State] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160115122309/https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&id=tCrgpwHv7wEC&dq=Nebraska:+A+guide+to+the+Cornhusker+state&printsec=frontcover&source=web&ots=gQFfBTgVBL&sig=oM1_gif7soVUdpfc7aC3wYp_Nvo&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=4&ct=result |date=January 15, 2016 }}.'' [[Nebraska State Historical Society]]. p. 241.</ref> The passage of the [[Kansas–Nebraska Act]] in 1854 was presaged by the staking out of claims around the area to become Omaha by residents from neighboring Council Bluffs. On July 4, 1854, the city was informally established at a picnic on Capital Hill, current site of [[Omaha Central High School]].<ref>Hickey, D. R., Wunder, S. A. and Wunder, J. R. (2007) ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=5dtgP41CyK4C&q=Nebraska+Moments:+New+Edition&pg=PP14 Nebraska Moments: New Edition] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160116004929/https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&id=5dtgP41CyK4C&dq=Nebraska+Moments:+New+Edition&printsec=frontcover&source=web&ots=-7TleeDtTm&sig=Pv0Dls418O5zkn7E1chblz6J0KE&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=1&ct=result#PPP14,M1 |date=January 16, 2016 }}.'' University of Nebraska Press. p. 147.</ref> Soon after, the [[Omaha Claim Club]] was formed to provide [[vigilante]] justice for [[land claim|claim jumpers]] and others who infringed on the land of many of [[Founding figures of Omaha, Nebraska|the city's founding fathers]].<ref>Sheldon, A.E. (1904) "Chapter VII: Nebraska Territory", ''[http://www.usgennet.org/usa/ne/topic/resources/OLLibrary/SCHofNE/ Semi-Centennial History of Nebraska] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111016024506/http://www.usgennet.org/usa/ne/topic/resources/OLLibrary/SCHofNE/ |date=October 16, 2011 }}''. Lincoln, Nebraska: Lemon Publishing. p. 58.</ref> Some of this land, which now wraps around Downtown Omaha, was later used to entice [[Nebraska Territorial Legislature|Nebraska Territorial legislators]] to an area called [[Scriptown]].<ref>Andreas, A.T. (1882) "Douglas County", ''History of the State of Nebraska''. Chicago: Western Historical Company. p. 841.</ref> The Territorial capitol was in Omaha, but when Nebraska became a state in 1867, the capital was relocated to [[Lincoln, Nebraska|Lincoln]], {{cvt|53|mi|km}} southwest of Omaha.<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20090111043220/http://www.nebraskahistory.org/sites/kennard/stathood.htm "More about Nebraska statehood, the location of the capital and the story of the commissioner's homes,"]}} [[Nebraska State Historical Society]]. Retrieved 12/14/08.</ref> The [[U.S. Supreme Court]] later ruled against numerous landowners whose violent actions were condemned in ''[[Baker v. Morton]]''.<ref>Baumann, L. Martin, C., Simpson, S. (1990) ''Omaha's Historic Prospect Hill Cemetery: A History of Prospect Hill Cemetery with Biographical Notes on Over 1400 People Interred Therein.'' Prospect Hill Cemetery Historical Development Foundation.</ref>

Many of Omaha's founding figures stayed at the [[Douglas House (Omaha)|Douglas House]] or the [[Cozzens House Hotel]].<ref>Federal Writers' Project. (1939) ''Nebraska.'' Nebraska State Historical Society. p. 239.</ref> [[Dodge Street]] was important early in the city's early commercial history; [[North 24th Street]] and [[South Omaha Main Street Historic District|South 24th Street]] also developed independently as business districts. Early pioneers were buried in [[Prospect Hill Cemetery (North Omaha, Nebraska)|Prospect Hill Cemetery]] and Cedar Hill Cemetery.<ref>[[Nebraska Territory]] Legislative Assembly. (1858) ''House Journal of the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Nebraska''. Volume 5. p. 113.</ref> Cedar Hill closed in the 1860s and its graves were moved to Prospect Hill, where pioneers were later joined by soldiers from [[Fort Omaha]], [[African Americans in Omaha, Nebraska|African Americans]] and early [[Ethnic groups in Omaha, Nebraska|European immigrants]].<ref>[http://www.nde.state.ne.us/SS/markers/287.html Historic Prospect Hill – Omaha's Pioneer Cemetery] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20001120032800/http://www.nde.state.ne.us/SS/markers/287.html |date=November 20, 2000 }}. [[Nebraska Department of Education]]. Retrieved 7/7/07.</ref> There are several other [[Cemeteries in Omaha, Nebraska|historical cemeteries in Omaha]], historical [[Jews and Judaism in Omaha, Nebraska|Jewish synagogues]] and historical [[Christianity in Omaha, Nebraska|Christian churches]] dating from the pioneer era, as well. Two sculpture parks, Pioneer Courage and Spirit of Nebraska's Wilderness and [[Transcontinental Railroad|The Transcontinental Railroad]], celebrate the city's pioneering history.<ref>[https://www.firstnational.com/site/about-us/in-the-community/sculpture-parks.fhtml Sculpture Parks] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150622111028/https://www.firstnational.com/site/about-us/in-the-community/sculpture-parks.fhtml |date=June 22, 2015 }}. Retrieved 6/22/15.</ref>