Color postcard (14 x 9 cm) titled "Bird's Eye View of Omaha, Neb." at the bottom left in the white border area surrounding the image. This is a view of downtown Omaha, Nebraska from an unknown location looking towards downtown. From left to right, the tallest building at the far left is the Omaha Athletic Club located at 1714 Douglas Street; the red building with the white top is the Fontenelle Hotel at 1806 Douglas Street; the first red tower into the horizon is the clock tower from the old City Hall located on northeast corner of 18th & Farnam; the red building seen next with the cupola is the New York Life Building on northeast corner of 17th & Farnam; the white building sticking into the horizon with the flag to the right is the First National Bank Building at southwest corner of 16th & Farnam; the building to the far right is the City National Bank building at the southeast corner of 16th & Harney. The reverse side is dated May 25, 1920.
The Omaha Athletic Club, the red and white building seen towering on the right side of the image was built in 1918. It was the notion of George Brandeis and A. P. Hansen. The ten story structure was designed by the Omaha Latenser architectural firm. The first two stories were faced with Bedford limestone and the upper stories were artistic red brick with stone trip. The interior had a dining room, lounges, bowling alley, fourth-floor swimming pool, gymnasium and furnished rooms for out-of-town guests. It was the scene of major social and business activity and included a garden on the roof where Freddie Ebener's orchestra played for weekend dances. It closed in 1970 and was razed in 1992 and the site is now the home to the Roman L. Hruska Federal Courthouse. Source: Spencer, Jeffrey. Building for the Ages: Omaha's Architectural Landmarks. Omaha, Neb: Omaha Books, 2003, p. 39.
