OmahaArticle Free Pass Omaha, city, seat (1855) of Douglas
county, eastern Nebraska, U.S. It is situated on the west bank
of the Missouri River opposite Council Bluffs, Iowa. Omaha is
Nebraska’s biggest city and a regional manufacturing,
transportation, trade, and service hub. From the 1890s through
the mid-20th century Omaha emerged as one of the top livestock
markets in the world and a leader in the meat-processing
industry. Founded in 1854, it soon became known as a “gateway to
the West.” Omaha’s location near the juncture of the Platte and
Missouri rivers provides access to the wide, flat valley of the
Platte, which has become a vital transportation artery. The city
derives its name from the Omaha Indian word meaning “upstream
people.” Inc. town, 1854; city, 1857. Area city, 115 square
miles (298 square km). Pop. (2000) 390,007; Omaha–Council Bluffs
Metro Area, 767,041; (2010) 408,958; Omaha–Council Bluffs Metro
Area, 865,350. Omaha was founded in 1854 in an area that had
been visited by Meriwether Lewis