Poles in Omaha
Encyclopedia
Poles in Omaha, Nebraska
arrived relatively early in the city's history
. The first Polish
immigrants came in the 1870s, and the community grew past 1000 in the late 1890s. By the 1930s there were 10,000 of Polish descent, and Omaha claimed the largest such community of the Great Plains
. According to the 2000 United States Census, Omaha had a total population of 390,112 residents, of whom 18,447 claimed Polish ancestry. The city's Polish community was historically based in several ethnic enclave
s throughout South Omaha, including Little Poland and Sheelytown, first dominated by Irish
immigrants.
and railroad
industries. More arrived in the 1880s, but most after 1900. The state of Nebraska, and Omaha in particular, was advertised heavily in Poland as a destination for jobs starting in 1877 by the Chicago
-based Polish Roman Catholic Union of America
and the Burlington and Missouri River Railroad
. Ralph Modjeski
, a Polish-American civil engineer
, helped build the Union Pacific Missouri River Bridge
in Omaha in 1872.
Poles continued to immigrate to Omaha, with most coming in the early 20th century, before immigration was reduced by World War I
and new laws in 1923. By the 1930s South Omaha counted more than 10,000 Polish residents. As with other early 20th c. European immigrants, their industrial jobs contrasted with their traditional farming and rural pasts. Many were employed by the Omaha Stockyards and the meatpacking plants throughout the area. Numerous Polish immigrants lived in the Burlington Road neighborhood
Sheelytown, and the city's "Little Poland". This neighborhood extended west from South 25th to South 29th, F Street south to L Street. It eventually extended west to South 45th Street, earning the name Golden Hill.
About 1895, only two hundred Polish families lived in Omaha. With close-knit ties to their families, the Polish community was Roman Catholic
. As their numbers grew, the immigrants and descendants supported three ethnic Polish parishes in the city. Few spoke English
well, and few were skilled laborers. Their social lives revolved around a number of heritage societies. They included the Polish Roman Catholic Union, the Polish Union of the United States, the National Alliance, the Pulaski Club, the Polish Welfare Club and the Polish Citizens' Club.
Neighboring enclaves included concentrations of other immigrants, such as Little Bohemia
and Greektown
, as well as a Jewish neighborhood
. Immigrants tended to settle together where they were linked by language, culture and religion. Nellie Tayloe Ross
, the first woman to serve as governor of an American State, taught at a school in one of Omaha's Polish neighborhoods in the late 1890s.
, but left after a few years because of "misunderstandings" with the congregation. Dissidents within the congregation put forward Stephen Kaminski, a Polish nationalist and Franciscan monk, as their priest. The bishop did not agree with this choice (and at that time, parishioners did not have the right to choose.) Those who supported Kaminski held title to the building and its land. The courts ruled on March 27, 1895 that the Roman Catholic bishop (or diocese) legally owned the church and land. Before the dispute was resolved, supporters took sides and burned down the church. The diocese reorganized the parish afterwards, distributing residents among other churches, including the Immaculate Conception Church
, which remains a congregation of primarily parishioners of Polish descent.
The Western Star was a Polish language
newspaper published in Omaha from 1904 to 1945. During the 1920s, Polish neighborhoods in Omaha produced many successful amateur baseball
teams. A statue was placed in honor of Poles from the Omaha area who fought with the Blue Army during World War I
at St. John's Cemetery in the suburb of Bellevue
. In the 1950s, a study of the city noted that "nearly all the Poles live in this area [South Omaha]", and that the neighborhoods were "the most segregated and congested of all the districts in Omaha."
Immigration was slowed by the World Wars and changes in US immigration law in 1923, which decreased the numbers arriving from Eastern Europe. After WWII, Communist rule in Poland cut off immigration. Few new Polish immigrants arrived until the reduction of the Soviet Union's influence and the Solidarity-era in Poland.
and other Latinos. They also work in the meatpacking industry.
The University of Minnesota
Immigration History Research Center hosts the Omaha Photograph Collection Records, a general, multi-ethnic collection, that includes numerous photos of Little Poland and Poles in Omaha.
Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha is the largest city in the state of Nebraska, United States, and is the county seat of Douglas County. It is located in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about 20 miles north of the mouth of the Platte River...
arrived relatively early in the city's history
History of Omaha, Nebraska
The history of Omaha, Nebraska began before the settlement of the city, with speculators from neighboring Council Bluffs, Iowa staking land across the Missouri River illegally as early as the 1840s. Before it was legal to claim land in Indian Country, William D. Brown was operating the Lone Tree...
. The first Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
immigrants came in the 1870s, and the community grew past 1000 in the late 1890s. By the 1930s there were 10,000 of Polish descent, and Omaha claimed the largest such community of the Great Plains
Great Plains
The Great Plains are a broad expanse of flat land, much of it covered in prairie, steppe and grassland, which lies west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains in the United States and Canada. This area covers parts of the U.S...
. According to the 2000 United States Census, Omaha had a total population of 390,112 residents, of whom 18,447 claimed Polish ancestry. The city's Polish community was historically based in several ethnic enclave
Ethnic enclave
An ethnic enclave is an ethnic community which retains some cultural distinction from a larger, surrounding area, it may be a neighborhood, an area or an administrative division based on ethnic groups. Sometimes an entire city may have such a feel. Usually the enclave revolves around businesses...
s throughout South Omaha, including Little Poland and Sheelytown, first dominated by Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
immigrants.
History
Poles have had a presence in Omaha since the late 1870s, when they started arriving to work in the meatpacking, stockyards, smeltingSmelting
Smelting is a form of extractive metallurgy; its main use is to produce a metal from its ore. This includes iron extraction from iron ore, and copper extraction and other base metals from their ores...
and railroad
Railroads in Omaha
Railroads in Omaha, Nebraska have been integral to the growth and development of the city, the state of Nebraska, the Western United States and the entire United States...
industries. More arrived in the 1880s, but most after 1900. The state of Nebraska, and Omaha in particular, was advertised heavily in Poland as a destination for jobs starting in 1877 by the Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
-based Polish Roman Catholic Union of America
Polish Roman Catholic Union of America
The Polish Roman Catholic Union of America is the oldest Polish American organization in the United States. Its history spans notable periods in the development of the Polish American ethnic group, from the time of early settlement by immigrants from Poland through their development of ethnic...
and the Burlington and Missouri River Railroad
Burlington and Missouri River Railroad
The Burlington and Missouri River Railroad was an American railroad company incorporated in Iowa in 1852, with headquarters in Omaha, Nebraska. It was developed to build a railroad across the state of Iowa and began operations in 1856...
. Ralph Modjeski
Ralph Modjeski
Ralph Modjeski was a Polish-born American civil engineer who achieved prominence as a pre-eminent bridge designer in the United States.-Life:...
, a Polish-American civil engineer
Civil engineer
A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering; the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructures while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing infrastructures that have been neglected.Originally, a...
, helped build the Union Pacific Missouri River Bridge
Union Pacific Missouri River Bridge
The Union Pacific Missouri River Bridge is a rail truss bridge across the Missouri River connecting Council Bluffs, Iowa with Omaha, Nebraska.-History:...
in Omaha in 1872.
Poles continued to immigrate to Omaha, with most coming in the early 20th century, before immigration was reduced by World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and new laws in 1923. By the 1930s South Omaha counted more than 10,000 Polish residents. As with other early 20th c. European immigrants, their industrial jobs contrasted with their traditional farming and rural pasts. Many were employed by the Omaha Stockyards and the meatpacking plants throughout the area. Numerous Polish immigrants lived in the Burlington Road neighborhood
Burlington Road neighborhood
The Burlington Road neighborhood of Omaha, Nebraska is bordered by South 42nd Street on the west, L Street on the south, Interstate 80 on the north and Dahlman Avenue on the east...
Sheelytown, and the city's "Little Poland". This neighborhood extended west from South 25th to South 29th, F Street south to L Street. It eventually extended west to South 45th Street, earning the name Golden Hill.
About 1895, only two hundred Polish families lived in Omaha. With close-knit ties to their families, the Polish community was Roman Catholic
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
. As their numbers grew, the immigrants and descendants supported three ethnic Polish parishes in the city. Few spoke English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
well, and few were skilled laborers. Their social lives revolved around a number of heritage societies. They included the Polish Roman Catholic Union, the Polish Union of the United States, the National Alliance, the Pulaski Club, the Polish Welfare Club and the Polish Citizens' Club.
Neighboring enclaves included concentrations of other immigrants, such as Little Bohemia
Little Bohemia (Omaha, Nebraska)
Little Bohemia, or Bohemian Town, is a historic neighborhood in Omaha, Nebraska. Starting in the 1880s, Czech immigrants settled in this highly concentrated area, also called "Praha" or "Bohemian Town", bounded by South 10th Street on the east, South 16th Street on the west, Pierce Street on the...
and Greektown
Greeks in Omaha, Nebraska
The community of Greeks in Omaha, Nebraska has a history that extends back to the 1880s. After they originally moved to the city following work with the railroads, the community quickly grew and founded a substantial neighborhood in South Omaha that was colloquially referred to as "Greek Town." The...
, as well as a Jewish neighborhood
Jews and Judaism in Omaha, Nebraska
The history of the Jews in Omaha, Nebraska goes back to the mid-1850s.The Jewish community in Omaha, Nebraska has made significant cultural, economic and social contributions to the city. The first Jewish settlers came to the city shortly after it was founded in 1856. The most numerous Jewish...
. Immigrants tended to settle together where they were linked by language, culture and religion. Nellie Tayloe Ross
Nellie Tayloe Ross
Nellie Tayloe Ross was an American politician, the 14th Governor of Wyoming from 1925 to 1927, and director of the United States Mint from 1933-1953. She was the first woman to serve as governor of a U.S. state. To date, she remains the only woman to have served as governor of Wyoming...
, the first woman to serve as governor of an American State, taught at a school in one of Omaha's Polish neighborhoods in the late 1890s.
St. Paul's incident
In 1891 several Polish families constructed a Roman Catholic church at South 29th and Elm Streets in the Sheelytown neighborhood. That year Father T. Jakimowicz arrived from Elba, NebraskaElba, Nebraska
Elba is a village in Howard County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 243 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Grand Island, Nebraska Micropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Elba is located at ....
, but left after a few years because of "misunderstandings" with the congregation. Dissidents within the congregation put forward Stephen Kaminski, a Polish nationalist and Franciscan monk, as their priest. The bishop did not agree with this choice (and at that time, parishioners did not have the right to choose.) Those who supported Kaminski held title to the building and its land. The courts ruled on March 27, 1895 that the Roman Catholic bishop (or diocese) legally owned the church and land. Before the dispute was resolved, supporters took sides and burned down the church. The diocese reorganized the parish afterwards, distributing residents among other churches, including the Immaculate Conception Church
Immaculate Conception Church and School
The Immaculate Conception Church and School are located at 2708 South 24th Street in the South Omaha area of Omaha, Nebraska. Built in 1898, the church and its former school building were added together to the National Register of Historic Places in 1998....
, which remains a congregation of primarily parishioners of Polish descent.
20th century
Around the turn of the century, members of the Hanscom Park Methodist Episcopal Church became concerned with the "lawlessness and destitute behavior" of Poles living in Sheelytown. They organized dances to compete with the "loose establishments" in the area. These caused a stir among local residents and were held for many years.The Western Star was a Polish language
Polish language
Polish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries...
newspaper published in Omaha from 1904 to 1945. During the 1920s, Polish neighborhoods in Omaha produced many successful amateur baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
teams. A statue was placed in honor of Poles from the Omaha area who fought with the Blue Army during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
at St. John's Cemetery in the suburb of Bellevue
Bellevue, Nebraska
Bellevue is a city in Sarpy County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 50,137 at the 2010 census. Eight miles south of Omaha, Bellevue is part of the Omaha-Council Bluffs metropolitan area. Originally settled in the 1830s, It was the first state capitol. Bellevue was incorporated in...
. In the 1950s, a study of the city noted that "nearly all the Poles live in this area [South Omaha]", and that the neighborhoods were "the most segregated and congested of all the districts in Omaha."
Immigration was slowed by the World Wars and changes in US immigration law in 1923, which decreased the numbers arriving from Eastern Europe. After WWII, Communist rule in Poland cut off immigration. Few new Polish immigrants arrived until the reduction of the Soviet Union's influence and the Solidarity-era in Poland.
Present
As ethnic Polish descendants assimilated and moved to the suburbs, their old neighborhoods were filled by new immigrants, chiefly Mexican immigrantsMexicans in Omaha, Nebraska
Mexicans in Omaha are people living in Omaha, Nebraska, United States who have citizenship or ancestral connections to the country Mexico. They have contributed to the economic, social and cultural well-being of Omaha for more than a century. Mexicans, or Latino people identified incorrectly as...
and other Latinos. They also work in the meatpacking industry.
The University of Minnesota
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system and has the fourth-largest main campus student body in the United States, with 52,557...
Immigration History Research Center hosts the Omaha Photograph Collection Records, a general, multi-ethnic collection, that includes numerous photos of Little Poland and Poles in Omaha.
Notable Polish-Americans from Omaha
- Lieutenant General Leo J. Dulacki was born December 29, 1918 in Omaha. After serving in the United States Marine CorpsUnited States Marine CorpsThe United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
for 32 years, he retired in 1974 and was inducted into the Attache Hall of Fame of the Defense Intelligence AgencyDefense Intelligence AgencyThe Defense Intelligence Agency is a member of the Intelligence Community of the United States, and is the central producer and manager of military intelligence for the United States Department of Defense, employing over 16,500 U.S. military and civilian employees worldwide...
in 1990. - Bernard Kolasa was a respected political scientistPolitical sciencePolitical Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...
at the University of Nebraska at OmahaUniversity of Nebraska at OmahaThe University of Nebraska at Omaha is a four-year state university located in Omaha, Nebraska, USA. Founded in 1908 as Omaha University, the institution became the public Municipal University of Omaha in 1931. It assumed its current name in 1968 following a merger into the University...
and member of the Omaha Public SchoolsOmaha Public SchoolsOmaha Public Schools is the largest school district in the state of Nebraska. This public school district serves a diverse community of more than 46,000 students at over 80 elementary and secondary schools in Omaha, Nebraska...
School Board who taught for 32 years. He was respected nationally for his contributions to the field, and for his advocacy for Omaha's Polish community. - John SynowieckiJohn SynowieckiJohn Synowiecki is a Nebraska state senator from Omaha, Nebraska in the Nebraska Legislature and the program director for governmental relations for Catholic Charities.-Personal life:...
is a NebraskaNebraskaNebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....
state senatorNebraska LegislatureThe Nebraska Legislature is the supreme legislative body of the State of Nebraska, in the Great Plains region of the United States. The Legislature meets at the Nebraska State Capitol in the City of Lincoln, Lancaster County....
from Omaha and the program director for governmental relations for Catholic Charities. - Michael ZagurskiMichael ZagurskiMichael Justin Zagurski is an American baseball pitcher for the Arizona Diamondbacks organization.-From unrecruited to the majors:...
is a baseball pitcher for the Philadelphia PhilliesPhiladelphia PhilliesThe Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
who was born January 27, 1983 in Omaha.