James M. Woolworth
1829 - 1906
Born in 1829 in Onondaga County, New York, Mr. Woolworth graduated with high honors from Hamilton College in 1849, and took up the study of law. After two years practicing in Syracuse, New York, he determined to go west and locate in the new community of Omaha City, Nebraska Territory, arriving on October 31, 1856.
A successful attorney, he became the first Omaha City attorney in 1859, following the city's incorporation. Also involved in politics, he served in the Nebraska Territorial Legislature, and in 1871 was a delegate to the first state Constitutional Convention. In 1882, he was appointed attorney for the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad.
In Omaha's early days, it was common to engage in several pursuits. No exception, Mr. Woolworth served as counsel for the Union Stock Yards and the South Omaha Land Syndicate in the 1880's, and was a director of the First National Bank. He was elected president of the American Bar Association in 1896.
A member of Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, he served as a lay delegate to the church's general conventions for 20 years, and was Chancellor of the Episcopal Church in Nebraska. A stained glass window honors him in the Cathedral, at 18th and Capitol Avenue.
His first wife, the former Helen Beggs of Syracuse, died in 1867. His second wife, Elizabeth Butterfield Woolworth, died in 1897. Both women are also buried at Prospect Hill Cemetery.
His lavish home on St. Mary's Avenue featured a mantel in the front hall made of stone, brick and wood taken from buildings dating before the organization of the Nebraska Territory in 1854.
Mr. Woolworth was buried at Prospect Hill on June 17, 1906, at the age of 77 years. Woolworth Avenue was named for him.
Historic marker dedicated on: [no date]
Courtesy hmdb.org
