Earlier this summer, my husband and I travelled to Omaha, Neb., for the weekend. Our primary focus was to be the Union Pacific (UP) Railroad Museum and other railroad-related sites. We also visited the Durham Museum in the Historic Omaha Train Station, which was very interesting as they track the role the railroads had in the development of Omaha and the American West.
The expanding railroad systems allowed Omaha to become a major player in the stockyards, beginning with the first shipment of 531 cattle in 1884, handled by Union Stock Yards. By the end of the first year of operations, the stock sards handled 117,000 head of cattle. By 1955, Omaha had overtaken Chicago for the title of the nation’s largest livestock market and meatpacking center.
It only made sense, then, that the meatpacking industry would follow, and soon steakhouses would open, showcasing Omaha’s beef. These steakhouses proliferated through the heyday of the Stock Yards, which closed in 1999. A few of these “old school” steakhouses still exist, and we were fortunate to try Brother Sebastian’s Steak House & Winery, which remains a classic…