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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Nebraska_Omaha
The University of Nebraska Omaha (UNO) is a four-year state university located in Omaha, Nebraska. Founded in 1908 as Omaha University, the institution became the public Municipal University of Omaha in 1931. It assumed its current name in 1968 following a merger into the University of Nebraska. The institution has a strong tradition of serving commuter students from within Omaha, but in recent years has developed student housing. On October 8, 2008, the University of Nebraska Omaha celebrated its 100th year of existence.
The original Omaha University was founded in 1908 in the Kountze Place neighborhood of North Omaha. The first classes were located in the Redick Mansion, once at North 24th and Pratt Streets, from 1909 through 1917. As the university was established a few blocks north of the Presbyterian Theological Seminary, most of its early faculty were recruited from Seminary teachers, as well as the faculty of Bellevue College. There were 26 students in the first year, most of whom had graduated from Omaha Central High School. Three of the University's first four presidents were ordained Presbyterian ministers.[3][4] Two other buildings on the original campus included Jacobs Hall, a gymnasium erected in 1910, and Joslyn Hall, a classroom building erected in 1917.
Jacobs Hall was a gymnasium facing North 24th Street, built with $14,000 from the sale of land donated by Lillian Maul. The land, the first donation to the university, was near the present West Dodge campus of the university. It was the first new building constructed on the university campus. Joslyn Hall was built with funds donated by a well-known resident, George A. Joslyn. Donating $25,000 toward the building, he stipulated the school match that with another $25,000 in a year. The building was located just north of Redick Hall and was finished in January 1917. Joslyn Hall had three stories and a basement, with a total of thirty classrooms that accommodated 750 students. The building included chemistry and physics laboratories, an auditorium and music department.[5] Redick Hall was sold and moved in February 1917 to Minnesota, where it was adapted for use in a resort.
In the early 1920s a proposed "magnificent campus" was slated for development between 21st and 25th Avenues, bounded by Kountze Park and the Carter Lake Park. In 1927, businessmen formed the North Omaha Activities Association in order to redevelop Saratoga School's playing field into a football field for the University's football team. With new bleachers built to accommodate a crowd of one thousand, the Saratoga Field was home to OU's football team until 1951.[6] The school also served as OU's science call from 1917 to 1926.[7]
The university moved from the North Omaha campus to its present main location at 60th and Dodge Street in 1938. The old campus buildings were redeveloped for a time as apartments and offices. In June 1964 Jacobs and Joslyn halls were the last two original OU buildings at 24th & Pratt Streets to be demolished. They were taken down in the early 1960s to make way for a 12-story Omaha Housing Authority apartment building for the elderly, which was completed in 1965.[5]
Dr. Milo Bail became president of Omaha University in 1948 and served until 1965. During that time, Omaha hotel magnate Eugene C. Eppley's foundation gave more than $1.2 million to the university. After Eppley's passing, the Eppley Foundation donated another $50,000 to recruit distinguished professors. The Eugene C. Eppley Administration Building, designed by John Latenser, Sr.,[7] at the university was named in recognition of the gifts.[8][9] In 1952 the national Silver Wings student organization was founded at the University of Omaha. In 1976 the Dr. C.C. and Mabel L. Criss Library replaced the Eppley Library.