Douglas County, Nebraska: History
Long before its formal organization, the region comprising modern-day Douglas County was inhabited by the Native American peoples of the Otoe, Pawnee, and Omaha tribes. Using the Missouri River Valley for hunting, agriculture and trade, these nations lived in the region for hundreds of years before European encroachment. With longstanding French and Spanish incursions before them, Lewis and Clark Expedition passed through the Douglas County area in 1804 and began significant Euro-American interest in the territory.
Douglas County was created on November 23, 1854 and named after Stephen A. Douglas (1813–1861), who was then serving as a U.S. senator from Illinois.
The city of Omaha was founded shortly after and quickly became the county seat of Douglas County. For the next 50 years, it was a primary point for European travelers going along the Mormon Trail, the Oregon Trail, and the Great Platte River Road. When President Abraham Lincoln designated the city as the eastern terminus for the Union Pacific Railroad in the 1860s, Omaha became a national transportation hub. Immigrants and industries grew in the city consequentially, and by the late 1800s the Union Stockyards in South Omaha had opened. Eventually they became one of the largest livestock processing centers in the world, earning the city the nickname "The Gate City."
In the next century, Douglas County transitioned into a diverse urban and suburban center in the Midwestern United States. The economy diversified beyond agriculture and meatpacking into insurance, telecommunications, and finance because of the Trans-Mississippi Exposition and other circumstances. Despite that, racial tensions culminated in the 1919 lynching of Will Brown and subsequent riots. The environmental impact of industrialization afflicted the city, too. However, the establishment of the Offutt Air Force Base in neighboring Sarpy County and the continued presence of the Strategic Air Command further solidified Douglas County's relevance to the national economy. Today, Douglas County is the most populous county in Nebraska and is characterized by a blend of historic preservation and modern development. It remains a vital economic engine for the Great Plains, anchoring a metropolitan area that bridges the traditional agricultural roots of the Midwest with the demands of a globalized digital era.