The following people were founding figures of Omaha, Nebraska. Their period of influence ranges from 1853 through 1900.
The original founding event to establish the City of Omaha was recorded as a picnic on July 4, 1854. It took place on the hillside that eventually became home of the Nebraska Territory Capitol, and later Omaha Central High School. Some of the figures in attendance at this event are included on this list; others were left off because their influence in the city did not continue afterwards.[1] + [2] Some of the attendees included Hadley A. Johnson; Alfred D. Jones and his wife; A.J. Hanscom and his wife; William D. Brown and his wife; Thomas Davis and his wife; Frederick Davis and his wife; and a Mr. Seely and his wife.[3]
Others in the following list were members of the Old Settlers' Association and/or the Omaha Claim Club. Many were buried at the Prospect Hill Cemetery in North Omaha.
| Name | Birth | Death | Occupation | Notable contribution |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dan Allen | 1832 | 1884 | Riverboat gambler | Influential; longtime partner of Anna Wilson |
| George Robert Armstrong | 1 August 1819 | April 20, 1896 | Mayor | Served as mayor twice |
| Erastus Benson | 1854 | February 10, 1932 (Omaha) | Real estate, investor | Founded Benson; candidate, 1906 Omaha mayor; philanthropist |
| William D. Brown | 1813 | February 3, 1868 | Businessman | Operated Lone Tree Ferry |
| William Byers | February 22, 1831 | March 25, 1903 | Surveyor and politician | Created first map of Omaha; member of first Omaha City Council, Nebraska Territorial Legislature |
| Edward Creighton | 1820 | 1874 | Banker, First National Bank of Omaha | Namesake of Creighton University |
| John A. Creighton | 1831 | 1907 | Freighter | Philanthropist brother of Edward; helped endow Creighton University |
| Mary Creighton | 1834 | 1876 | Wife of Edward | Bestowed money for Creighton University in his memory |
| 1856 | 1930 | Mayor | Tolerant of the Sporting District; elected eight times | |
| 1858 | 1934 | Political boss for 30+ years | Likely started Omaha Race Riot of 1919; ran criminal enterprise and the Sporting District | |
| Harry Porter Deuel | 11 December 1836 | 23 November 1914 | Early railroad pioneer | Oldest railroad man in Omaha when he died, Deuel ran a successful steamboat agency in the early years of Omaha, and later worked for the Union Pacific and Burlington Railroads. |
| Ada Everleigh | February 15, 1866 Greene County, Virginia | January 5, 1960 New York City | Madam | Ran brothel at Trans-Mississippi Exposition |
| Minna Everleigh | July 13, 1864 Greene County, Virginia | September 16, 1948 New York City | Madam | Ran brothel at Trans-Mississippi Exposition |
| Logan Fontenelle | 1825 | July 16, 1855 | Chief of Omaha (tribe) | Responsible for signing over the city's land |
| 28 April 1812 | 10 January 1880 | Early minister | Called the "father of Congregationalism in Nebraska." | |
| 29 April 1814 | 1 February 1861 | First Chief Justice of the Nebraska Territory | ||
| Andrew J. Hanscom | 3 February 1828 | 11 September 1907 | Territorial lawyer, Nebraska politician and real estate broker | An attendee at the 1854 picnic founding Omaha, he later platted the Hanscom Park neighborhood.[4] |
| Gilbert Hitchcock | 18 September 1859 | 3 February 1934 | Owner/editor of Omaha World-Herald, Nebraska politician | |
| Alfred D. Jones | 1814 | 1902 | Lawyer, surveyor | An attendee at the Omaha City founding picnic in 1854; the first mayor in Omaha; and platted the city in June 1854.[5] |
| 13 December 1828 | 24 June 1920 | Lawyer | First Nebraska Secretary of State | |
| Augustus Kountze | 1826 | 1892 | Banker | Founded First National Bank of Omaha with brother Herman |
| August 21, 1833, Osnaburg, Ohio | 1906 | Banker, real estate speculator | Co-founded First National Bank of Omaha; platted Kountze Place; Treasurer of Trans-Mississippi Exposition; Investor in Omaha Stockyards; namesake of Kountze Park | |
| Frederick Krug | 1855 | November 18, 1930 | Founder of Krug Brewing Company and Krug Park | |
| George B. Lake | 15 September 1826 | 27 July 1910 | One of the first justices of the Nebraska Supreme Court | |
| Enos Lowe | 5 May 1804 | 12 February 1880 | Doctor | One of the first doctors in Omaha, Lowe was a founding member of many organizations. |
| Jesse Lowe | March 11, 1814 | April 3, 1868 | Mayor | Before he was the first mayor of Omaha, Lowe and his brother were among the founders of the city. He reportedly chose the name "Omaha City" in recognition of the Omaha Tribe which lived in the region for hundreds of years prior. |
| ? | ? | Real estate agent | Early land speculator in Omaha | |
| James G. Megeath | November 18, 1824 | November 9, 1906 | ||
| Frederick Metz | 1832 in Hessel-Cassel, Germany | 1901 in Omaha | Owner of Metz Brewery | Two time state legislator |
| Ezra Millard | February 2, 1833 | August 20, 1886 | Banker, Omaha National Bank | Namesake of Millard |
| George L. Miller | 1830 | 28 August 1920 | Physician, editor, politician, civic leader and land owner | First doctor in Omaha |
| James C. Mitchell | 1810 | 1860 | Real estate salesman, ferry operator | Founded the town of Florence |
| William A. Paxton | 1837 | 18 July 1907 | Businessman, politician | Created Omaha Stockyards and many other companies |
| A. J. Poppleton | 24 July 1830 | 9 September 1896 | Lawyer, politician | Founded first law firm in the Nebraska territory; second mayor of Omaha |
| John I. Redick | 29 July 1828 | ? | Businessman | Operated city's first opera house; early donor to Omaha University |
| 1821 | 1891 | Real estate agent | First real estate agent in Nebraska; held public offices | |
| Elizabeth Doughton Reeves | ? | ? | Doctor | First woman physician in Omaha, mother-in-law of A.D. Jones, mother of Jesse Reeves |
| Matthew Ricketts | 1858 | 1917 | Physician | First African American to graduate from University of Nebraska College of Medicine, and first to join Nebraska Legislature |
| Edward Rosewater | January 21, 1841 | August 30]], 1906 | Newspaper editor | Founder and editor of the Omaha Bee |
| Moses F. Shinn | January 3, 1809 | ? | Settler and farmer | Founded Prospect Hill Cemetery |
| John A. Smiley | ? | ? | Opened first Omaha Stockyards and sold it to William A. Paxton | |
| William and Rachel Snowden | ? | ? | By July 11, 1854, Snowden was the first resident of Omaha City. He built a crude log structure at Twelfth and Jackson Streets as their home, converted it into the St. Nicholas Hotel, and then built their own house. | |
| Gottlieb Storz | ? | 1939 (Wurttemberg, Germany) | Founder/owner of Storz Brewery | Built Prague Hotel; highly respected among immigrant community |
| Josie Washburn | 1853 | ? | Brothel worker/madam | Wrote first book about brothels by a brothel worker |
| May 12, 1855- | 1932 | Organizer of the Trans-Mississippi Exposition | ||
| May 27, 1835 | October 27, 1911 | Brothel owner/madam | Philanthropist; left estate to city on death | |