Across America

County Road Take Me Home

When I was 18 months old, my family moved to Omaha, Nebraska. When I was almost 9 years old, we moved away back to California. I have been fortunate enough that I have been able to return to Omaha from time to time mostly on business, but once previously in the last decade on one of my motorcycle rides. However, that time my schedule was such that I rode through without being able to stop and look around.

Today, I revisited and photographed those places I can remember. Three places where I lived and two schools I attended. I took a lot of photos and this may get a little redundant, but bear with me and only check out what you want.

We also went to Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo and spent a few hours. So if you are terribly bored by my reminiscences, you can skip down to the zoo photos.

5002 Walnut Street
On the Corner of Walnut and 50th
This is the oldest address that I can remember. The house is still there although a few details have changed although my memories are very sketchy. My dad had a garden in the rear of the back yard and I recall my brother and I pulling green onions and radishes from the ground and eating them.

Beals School
I went to kindergarten here. There was a long block that I walked to and from school each day. It was a split session, but I can't remember if I went the morning or the afternoon session.

This was my walk to school. One very long block. I think I remember an open field across the street but I could not swear to it.

My best friend lived here half way to school. One time I was playing there, my friend was not home. His mother told me to "clean up" it was time to go. I washed my hands and face. Next time I was there, she told me I did not clean up. I then realized she meant pick up the toys.

4905 California Street
Near the Corner of California and 49th
We lived in a two story, old farmhouse style house. The basement was converted into an apartment and the landlords, an "older" couple lived there. Next door was a minister and his family. The next house down was the home of my first true love: Mary Sue Stevens. Alas, our house did not survive. Worse yet, the apartment building that replaced it is old and run down.

Our house was located where the right hand side of this building now sits.

Two doors down is the house of my first love, Mary Sue Stevens. She and I would play together almost every day.

Mary Sue's father answered the door once in a "wife-beater" undershirt. I was speachless, he had man-boobs.

Between Mary Sue Stevens' house and mine lived a minister and his family. He had a huge telescope in the garage and we looked through it at the moon.

At the end of the block, on the way to school, was a tall wall that I used to feel very courageous when I jumped off it into the snow.

4930 California Street
On the Corner of California and 50th
We moved next just down the street to the other end of the block. It was a duplex and we were in the right hand side facing from the front. It was two story plus a basement. My brother and I would play with the laundry chute that ran from the upper story down to the basement..

This is the duplex we lived in.

Diagonal from across the intersection

The rear of the second floors on the two sections of the duplex was kind of a glassed in sun room. My brother and I lived in that room in our side.

We would frequently walk up the street to the neighborhood stores

On the corner was a drug store with a real soda fountain.

We would collect pop bottles from the neighbors for the 2-cents deposit and then go to the drug store for a candy bar.

They preserved the original soda fountain cabinet and installed it into an ice cream shop that ocupies half of what was the drug store

What a treasure. It had to be custom made and of great quality to last this long.

This is a photo of what the drug store looked like back in the day

across from the drug store, was a grocery, the Piggly Wiggly

Front door of the Piggly Wiggly had automatic doors on a diagonal in the corner, very unique for the time

This was a firehouse where our uncle Jay Goldsmith was a fireman. We would walk over and visit him. They would not allow us to slide down the pole.

This was the back entrance to the firehouse where we would enter to visit our cousin Jay.

The building is now a dry cleaner. They removed the brass pole only a few years ago. On the wall they have this picture of what it once was.

Across the 50th is a religious order building maned Margaret Mary. I don't know what it is.


This is now a radio station, but back then it was a movie theater. It didn't matter what time we got there, there were always two movies, a newsreel, a couple cartoons and if we arrived in the middle of a movie, we would stay until they played it again.

Dundee Elementary School
I went to Dundee Elementary School for the second and third grades. We used to walk to school. It was one block over, one block up and one block over.

Henry Doorly Zoo
Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo has been an institution for more years that I know of. When visiting on business 25 years ago, it was a big zoo and expanding. Today it is even bigger and better.

Entrance to the Doorly Zoo

Brought to you, in part, by Mutual of Omaha. Remember Myron Perkins?

Look at the toes on this fellow.

Beep! Beep! A road runner

The birds are not always happy about their neighbors. Squabling through the glass.

Tiny antelope

Standing on tippy-toes

Lots of fish for the turtle.

Meerkats. remember Lion King?

Acting cute.

Who is looking at whom

Papa giraff, all legs, about 15 feet tall.

Baby, frolicing

A compound mate, an osterich

Mama says, "coming througn, move over"

Mama, baby and perhaps auntie.

Antelope trying to blend in

Camoflage is not so effective in the open

Way over there is a cheetah. Almost enough room to get up to a slow gallop

Across the street from the zoo is 60 plus years old Rosenblatt Baseball Stadium. It has been the site of the NCAA College World Series finals every year up until 2010. This a classic wood and steel stadium. It has been replaced with a newer stadium in downtown Omaha and will be demolished in the near future to make more room for the zoo. I remember my father taking me here in the early 50's when Omaha was a farm team for the St. Louis Cardinals. I remember sitting in box seats and eating bags of peanuts tossed by the vendors.
The men wore ties and hats in those days.