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2014 Events

2014 Current Events in Historic Florence:

• January 2014
  • None
  
  
• February 2014
  • Sunday, Feb. 9th, 2014:
    • Dr. Marguerita Washington & the History of the Omaha Star
      • 2 P.M. at Metropolitan Community College, Fort Omaha Campus, Building 10, Room 110
      • Reservations Required
      • General Crook House 5730 N. 30 St, #11B ()
      • The talk is free for DCHS members; A $5 donation is requested of non-members
      • Information: 402-455-9990 or Douglas County Historical Society
    
    
  • Sunday, Feb. 23rd, 2014:
    • Florentine Players audition for May Melodrama “Where Is My Wandering Girl Tonight?” or “Who's Your Hero?”,
      Time: 12 P.M.
      Auditions: 402-517-6229
      Reservations: 402-871-8791
      Located at Florence City Hall, 2864 State Street ()
      
      
  • Monday, Feb. 24th, 2014:
    • Florentine Players audition for May Melodrama “Where Is My Wandering Girl Tonight?” or “Who's Your Hero?”,
      Time: 7 P.M.
      Auditions: 402-517-6229
      Reservations: 402-871-8791
      Located at Florence City Hall, 2864 State Street ()
      
      
  • Tuesday, Feb. 25th, 2014:
    • Douglas County Historical Society - A Page from our Past with Dennis Mihelich
      • First Telegraph Line Across the Continent: Charles Brown's 1861 Diary edited by Dennis Mihelich and James E. Potter
      • 6 P.M. to 7 P.M. at Douglas County Historical Society Library Archives Center
      • Reservations Required
      • General Crook House 5730 N. 30 St, #11A ()
      • Seating is limited to 20 participants
      • The talk is $5 for DCHS members, $10 for non-members
      • Reservations and Information: 402-455-9990 or Douglas County Historical Society
    
    
  
  
• March 2014
  • March 9th at 2 P.M.:
    • Douglas County Historical Society Second Sunday Talk 
      Location: Swanson Conference Center, Institute for the Culinary Arts, Metropolitan Community College, 32nd and Sorensen Parkway ()
      • "Military Balloon Observation and Fort Omaha's Role in Training for WWI"

        • Presented by David Bristow and John Ellis Peterson

          Douglas County Historical Society will host David Bristow and John Peterson for our March Second Sunday Talk on military balloon observation and Fort Omaha's role in training for WWI. The Talk will take place from at 2 p.m. on March 9, 2014 in the Swanson Conference Center at Metropolitan Community College's Fort Omaha campus. The Swanson Conference Center is located on the second floor of the Institute for the Culinary Arts building on the South side of campus.

          David L. Bristow is associate director for publications at the Nebraska State Historical Society and editor of Nebraska History. He is the author of two books, Sky Sailors: True Stories of the Balloon Era (Farrar, Straus and Girioux), and A Dirty, Wicked Town: Tales of Nineteenth Century Omaha (Caxton), as well as numerous articles. He blogs at thecuriouspeople.wordpress.com. Bristow will start the lecture by providing a general history of military balloon observation, beginning in the late 1700s.

          John Ellis Peterson graduated from the University of Nebraska Lincoln with a degree in architecture along with a commission as an officer in the U.S. Army, Corps of Engineers. Peterson commanded a construction platoon in England, who built the runways at Chelveston Airbase during the 1950s. Upon returning to the States, John worked as an architect for several firms in the Omaha area including the architectural firm of Dana Larson and Roubal, until his retirement in the late 1990s. John continues to work occasionally as a consultant along with hobbies including art, fly fishing and target shooting. John's father received his WWI Balloon Observation training at Fort Omaha and he will relate his father's experiences through pictures and artifacts.

        • The talk is free for DCHS members; A $5 donation is requested of non-members.
        • Reservations are required. Please email members@douglascohistory.org or call: 402-455-9990 to reserve your spot.
    
    
  • Saturday, Mar. 15th, 2014:
    • Florentine Players March Production - "Battle of the Improv All-Stars! Featuring teams from all across the Metro area. (Note: May Contain Adult Humor)",
      Time: 7 P.M.
      Information 402-871-8791
      Located at Florence City Hall, 2864 State Street ()
      
      
  • March 25th at 6 P.M.:
    • Douglas County Historical Society A Page From Our Past 
      Location: DCHS Library Archives Center, 5730 N. 30 Street () or 32nd and Sorensen Parkway () at north end (last building on left)
      • "Cigars and Wires: The Omaha Underworld's Early Years by Jon Blecha"
        • Pre-registration is required, Please email outreach@douglascohistory.org or call: 402-455-9990 to reserve your spot.
        • Seating is limited to 20 participants
        • Cost is $5 for members, $10 for non-members
        • DCHS Library Archives Center
        • Jon Blecha, author of Cigars and Wires: The Omaha Underworld's Early Years, was hired by the Omaha Police Department in October 1974. During part of his career, Jon worked the Intelligence Unit where he gained a special insight into Omaha's more current underworld. Jon retired as a sergeant in July 2007 after serving 32 years and 9 months. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice from the University of Nebraska at Omaha. Cigars and Wires chronicles some of the central figures and major events of Omaha's underworld from the 1920s to the early 1980s.
    
    
  
  
• April 2014
  • Sunday, Apr. 13th, 2014 (Palm Sunday):
    • St. Philip Neri Church Annual Roast Beef Dinner
    • Location: St Philip Neri Blessed Sacrament Parish at 8200 N 30th St (In Omaha's Historic Florence Area)
    • Event Start Time: 11 A.M. CDT
    • Event End Time: 6 P.M. CDT
    • Event Cost: Adult $7.50; Kids (6-12) $4.00; Under 5 Free
    • Contact Phone: Rim Kiuntke / 402-571-8600
      Invites you to their Annual Roast Beef Dinner on Palm Sunday, April 13^th from 11:30 - 6 P.M., downstairs in the Parish Center.
      Featuring tender sliced roast beef with all the fixings, and delicious homemade salads & desserts. Takeouts available too!
      Elevator also available for handicap access.
      Located at St Philip Neri Blessed Sacrament Parish, 8200 N 30th Street ()
      
      
  • April 13th 2 P.M.-3 P.M.:
    • Douglas County Historical Society Second Sunday Talk 
      Location: Building 10, room 110 at Historic Fort Omaha, 32nd and Sorensen Parkway ()
      • "Omaha's historic clothing establishments."

        • Presented by Kathy Aultz and Nebraska Jewish Historical Society Executive Director Renee Corcoran

          Remember when downtown was the place to shop? Or South Omaha's Philip's Department Store? What was your fondest memory of Brandeis? Come share your story of your favorite shopping destination in this audience participation Second Sunday Talk!

        • The talk is free for DCHS members; A $5 donation is requested of non-members.
        • Reservations are required. Please email members@douglascohistory.org or call: 402-455-9990 to reserve your spot.
    
    
  • April 22nd, 2014 6 P.M. to 7 P.M.:
    • Douglas County Historical Society A Page From Our Past 
      • Pamela Nowak will be discussing her latest novel, "CHANGES"
        • Nowak's novel, CHANGES is set in 1879 Omaha. Lead character, Lisa Dupree has earned a respected place as Omaha's head librarian by hiding her part-Sioux heritage. But when she learns her ailing aunt has been arrested with a band of Ponca Indians, she agrees to help mount a legal battle, never realizing her actions will force her to change the way she defines herself.
      • Pre-registration is required, Please email outreach@douglascohistory.org or call: 402-455-9990 to reserve your spot.
      • Seating is limited to 20 participants
      • Cost is $5 for members, $10 for non-members
      • Location: DCHS Library Archives Center, 5730 N. 30 Street () or 32nd and Sorensen Parkway () at north end (last building on left)
    
    
  
  
• May 2014
  • May 3rd, 2014 (Saturday):
    • Fish Fry:
      • Wesley Dean Memorial Fish & Spaghetti Dinner.   
      • Eat in or Take Out
        Adults: $12.00, Children: $6.00
        Dinner includes whole catfish, spaghetti, coleslaw, cornbread/bread, dessert
        Location: The Church of the Resurrection (Episcopal)
        3004 Belvedere Blvd (()).
        Time: 12 A.M. to 6 P.M.
        402-455-7015
      
      
  • May 4th, 2014 (Sunday):
    • Notre Dame Sisters Annual Pork Dinner.  (See details) 
      Location: at St. Phillip Neri Activities Center 8200 N 30th St (30th & Mormon Street) (()).
      Time: 11 A.M. to 4 P.M.
      
      
  • May 8th-10th, 2014 (Thursday-Saturday):
    • Florentine Players 51st Annual Melodrama,
      “Where Is My Wandering Girl Tonight?” or “Who's Your Hero?”
      Ticket Prices: $10, Seniors & Groups of 8 or more: $8; available by mail, or at the door.
      Doors open 6 P.M. (one hour before curtain).
      Show starts at 7 P.M. Thu-Fri-Sat
      Located at Florence City Hall, 2864 State Street ()
      Information 402-871-8791 or 402-871-8791
    • Auditions for this show: February 23 & 24 (Sunday-Monday) - 7 P.M.
    
    
  • May 9th at 5 P.M.:
    • Douglas County Historical Society A Staged Reading of A New Play by Mary Kathryn Nagle 
      
      • Itinerary:
        • 5 P.M. Reception General Crook House
        • 7 P.M. - 8 P.M. Staged Reading Swanson Conference Center
        • 8 P.M. - 9 P.M. Talk Back Panel Discussion Swanson Conference Center
        • Reservations are required. Please email members@douglascohistory.org or call: 402-455-9990 to reserve your spot.
      • Locations:
        • General Crook House 5730 N. 30 St, #11B ()
        • Swanson Conference Center, Institute for the Culinary Arts, Metropolitan Community College, 32nd and Sorensen Parkway ()
    
    
  • May 10th and 11th, 2014 (Saturday and Sunday) Second weekend of May, 10 A.M. - ?:
    • Florence Days 

      The Florence Days Newspaper (online version)

      • Florence Days Parade, 1:00-3 P.M. CDT from Miller Park to McKinley Street.
        •  Parade Announcement
        • There are several new entries in this very special year's parade.  See Parade Details | See pictures from the 2007 parade.
          
          
    
    
  • Wednesday, May 21st, 2014:
    • Florence Mill - Great Plains Theater Conference play: "Wood Music." - a Sneak Peek
      • Come for a FREE wine & cheese & welcome to the Writers, Director, and many actors who will be fresh off the May 21 plane from New York.
      • Come welcome the cast, see the birth of "Wood Music"... and then on May 30 attend its world-premier performance!
      • 7 P.M. to ?
      • Florence Mill 9102 North 30th Street, ()
    
    
  • Tuesday, May 27th, 2014:
    • Douglas County Historical Society - A Page from our Past with Barbara Eymann Mohrman HAS BEEN POSTPONED
      • Four Blue Stars in the Window: One Family's Story of the Great Depression, the Dust Bowl, and the Duty of a Generation
      • 6 P.M. to 7 P.M. at Douglas County Historical Society Library Archives Center
      • Reservations Required
      • General Crook House 5730 N. 30 St, #11A ()
      • Seating is limited to 20 participants
      • The talk is $5 for DCHS members, $10 for non-members
      • Reservations and Information e-mail members@douglascohistory.org or call: 402-455-9990 x101
      • Douglas County Historical Society
    
    
  • Friday, May 30th, 2014:
    • Florence Mill - Great Plains Theater Conference play: "Wood Music."
      • Written by: Jack Frederick and John Gasper of the St. Fortune Collective
      • Director: Elena Araoz
      • 7 P.M. to ?
      • Florence Mill 9102 North 30th Street, ()
    
    
  • May 8-June 30th, 2014 (Wednesday through Sunday (Sunday: 10 A.M. to 3 P.M.)):
    • Florence Mill's ArtLoft: "Wood Music" by designers from NYC St Fortune Theater for the Great Plains Theater Conference performance.
    • Time: 1 P.M. - 5 P.M. Tuesday-Sunday.
    • Reception, May 11, 2014 at 1 P.M. to 4 P.M.
    • Located at Florence Mill, 9102 N 30th Street ()
    • Information: 402-551-1233
      
      
  
  
• June 2014
  • Sunday, Jun. 1st, 2014:
    • Florence Mill - Farmer's Market
      • with Pony Rides, Poultry Display, Giant Bubbles, Miss Joan's Craft-Table, Live Music and More...
      • Country-fun, fresh & local produce, plants, agricultural products, artisan crafts and soothing massage.
      • Artsy friends and collectors of African artifacts: African trader, Abu is back this Sunday on his trek from New York with beads, mud-cloth and other tribal items.
      • First Sundays Live Music (after noon)... "Ring of Flutes"
      • 10 A.M. to 3 P.M.
      • Florence Mill 9102 North 30th Street, ()
    
    
  • June 6th, 2014 (Friday):
    • Ponca Hills Volunteer Fire Department: Annual Dance
      • Featuring the Jason Earl Band.   
      • Location: The Fire Barn
        12919 Ponca RD (()).
        Time: 8 P.M. to 1 A.M.
        Phone: 402-453-6656
      
      
  • Sunday, Jun. 8th, 2014:
    • Florence Mill - Farmer's Market
      • with Alpacas of the Heartland, Live Music and More...
      • Country-fun, fresh & local produce, plants, agricultural products, artisan crafts and soothing massage.
      • Second Sunday Live Music (after noon)... participatory... An old time "Bluegrass Circle Jam"
      • 10 A.M. to 3 P.M.
      • Florence Mill 9102 North 30th Street, ()
    
    
  • June 8th 2 P.M.-3 P.M.:
    • Douglas County Historical Society Second Sunday Talk 
      Location: Building 21, "Mule Barn" at Historic Fort Omaha, 32nd and Sorensen Parkway ()
      • "The Swan Gondola" by Timothy Schaffert
        • He will be discussing his latest novel, The Swan Gondola, a love story set against the backdrop of the 1898 Omaha World's Fair. Schaffert grew up on a farm in Nebraska and currently lives in Omaha. His short fiction has been published in several literary journals and he's won numerous awards, including the Mary Roberts Rinehart Award and the Nebraska Book Award.
          
          He is the author of two other critically-acclaimed novels, The Singing and Dancing Daughters of God and Devils in the Sugar Shop.
        • The talk is free for DCHS members; A $5 donation is requested of non-members.
        • Reservations are required. Please email members@douglascohistory.org or call: 402-455-9990 to reserve your spot.
    
    
  • Tuesday, Jun. 24th, 2014:
    • Douglas County Historical Society - A Page from our Past
      • Nebraska Women in Journalism by Eileen M. Wirth
      • Douglas County Historical Society (DCHS) will feature Nebraska author Eileen M. Wirth's book From Society Page to Front Page: Nebraska Women in Journalism at our June 24th Page from Our Past author event taking place from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the DCHS Library Archives Center. The program focuses on history-based authors, both of fiction and non-fiction, and is held the fourth Tuesday of each month in the evening. A Page from Our Past is a casual and intimate roundtable discussion, where the audience has the opportunity to get up close and personal with the authors. Each program concludes with a book signing and time to meet one-on-one with the featured author.
      • Eileen M. Wirth is a professor and chair of the Department of Journalism, Media and Computing at Creighton University. She never set out to be a groundbreaker for women in journalism, but if she wanted to report on social issues instead of society news, she had no alternative. Her years as one of the first women reporters at the Omaha World-Herald, covering gender barriers even as she broke a few herself, give Wirth an especially apt perspective on the women profiled in this book: those Nebraskans who, over a hundred years, challenged traditional feminine roles in journalism and subtly but surely changed the world.
      • From Society Page to Front Page features remarkable women journalists who worked in every venue, from rural weeklies to TV. They fought for the vote, better working conditions for immigrants, and food safety at the turn of the century. They covered wars from the Russian Revolution to Vietnam. They were White House reporters and minority journalists who crusaded for civil rights. Though Willa Cather may be the only household name among them, all are memorable, their stories affording a first-hand look into the history of journalism and social change.
      • 6 P.M. to 7 P.M. CDT at Douglas County Historical Society Library Archives Center
      • Reservations Required
      • General Crook House 5730 N. 30 St, #11A ()
      • Seating is limited to 20 participants
      • The talk is $5 for DCHS members, $10 for non-members
      • Reservations and Information e-mail members@douglascohistory.org or call: 402-455-9990 x101
      • Douglas County Historical Society
    
    
  
  
• July 2014
  • July 13th at 2 P.M.:
    • Douglas County Historical Society Second Sunday Talk 
      Location: Metropolitan Community College, Fort Omaha Campus, Building 10, 5730 N. 30th Street, #11B ()
      • "River City Empire: Tom Dennison's Omaha"

        • Laurie Smith Camp, Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Nebraska, will discuss Orville Menard's book River City Empire: Tom Dennison's Omaha, for which she wrote the introduction.

          For 30 years, Omaha was a town with a boss: Tom Dennison, a rough, ambitious frontiersman who had owned a saloon in Colorado and moved to Omaha with enough money to set up an empire. Reportedly, nothing happened without Dennison's say-so, from the pettiest of petty crimes to the affairs of the mayor's office. He ran much of downtown, building an entire neighborhood of vice known as the Sporting District. And when Prohibition came to Nebraska, it was an opportunity for Tom Dennison to take further power -- but it was also the beginning of his end.

        • The talk is free for DCHS members; A $5 donation is requested of non-members.
        • Reservations are required. Please email members@douglascohistory.org or call: 402-455-9990 to reserve your spot.
    
    
  • July 19th at 12 P.M. to 2 P.M. CDT:
    • Douglas County Historical Society Photoplay 
      Location: General Crook House, 5730 N. 30th Street, #11B ()
      • Douglas County Historical Society will tell new stories about several unidentified photos of the collection. Seven of Omaha's best playwrights have each selected a photograph that they found especially mysterious, interesting, or curious, and have written a 10-minute monologue based on the image. These monologues will attempt to imagine the story behind the image, and each monologue will be set in Douglas County, where the images originated.
        • Six Omaha actors will perform the monologues, each in a different room (and the garden) of the General Crook House. This historic home will provide an elegant backdrop for the monologues, and provide newcomers an opportunity to familiarize themselves with the lovingly restored Victorian general's house.
        • Tickets for the event are $10. Tickets are limited, so please call 402-455-9990 to make a reservation.
    
    
  • Tuesday, Jul. 22nd, 2014:
    • Douglas County Historical Society - A Page from our Past with James J. Kimble
      • Prairie Forge: The Extraordinary Story of the Nebraska Scrap Metal Drive of World War II
      • 6 P.M. to 7 P.M. CDT at Douglas County Historical Society Library Archives Center
      • Address: 5730 N. 30 St, #11A ()
      • In the wake of Pearl Harbor, President Roosevelt called for the largest arms buildup in our nation's history. A shortage of steel, however, quickly slowed the program's momentum, and arms production fell dangerously behind schedule. The country needed scrap metal. Henry Doorly, publisher of the Omaha World-Herald, had the solution. Prairie Forge tells the story of the great Nebraska scrap drive of 1942-a campaign that swept the nation and yielded five million tons of scrap metal, literally salvaging the war effort itself.
      • James J. Kimble chronicles Doorly's conception of a fierce competition pitting county against county, business against business, and, in schools across the state, class against class-inspiring Nebraskans to gather 67,000 tons of scrap metal in only three weeks. This astounding feat provided the template for a national drive. A tale of plowshares turned into arms, Prairie Forge gives the first full account of how home became home front for so many civilians.
      • Reservations Required
      • Seating is limited to 20 participants
      • The talk is $5 for DCHS members, $10 for non-members
      • Reservations and Information: 402-455-9990 or Douglas County Historical Society
      • The Page from our Past program focuses on history-based authors, both of fiction and non-fiction, and is held the fourth Tuesday of each month in the evening. A Page from Our Past is a casual and intimate roundtable discussion, where the audience has the opportunity to get up close and personal with the authors. Each program concludes with a book signing and time to meet one-on-one with the featured author.
    
    
  
  
• August 2014
  • August 7th-10th:
    • Douglas County Historical Society Garage Sale 
      Location: 720 N. 114th, next to Bag 'N Sav, 720 N. 114th Street ()
      • Featuring tables of items including books, household items, collectibles, antiques and much more
      • Open hours
        • 9 A.M. to 7 P.M. on Thursday and Friday
        • 9 A.M. to 4 P.M. on Saturday and Sunday
      • Phone: 402-455-9990 for more details.
    
    
  • August 10th at 2 P.M.:
    • Douglas County Historical Society Second Sunday Talk 
      Location: Metropolitan Community College, Fort Omaha Campus, Building 10, Room 110 5730 N. 30th Street, #11B ()
      • "Omaha: A Great Town for Cars"

        • We provide a look at Omaha's automotive legacy, featuring panelists Barney Deden, Jan McKelvie and Buzz Fleek. Come ready to share your own experiences!

          Learn the story of the horseless carriage and its evolution from oddity to ordinary in our current Heartland of America Park exhibit, Omaha's Auto-Biography. Topics include early inventors, the Ford Motor Company plant at 16th and Cuming, roads and bridges, traffic rules, dealerships, parts suppliers, service stations, drive-ins and leisure activities.

        • The talk is free for DCHS members; A $5 donation is requested of non-members.
        • Reservations are required. Please email members@douglascohistory.org or call: 402-455-9990 to reserve your spot.
    
    
  • August 21st - 23rd (Thursday-Saturday):
    • Florentine Players - "Oscar"  A Farce of the Finest (21st:, 22nd:, 23rd:)
      Phone: 402-871-8791
      Time: Doors open at 6 P.M.; show starts at 7 P.M. CDT Located at Florence City Hall, 2864 State Street ()
      
      
  • August 17th at 9 A.M.:
    • Douglas County Historical Society Vintage Wheels at the Fort 
      Location: Metropolitan Community College, General Crook House 5730 N. 30th Street, #11B ()
      • Details:

        • From 9 A.M. to 4 P.M. CDT

          This year's show is a free family event presented by DCHS and the Meadowlark Model A Club and featuring over 70 pre-1960 vintage cars. Club members will be selling food at the event.

          During Vintage Wheels at the Fort, join DCHS for our garden opening! Stop by for a glass of lemonade and to see the progress of the Heirloom Garden renovation outside the General Crook House Museum. The Garden contains nearly 100 varieties of plants that would have been found in gardens during the 1800s. Come enjoy the beauty of this unique setting!

          Vintage Wheels at the Fort takes place at Historic Fort Omaha, just across the street from the General Crook House Museum. Stop by the museum for free tours, a chance to meet General Crook and a family scavenger hunt.

    
    
  • August 17th, 2014 (Sunday):
    • Ponca Hills Volunteer Fire Department: Annual Summer Barbecue
      • Location: The Fire Barn
        12919 Ponca Rd. (()).
        Time: 12 P.M. to 6 P.M. CDT
        Phone: 402-453-6656
      
      
  • Tuesday, Aug. 26th, 2014:
    • Douglas County Historical Society - A Page from our Past with Jeff Barnes
      • The Great Plains Guide to Buffalo Bill: Forts, Fights and Other Sites by Jeff Barnes
      • 6 P.M. to 7 P.M. at Douglas County Historical Society Library Archives Center
      • Address: 5730 N. 30 St, #11A ()
      • August's Page from Our Past features author Jeff Barnes and his book The Great Plains Guide to Buffalo Bill: Forts, Fights and Other Sites. This book provides a guide to residences, forts, battlefields, and other sites that interpret Buffalo Bill's life on the Great Plains including locations in Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and Wyoming, helpful maps to pinpoint key locations, dozens of photographs from both past and present and it includes directions, visitor information, related sites, and recommended reading.
      • "Anyone interested in the history of the West will enjoy this latest book by Jeff Barnes. He carefully examines the accounts of William F. 'Buffalo Bill' Cody's life--some true, some fictional, and others in between--and places them within the context of the Great Plains, and America as a whole, guiding readers to sites associated with Buffalo Bill and the momentous times in which he lived. It's an entertaining and helpful guide to both past and place." --Steve Friesen, director of the Buffalo Bill Museum
      • Reservations Required
      • Seating is limited to 20 participants
      • The talk is $5 for DCHS members, $10 for non-members
      • Reservations and Information: 402-455-9990 or Douglas County Historical Society
      • The Page from our Past program focuses on history-based authors, both of fiction and non-fiction, and is held the fourth Tuesday of each month in the evening. A Page from Our Past is a casual and intimate roundtable discussion, where the audience has the opportunity to get up close and personal with the authors. Each program concludes with a book signing and time to meet one-on-one with the featured author.
    
    
  
  
• September 2014
  • September 14th at 2 P.M.:
    • Douglas County Historical Society Second Sunday Talk 
      Location: Metropolitan Community College, Fort Omaha Campus, Building 10, 5730 N. 30th Street, #11B ()
      • "On The Mat: Presented by Max Sparber"

        • Omaha was once home to what the World-Herald dubbed the "science of the pad" and "fistiana" - the world of wrestlers and boxers. They fought, they bled, and they left a colorful legacy in Douglas County.

          This September, the Douglas County Historical looks at mortal combat in the Gate City. There will be opportunities to discuss so please come ready to share your own stories! Learn about:

          • Farmer Burns, one of wrestling's early greats, who had a neck so thick he would have himself hanged and then whistle "Yankee Doodle." He also started a wrestling school in Omaha that trained three world champions.
          • Max Baer, a meat packing plant employee with a powerful punch, who lived his life haunted by the man he killed in the ring, and whose son was one of the stars of "The Beverly Hillbillies."
          • Baron von Raschke, a wrestling "heel" (bad guy) who marched through the ring with a Teutonic title and felled his opponents with the "brainclaw" - a grip so powerful it would render opponents unconscious, and so terrifying that networks censored it with a red X on the screen.
          • Vince Foster, a Native-American boxer with a troubled past and a promising future, who was profiled by Life Magazine, and whose career was cut short by an auto accident.
          • Bruce "Mouse" Strauss, who claimed he was the only boxer to be knocked out on every continent, and who was the subject of a feature film in which audiences were expected to root for Strauss to lose the climactic fight.
        • The talk is free for DCHS members; A $5 donation is requested of non-members.
        • Reservations are required. Please email members@douglascohistory.org or call: 402-455-9990 to reserve your spot.
    
    
  • September 21st (Sunday):
    • St. Phillip Neri Annual Parish Festival. Details 
      Time: Noon-6 P.M. CDT
      Location of event: 8200 N 30th St (30th & Mormon Street) (()).
      Cost: Free
      Contact Phone: Rectory Office: 402-455-1289 Tim Kiuntke/Publicity Chair: 402-571-8600.
      
      
  
  
• October 2014
  • October 4th-5th, 2014:
    • Omaha North Hills Pottery Tour at the Florence Mill
      Located at Florence Mill, 9102 N 30th Street ()
    • Times:
      • Saturday: 10 A.M. to 7 P.M.
      • Sunday: 10 A.M. - 5 P.M.
    • Full Pottery Tour details
    • Information: 402-551-1233
    
    
  • October 5th (Sunday):
    • Tombstone Tour - 2014.
    • North Tour:
      • Our first tour, on October 5, will take us to four cemeteries in North Omaha, including the Springwell Danish cemetery, the Temple Israel cemetery, Prospect Hill and Forest Lawn. Learn about Omaha's ethnic past, the unique mortuary practices of ethnic groups, and the leaders and local characters they have produced.
    • With refreshments provided at each cemetery stop, we will toast to the memory of those who have gone before us. Your tour guide will regale you with cryptic commentary, plus you'll receive a souvenir booklet on cemetery history.
    • The tour begins and ends at the Crook House, Historic Fort Omaha (arrive at 1 P.M.; bus departs at 2 P.M.) and returns at 5 P.M. CDT
    • Ticket Prices: $45 for members; $50 for non-members (Reservations required before September 26th).
    • Time: 1 P.M. to 5 P.M.
    • Located at Douglas County Historical Society, 5730 N. 30 St, #11B ()
    • Information: 402-455-9990
    
    
  • October 12th (Sunday):
    • Tombstone Tour - 2014.
    • South Tour:
      • On our second tour on October 12, we will be visiting the cemeteries of western Douglas County, including Valley Cemetery, Elkhorn Prospect Hill, and Pleasant Hill. This was once the frontier of the frontier, an uncompromising land where immigrant settlers battled to create a home for themselves. Learn their stories and see their final resting places!
    • With refreshments provided at each cemetery stop, we will toast to the memory of those who have gone before us. Your tour guide will regale you with cryptic commentary, plus you'll receive a souvenir booklet on cemetery history.
    • The tour begins and ends at the Crook House, Historic Fort Omaha (arrive at 1 P.M.; bus departs at 2 P.M.) and returns at 5 P.M.
    • Ticket Prices: $45 for members; $50 for non-members (Reservations required before October 3rd).
    • Time: 1 P.M. to 5 P.M.
    • Located at Douglas County Historical Society, 5730 N. 30 St, #11B ()
    • Information: 402-455-9990
    
    
  • October 12th, 2014 (Sunday):
    • Ponca Hills Volunteer Fire Department: Annual Pancake Fundraiser
      • Location: The Fire Barn
        12919 Ponca RD (()).
        Time: 8 A.M. to 1 P.M.
        Phone: 402-453-6656
    
    
  • October 17th-18th (Friday-Saturday):
    • Florentine Players - 2014 October - Return of the Florence Horror Show. 
      A Variety Show
      
    • Ticket Prices: $15 (Reservations required).
      
    • In past years:
      • $15 gets a cup and unlimited beer. Snacks available.
      • Dress for the occasion! (Hint: The Audience is part of the show).
    • Reservations: 402-871-8791
    • Time: Doors open at 6 P.M.; show starts at 7 P.M. CDT
    • Located at Florence City Hall, 2864 State Street ()
    
    
  • October 19th:
    • Douglas County Historical Society Antique Attic Sale 
      Location: Firefighters' Union Hall 60th and Grover, 60th and Grover ()
      • Take advantage of the opportunity to shop for antique and vintage treasures. Register for door prizes! Enjoy homemade cinnamon rolls and soup! The $2 admission fee will benefit the General Crook House Museum.
      • Open hours
        • 10 A.M. to 4 P.M. CDT
      • A sampling of what you will find
        • CHINA, PORCELAIN AND POTTERY. Salt glaze crock, Roberts butter crock, flow blue, Toby mug, RS Prussia, butter pats, Victorian and retro china, Rockingham Duke of Wellington pitcher, tea cups and saucers, salt and pepper shakers, figurines.
        • FURNITURE. Antique chairs, child's rocker, and pine quilt rack.
        • GLASS. Antique glass tumblers, butter dishes, celery vase and perfume bottles; cut; pattern; carnival; Fenton; milk; ruby; Venetian; punch bowl with 18 cups; glasses with gas pump advertising.
        • JEWELRY. Antique, collectible, artisan; marble jewelry box.
        • LAMPS & LIGHTING. 1950's floor lamp, table lamps.
        • LINENS. Antique, some with lace; pillows; retro print twin sheet set; crocheted throw; aprons; towels.
        • PAPER. Calling cards, postcards, children's books, Ford Thunderbird/Cougar book, 1949 Omaha City Directory.
        • PICTURES AND FRAMES. Old prints/engravings, some scenic; silhouette pictures; and antique free-standing wooden frames.
        • SOUVENIRS & MEMORABILIA. Trans-Mississippi and other World's Fair items; WBA basketball; Nebr. Sports collectibles.
        • TOYS. Wind-up train, Victorian doll swing, dolls, Smokey the Bear.
        • MISCELLANEOUS. Antique sewing items, rag rugs, beaded bags, silver, granite ware, tin plates, chalkware, brass rabbit, oak primitives, leaded glass windows, metal pail, metal flower frogs.
      • Proceeds benefit the General Crook House Museum
    
    
  • Tuesday, Oct. 28th, 2014:
    • Douglas County Historical Society - A Page from our Past
      • Our Journey Together, Sisters of Mercy of Omaha 1929-1959 and Home is Our Journey, Sisters of Mercy of Omaha 1960-2008 by Kathleen O'Brien, RSM
      • 6 P.M. to 7 P.M. at Douglas County Historical Society Library Archives Center
      • Address: 5730 N. 30 St, #11A ()
      • Douglas County Historical Society (DCHS) will feature Nebraska author Kathleen O'Brien, RSM and her books Our Journey Together, Sisters of Mercy of Omaha 1929-1959 and Home is Our Journey, Sisters of Mercy of Omaha 1960-2008 at our October 28th Page from Our Past author event taking place from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the DCHS Library Archives Center. The program focuses on history-based authors, both of fiction and non-fiction, and is held the fourth Tuesday of each month in the evening. A Page from Our Past is a casual and intimate roundtable discussion, where the audience has the opportunity to get up close and personal with the authors. Each program concludes with a book signing and time to meet one-on-one with the featured author.
      • Story-telling is a wonderful gift which ensures continuity in human experience and transfers energy from one generation to the next. Kathleen O'Brien, a consummate story-teller, understands that facts and events are not the key of history well-written, but rather personalities and motivations.
      • In her two-volume work - Our Journey Together and Home is Our Journey - she uses the metaphor of travel to create a sense of movement and discovery, of destinations and detours, of known and unknown terrains. Throughout Our Journey Together the reader is aware that "fear salted [these] new adventures, [yet] the spice of excitement proved more pungent." (Chapter Two).
      • Our Journey Together and Home is Our Journey are written for Sisters of Mercy and their colleagues; but these works are also written for all who delight in the manner in which ordinary travelers occasionally rise to extraordinary choices and thus change life for all those who follow in their path. In other words, these works are written for all who delight in history well-told. -Helen Marie Burns, RSM, co-author, Praying with Catherine McAuley
      • Reservations Required
      • Seating is limited to 20 participants
      • The talk is $5 for DCHS members, $10 for non-members
      • Reservations and Information: 402-455-9990 or Douglas County Historical Society
      • The Page from our Past program focuses on history-based authors, both of fiction and non-fiction, and is held the fourth Tuesday of each month in the evening. A Page from Our Past is a casual and intimate roundtable discussion, where the audience has the opportunity to get up close and personal with the authors. Each program concludes with a book signing and time to meet one-on-one with the featured author.
    
    
  
  
• November 2014 • Back
  • Tuesday, Nov. 11th, 2014:
    • Douglas County Historical Society - A Page from our Past with Barbara Eymann Mohrman
      • Four Blue Stars in the Window
      • 6 P.M. to 7 P.M. at Douglas County Historical Society Library Archives Center
      • Address: 5730 N. 30 St, #11A ()
      • Douglas County Historical Society (DCHS) will feature author Barbara Eymann Mohrman's book Four Blue Stars in the Window: One Family's Story of the Great Depression, the Dust Bowl, and the Duty of a Generation at our November 11th Page from Our Past author event taking place from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the DCHS Library Archives Center. The program focuses on history-based authors, both of fiction and non-fiction. A Page from Our Past is a casual and intimate roundtable discussion, where the audience has the opportunity to get up close and personal with the authors. Each program concludes with a book signing and time to meet one-on-one with the featured author.
      • Barbara is a lifelong educator who has taught Spanish and English as a Second Language. She attended Nebraska Wesleyan University where Nebraska Poet Laureate William Kloefkorn was her teacher. She received a master's degree in education from the University of Nebraska at Kearney. A doting grandmother and avid reader, she lives in her home state of Nebraska.
      • Reservations Required
      • Seating is limited to 20 participants
      • The talk is $5 for DCHS members, $10 for non-members
      • Reservations and Information: 402-455-9990 or Douglas County Historical Society
      • The Page from our Past program focuses on history-based authors, both of fiction and non-fiction, and is held the fourth Tuesday of each month in the evening. A Page from Our Past is a casual and intimate roundtable discussion, where the audience has the opportunity to get up close and personal with the authors. Each program concludes with a book signing and time to meet one-on-one with the featured author.
    
    
  • Thursday, Nov. 20th, 2014:
    • Douglas County Historical Society - Gerald Dickens - The Signalman
      • 6 P.M. to 8 P.M. at Douglas County Historical Society General Crook House Museum
      • Address: 5730 N. 30 St, #11B ()
      • Reservations Required
      • The price is $75
      • Reservations and Information: To reserve seats
    
    
  • Friday, Nov. 21st, 2014:
    • Douglas County Historical Society - Gerald Dickens - Nicholas Nickleby
      • 6 P.M. to 8 P.M. at Douglas County Historical Society General Crook House Museum
      • Address: 5730 N. 30 St, #11B ()
      • Reservations Required
      • The price is $75
      • Reservations and Information: To reserve seats
    
    
  • Saturday, Nov. 22nd, 2014:
    • Douglas County Historical Society - Gerald Dickens - Doctor Marigold
      • 6 P.M. to 8 P.M. at Douglas County Historical Society General Crook House Museum
      • Address: 5730 N. 30 St, #11B ()
      • Reservations Required
      • The price is $75
      • Reservations and Information: To reserve seats
    
    
  • November 15th-December 28th:
    • Mormon Trail Center Gingerbread House Display 
      8283 N. 34th Street ()
      Open 9 A.M. to 9 P.M. 402-453-9372.
      Gingerbread House Display is open to the public.  See Mormon Trail Center page for more details.
      
      
  
  
• December 2014 • Back
  • December 7th:
    • Annual Bank Open House 
      Location: 8502 N. 30th at Mormon St., 8502 N. 30th St ()
      • Coffee and Cocoa will be served.
      • No reservation is required.
      • The Bank of Florence will have open hours from 3 P.M. to 5 P.M. CST
        • Come get your picture taken with Santa.
          
          
  • December 14th at 2 P.M.:
    • Douglas County Historical Society Second Sunday Talk 
      Location: Metropolitan Community College, Fort Omaha Campus, Building 10, Room 110, 5730 N. 30th Street, #11B ()
      • Bloodletters and Bad Actors
        • Presented by Max Sparber

          Omaha was once home to what the World-Herald dubbed the "science of the pad" and "fistiana" - the world of wrestlers and boxers. They fought, they bled, and they left a colorful legacy in Douglas County.

          DCHS Researcher and playwright Max Sparber will be discussing the fascinating history of theater in Omaha for December's Second Sunday Talk on December 14 at 2 p.m.

          Early Omaha had a theater history just as wild as could be found in any frontier town. Early theaters were often saloons that catered to all sorts of vice, offering up dancing girls and lowbrow entertainment to encourage patrons to part with more of their money. Visitors to the theaters were often robbed blind, performers were badly abused, and owners died in a hail of gunfire. Even in respectable establishments, chaos often ruled, such as when a performing baboon escaped at the Creighton Theater (now the Orpheum), stole a bottle of whiskey, and proceeded to get drunk and smash every mirror in the theater.

          Max will tell a number of these astonishing and amusing tales from early Omaha including a theater that left behind thousands of albino rats to live under the streets of Omaha and an attempted assassination of Wild West star Buffalo Bill, among others!

        • The talk is free for DCHS members; A $5 donation is requested of non-members.
        • Reservations are required. Please email members@douglascohistory.org or call: 402-455-9990 to reserve your spot.
        • The General Crook House will have open hours from 1 P.M. to 4 P.M.
    
    
  • December 20th, 2014 (Saturday):
    • Caroling Party
      Starts at Florence City Hall, 2864 State Street ()
      From 5 P.M. to 11 P.M. The bus leaves promptly at 6 P.M.
      Information: 402-880-9402.
      Bring drink, appetizer, and soup to share.
      We visit shut-ins to sing. See Details for full itinerary
      
      
  
  

Others

• 2015 Events in Florence
  
  
• 2013 Events in Florence
  
  

We rest and prepare for another year from January to early May, although there will be Florentine Players performances starting in January or February, and the Douglas County Historical Society may have some events near Florence that are listed as well.