Oct7th -13th

With our mission here in Omaha rapidly coming to a close we have many things to accomplish. We are progressing with the Karen group and hoping before we leave to get to go the the Temple with a couple of them.

This blog will talk about our visit to the Durham Museum and Gearld Ford's Birthplace

History of the Museum 

 In 1971 after the establishment of the National Railroad Passenger Corporation (now Amtrak), Union Pacific Railroad closed Union Station. The first suggestion in print that the building be used as a museum appeared in the Public Pulse of the World Herald on April 5, 1971 in a letter from John Edward Peterson. He suggested that either the City of Omaha or Joslyn purchase the building and develop it into a museum. He wrote, "Maybe the Union Pacific would be willing to sell the station rather cheaply or even donate it." The station was donated to the City of Omaha in 1973 and two years later the Western Heritage Museum opened. The museum closed from 1995 to 1996 for a $22 million renovation project largely funded by Charles and Margre Durham. For their contributions on the project, the Western Heritage Museum was renamed the Durham Western Heritage Museum the following year. On April 6, 2008 the Durham Western Heritage Museum became the Durham Museum. The change was driven by recent partnerships Smithsonian Institution, the Library of Congress and the National Archives which have provided the museum with a larger range of exhibits and programming not limited to western heritage.  The museum is an affiliate within the Smithsonian Affiliations program.

The Museum is the old railroad station with the look and feel of the 1940s and 50's ticket booth, snack stand and old railroad station benches on the top floor with statues sitting and standing waiting for trains, each tells a story. Downstairs is a complete setting on the platform with different railroad passenger cars and a steam engine.  

Many rooms filled with the History of Omaha and Nebrasks.

A special thank you to our friend Sister Gerst, who took us on a royal tour with all her background and railroad experiences.  We got glimpses of times past and how family members may have waited at train stations as they left for military service or missions. How blessed we are for t.he progress over the years

The Gerald R. Ford Birthsite and Gardens in Omaha, Nebraska marks the location of the house at 3202 Woolworth Avenue where U.S. President Gerald R. Ford lived for a couple of weeks after his birth in July 1913. It was the home of his paternal grandparents, Charles Henry and Martha King.

The gardens are pretty with a walkway honoring the Presidents and Governors of Nebraska.

The King house at 3202 Woolworth Avenue was located on the border of the Hanscom Park and Field Club neighborhoods of Midtown Omaha. A three-story, fourteen-room Victorian mansion, it was razed after a 1971 fire caused substantial damage. Omaha businessman James M. Paxson, who lived in the neighborhood, purchased the vacant lot for $17,250 after Ford became president in 1974, and planned for it to be used as a memorial. Although Paxson donated the site to the city, officials said they couldn't afford to build a memorial. Paxson then set up the Paxson Foundation to fund the memorial and associated gardens. The site includes a portico evoking the north side of the White House and a pagoda resembling a portion of the original home.