Durham Museum | Omaha

The Durham Museum in Omaha is one of the Midwest’s most striking blends of history, architecture, and Americana. Housed inside the city’s restored Union Station, this museum captures both the grandeur of the golden age of rail travel and the everyday stories that shaped Nebraska and the Great Plains.

Historic Setting
Union Station opened in 1931 as a masterpiece of Art Deco design, created by architect Gilbert Stanley Underwood, who also designed lodges at national parks like Yosemite and Bryce Canyon. The building’s restoration in the 1990s preserved its magnificent details-gleaming black-and-gold ceilings, terrazzo marble floors, and massive chandeliers that seem to suspend time itself. When you first step into the Grand Hall, it’s hard not to stop and look up. The polished surfaces, tall windows, and the echo of footsteps all recall the days when trains were the primary link between Omaha and the rest of the country.

Exhibits and Collections
The museum’s exhibits move seamlessly between transportation history, regional culture, and national heritage. Visitors can explore vintage train cars, complete with sleeper cabins, dining areas, and observation lounges that once carried passengers across the plains. Interactive displays let you climb aboard and imagine the rhythm of rail travel in the 1930s and 1940s.

Permanent exhibits delve into Omaha’s early development, Native American heritage, and pioneer life, showing how the city grew from a frontier settlement to a major transportation hub. The museum also hosts Smithsonian-affiliated traveling exhibits, which bring world-class art, science, and history showcases to Nebraska several times a year.

Cultural and Educational Role
Beyond its historical artifacts, the Durham Museum functions as a community anchor. It offers educational programs, history camps, and lectures that connect Omaha’s past to the present. Local schools frequently visit for field trips, and the staff curates special exhibits that explore broader American stories-from immigration and industrial growth to pop culture milestones.

Visitor Experience
Wandering the museum is an experience in itself. The restored ticket counters and newsstands remain intact, as does the original soda fountain, where visitors can still enjoy malts, phosphates, and sundaes served the old-fashioned way. The scent of sweet syrup and the clinking of glassware add a sensory layer that perfectly complements the visual nostalgia of the setting.

Architecture and Atmosphere
The building’s interior feels like a time capsule. Bronze medallions and geometric wall reliefs showcase classic Art Deco motifs-sunbursts, eagles, and stylized wings symbolizing speed and progress. Natural light floods the vast waiting room through 60-foot windows, bathing the hall in a soft amber glow during the afternoon. Every detail, from the clock above the ticket booth to the train schedules displayed on the walls, seems carefully preserved to honor the era’s optimism.

Surroundings and Accessibility
The Durham Museum sits near Old Market District, within walking distance of Omaha’s key attractions such as the Holland Performing Arts Center, Gene Leahy Mall, and Heartland of America Park. Free parking, a family-friendly layout, and year-round exhibits make it one of the city’s most accessible and rewarding stops.

Overall Impression
The Durham Museum isn’t just a place to view artifacts-it’s a journey through Omaha’s soul. It brings together architecture, history, and nostalgia in a way that feels both educational and deeply human. Whether you’re admiring the marble columns, stepping inside a Pullman train car, or sipping a root beer float at the soda fountain, you’re experiencing a living tribute to the stories that built Nebraska and the American Midwest.