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Burnt District, Omaha

Crime in Omaha, NebraskaEastern Nebraska geography stubsHistoric districts in Omaha, NebraskaHistorical red-light districts in the United StatesHistory of Downtown Omaha, Nebraska
Neighborhoods in Omaha, Nebraska

The Burnt District was the original red light district in Omaha, Nebraska in the late 19th century. The area was located east of Creighton University from Douglas Street six blocks north to Cass Street and from the Missouri River west to Sixteenth Street, centered around the area currently containing Pioneer Courage Park. It was the location of several notorious brothels, with more than 100 establishments employing 1,600 sex workers. Particularly popular during a depression which struck Omaha in the 1890s, the Burnt District was a predecessor of Tom Dennison's Sporting District.Omaha's Burnt District was a particular area of downtown where most of the city's brothels were located. The most notorious of the brothels was called "the Cribs", and consisted of rows of shacks with alleyways filled with young girls. Contemporary estimates placed the number of sex workers at over 1,600 women. A man named M. F. Martin owned several of the properties in the Burnt District. The brothels did not work in secret; there were actually large windows through which observers could peer into the acts going on therein.A businessman owned this district with large returns on his investment. Bribes were regularly given to local city leaders, policemen, and judges. The existence of prostitution on this scale was justified by the Christian community as a necessary evil; it was thought the district would help protect "good" women from sexual assault like a sewer that drains moral impurity from the Christian world.The impact of these areas contributed to heavy corruption, terrible abuse of women and children, abortions, suicides, and 30% of the men in the city of Omaha had a sexually transmitted disease. These areas existed for over 20 years before they were successfully shut down.An Episcopalian minister from Rochester, New York was popular throughout Omaha for his missionary work within the Burnt District. Reverend Dr. Ramsey founded a chapel for prostitutes, ensuring the regular attendance of former prostitutes on a weekly basis.This region is also known as Hell's Half Acre.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Burnt District, Omaha (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors).

Burnt District, Omaha
Davenport Street, Omaha

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N 41.261388888889 ° E -95.930555555556 °
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The Capitol District

Davenport Street
68102 Omaha
Nebraska, United States
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CHI Health Center Omaha

CHI Health Center Omaha is an arena and convention center in the central United States, located in the North Downtown neighborhood of Omaha, Nebraska. Operated by the Metropolitan Entertainment & Convention Authority (MECA), the 1.1-million-square-foot (100,000 m2) facility has an 18,975-seat arena, a 194,000 sq ft (18,000 m2) exhibition hall, and 62,000 sq ft (5,800 m2) of meeting space. The complex opened on September 20, 2003 as Qwest Center Omaha, and adopted the name of CenturyLink Center Omaha on July 15, 2011, as part of a $22 billion buyout of Qwest by CenturyLink (formerly CenturyTel). In July 2018, CHI Health bought the naming rights to the arena under a 20-year agreement worth $23.6 million, and the arena was renamed CHI Health Center Omaha effective September 1, that year.Just west of the Missouri River, the elevation at street level is approximately 1,000 feet (300 m) above sea level. The arena hosts basketball and hockey games, professional wrestling events, concerts, and the annual shareholders' meeting of Omaha-based conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway, usually held on the first Saturday of May. The arena's primary tenant is the Creighton University men's basketball team. Through the 2014–15 NCAA ice hockey season, the Omaha Mavericks men's ice hockey team, representing the University of Nebraska Omaha, was also a primary tenant, but the Mavericks moved to the new Baxter Arena effective with the 2015–16 season.