Color postcard (14 x 9 cm.) with an aerial (birds eye) view of the pens of the Union Stockyards in South Omaha, Nebraska. The view looks down two lines of railroad track. There are rail cars on one set of tracks with pens located on both sides of the track. In the distance is a bridge and on the right are some buildings. The title on the top is "Stock Yards, Omaha, Nebr." and is preceded with the numbers 5280.
Few industries say "Omaha" like the stockyards. The stockyards began in 1883 when Wyoming cattle baron, Alexander Swan, wanted a livestock market closer than Chicago, IL. Together with six local businessmen, he formed the Union Stockyards on December 1, 1883. The livestock pens covered acres of land. Between 1907 and 1910, most of the old pens were rebuilt with elevated walkways. Buyers could then view the animals without threading their way through the pens. In the early 20th century, Union Stockyards was the world's largest sheep market. The stock yards were dependent upon Union Pacific Railroad to bring livestock to market. On average, 20,000 animals per day arrived at the Union Stockyards for slaughter. Omaha Stockyards: A Century of Marketing; Commemorative Book: 1884-1984. Omaha, NE, 1984, p. 8-11.
