Great Plains Black History Museum

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The Webster Telephone Exchange Building, the home of the Great Plains Black History Museum

The Great Plains Black History Museum, located in the Webster Telephone Exchange Building at 2213 Lake Street in North Omaha, Nebraska, has been the premier African American history institution in the Nebraska. The Museum, which is privately controlled, is nationally renowned for its collection, which includes more than 10,000 displays.

1 About the Museum
2 Webster Telephone Exchange Building
3 References
4 See also
5 External links

[edit] About the Museum

In 1962, Omaha community leader Bertha Calloway worked with a local group called the Negro History Society to create the Great Plains Black Museum. Calloway's goal over the next 30+ years was to teach Nebraskans about the contributions of African-Americans in the Midwest. In a 1996 interview Calloway explained, "People must see black history in order for the images they have of black people to change. That’s what our museum is all about... revealing a history that’s been withheld."^[1] In 1976 the Museum formally opened, funded by a grant from the United States Bicentennial Commission. For the following 25+ years the Museum featured paintings, rare books, photographs, and films, with one of the largest historical and cultural institutions west of the Mississippi River.^[2]

The Museum closed in 2001 after director Jim Calloway, the son of founder Bertha Calloway, refused funding from the City of Omaha and Douglas County, after relying on that funding for its entire life. Jim Calloway chaired the Committee for the Preservation of Historic North Omaha Sites, arguing with City officials for more funding than the City Council has allotted. The City refused, and the Museum was forced to close for lack of funding and poor maintenance of the building. Recently, the University of Nebraska at Omaha Black Studies Department and the Metropolitan Community College have shown interest in assisting the Museum's recovery.^[3]

[edit] Webster Telephone Exchange Building

The Webster Telephone Exchange building, which houses the Museum, was built in 1906. It is a modified Tudor style building designed by famed architect Thomas Kimball for the Nebraska Telephone Company. The building was a central headquarters after the Easter Sunday Tornado of 1913. Telephone operators stayed at their stations during the tornado, and despite shards of glass and reports of mass calamity, continued service immediately afterwards.^[4] Victims from the nearby central business district of Near North Omaha were brought to the building, as well^[5].

The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1977, recognizing its historical significance. Today the building is dilapidated and the Museum has received offers to move it to other locations. The future of the Webster Telephone Exchange Building is uncertain.

[edit] References

^ Biga, L.A. (2006) Burden of Dreams The Reader.
^ (n.d.)Photograph details Nebraska Historical Society.
^ Biga (2006)
^ (n.d.)Omaha's Terrible Evening. Tragic Story of America's Greatest Disaster.
^ (n.d.)1913 Easter Sunday Tornado Omaha Public Library