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Florence, Nebraska

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Coordinates: 41°20′N 95°57′W / 41.333°N 95.950°W / 41.333; -95.950
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This article is about the former city. For the present neighborhood in Omaha, see Florence, Omaha.
Florence
Winter Quarters (1846—1848)
Former city
CountryUnited States
StateNebraska
CityOmaha
FoundedOctober 3, 1854
IncorporatedMarch 10, 1855
 • CityMarch 10, 1857
AnnexationJune 1, 1917
Government
 • Administrative bodyOmaha City Council


Florence was a historic municipality in Nebraska. Founded in 1854, the Nebraska Territory Legislature first incorporated it as a town in 1855 and then incorporated it as a city in 1857.[1] In 1917, it was annexed by the City of Omaha and ceased to exist as an independent municipality. Since then it has been a neighborhood located in North Omaha.

Establishing Florence

In the spring of 1854 James C. Mitchell, following the advice of the fur trader Peter A. Sarpy, platted a town named after his adopted daughter Florence, including the old buildings and improvements of an older settlement there.[2]

Nearly a decade before in 1846, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints established Cutler's Park as a hold-over on their way from Nauvoo, Illinois to Utah. When that settlement was found to be wrongly located by a nearby United States Indian agent, it was relocated to a new site called Winter Quarters. For two years, more than 2,500 people lived in the village, which was comprised of well-defined streets with hundreds of housing lots covered with cabins, tents, wagons and sod houses. Winter Quarters had a mayor and city council, 24 policemen and fireguards, various administrative committees, and a town square for public meetings. Today, the dead are buried in the Mormon Pioneer Cemetery from the community, which was the first town established in the Nebraska Territory.[3] The Mormon pioneers left their town once they moved on in 1848. Mitchell platted Florence six years later. The town of Florence was named for one Miss Florence Kilbourn.[4]

The new town of Florence was built from the detritus of old Winter Quarters, and with support from eastern land speculators it grew quickly outfitting more Mormon migrants through 1866, as well as others traveling west on the Great Platte River Road. James Mitchell's investment firm was called the Florence Land Company, and with funding from the Bank of Florence and other sources early settlers bought into the community.

In addition to being a bustling outfitting center, it quickly became the shopping hub for farmers in northern Douglas County. Late in 1854, the town of Florence made a bid to become the Nebraska State Capitol, which it lost to Omaha.[5] The Bank of Florence, which took a hit in the Panic of 1857, continued serving the area for several years afterward.

It may not be generally known that, about seven miles north of Omaha, on the Missouri River, there is a small hamlet, yelped Florence, the proprietors of which have been, for months, laboring assiduously to delude strangers that it was a city.[6]

Growing rapidly, the Nebraska Territorial Legislature incorporated Florence as an official city on March 10, 1857. Operating with a mayor and six-person city council, the City of Florence had several positions including a chief of police and other roles. With taxation authority came responsibilities such as a city hall, city park, more than 100 miles of streets throughout the community, sidewalks, and other municipal duties the city was obligated to upkeep.

Florence Legislature

In January, 1858 a group of representatives illegally moved the Nebraska Territorial Legislature to Florence following a violent outburst at the territorial capitol in Omaha. After repeatedly being dogged out of voting on the removal of the capitol from Omaha, a skirmish pitted representatives from Nebraska City, Florence, and other communities to convene outside of Omaha. Despite having a majority of members present for the vote to remove the capitol and all agreeing, the "Florence Legislature" did not succeed in swaying the Nebraska Territory governor, and the capitol remained in Omaha until 1867 when Nebraska gained statehood.[7][full citation needed]

Between the 1850s and 1910s, Florence experienced a number of economic booms and downturns. In the 1860s, the town was a popular stopover for travelers heading west toward the Great Platte River Road. There were numerous hotels, banks, restaurants, taverns, blacksmiths, stores, drug stores and other sundries for Western travelers. These businesses boomed and busted with different financial panics, gold rushes, and government legislation making western migration in the United States more or less attractive.[8] By the 1910s though, the City of Florence was floundering and leaders had to take drastic measures.

Omaha annexation

After a ten-year campaign lablelled "Greater Omaha," on June 1, 1917, the City of Florence was annexed by the City of Omaha.[5] The mayor of Florence, F.S. Tucker, signed over the City's authority, turned in the City seal, and officially relinquished his role. Omaha mayor James C. Dahlman oversaw the transition, and the Omaha City Council renamed a street in Florence in honor of Tucker for his role.

Today, while there are historic landmarks throughout the present-day Florence neighborhood, there is no indication that the City of Florence ever existed.

Former landmarks

One of the former landmarks in the City of Florence was called the Mitchell House, and it was located at 8315 North 31st Street. Built by James C. Mitchell, some historic accounts asserted that Brigham Young lived in the house for a short period.[9] The house was torn down in 1964 when it was determined termites had destroyed the majority of the building.[10]

See also

References

  1. ^ (1912) Bulletin. Issues 2. Nebraska State Legislature. p. 7
  2. ^ Andreas' History of the State of Nebraska - Douglas County
  3. ^ (n.d.) Historic Florence - Culter's Park Marker
  4. ^ Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. Govt. Print. Off. pp. 127.
  5. ^ a b Reeves, R. (n.d.) Douglas County History Archived 2011-07-20 at the Wayback Machine University of Nebraska.
  6. ^ Omaha Nebraskian, 1857, as cited in Bristow, D. (1997) A Dirty, Wicked Town: Tale of 19th Century Omaha. Caxton Press.
  7. ^ Bristow, D.
  8. ^ "A History of the Florence Main Street" by Adam Fletcher Sasse for NorthOmahaHistory.com. Retrieved May 9, 2024.
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference FWP was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ Fletcher Sasse, Adam (2017). "A History of the James Comey Mitchell House in Florence". North Omaha History. Retrieved October 5, 2019. In 1963, it was determined termites had destroyed the second floor of the house and the next year, in 1964, the entire thing was demolished.

41°20′N 95°57′W / 41.333°N 95.950°W / 41.333; -95.950

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