When the Omaha Country Club (OCC) first opened, its clubhouse was more than a golf facility — it was a retreat “in the country” where members gathered to relax, socialize and escape the city.

Designed by architect Thomas Kimball, who was also a charter member of OCC, the clubhouse was described by The Illustrated Bee as medieval in style, reminiscent of the lodges of old Scottish barons. Inside, the grand social room featured a “broad-mouthed fireplace forming an inglenook,” with mounted hunting trophies — deer, moose and coyotes — displayed above the doors and along the walls.

When the Omaha Country Club first opened, its grounds stretched roughly from 52nd to 56th Streets and from Blondo Street north to Military Avenue — an area that would later shape the curving streets and triangular lots of today’s Country Club neighborhood.

According to the 2017 Omaha Country Club history book, in 1899 a group of prominent Omahans purchased about 80 acres south and east of the terminus of the Benson trolley line at 56th and Military Avenue to establish the Omaha Country Club and its golf course. The golf course was the first club of its kind in Omaha and one of the earliest in Nebraska.

In 2026, we’re celebrating 100 years of the Country Club neighborhood - one of Omaha’s most distinctive residential areas, known for its winding streets, mature trees and remarkable homes.