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Omaha, Nebraska

(Omaha redirects here. There is also Omaha, Georgia.)


Omaha is the largest city in Nebraska. It is the county seat of Douglas County6. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 390,007. Located on the eastern edge of Nebraska, it is on the Missouri River, just north of where the Platte River runs into the Missouri. Omaha has several small suburbs (including Bellevue, Papillion, and La Vista) which brings the year 2000 metro area population to just over 585,000 (not counting the 58,000 that live just across the river in Council Bluffs, Iowa).

Although Nebraska's economy is based on farming, Omaha's economy is based largely on banking and technology.

Home of the headquarters of Union Pacific Railroad, ConAgra, Berkshire Hathaway, and, of course, Mutual of Omaha and Omaha Steaks.

Has a fantastic community theater, is home to Boys Town, and its Henry Doorly Zoo is one of the best in the country.

Host city of the NCAA College World Series.

Home of Offutt Air Force Base, the location of Strategic Air Command (SAC) during the Cold War and the current home of the U.S. Strategic Command (Stratcom).

President Gerald Ford was born here, although he only spent his early childhood here; he was adopted by a family in Michigan and grew up there.

Geography

Omaha is located at 41°15'38" North, 96°0'47" West (41.260482, -96.012990)1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 307.9 km² (118.9 mi²). 299.7 km² (115.7 mi²) of it is land and 8.2 km² (3.2 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 2.67% water.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there are 390,007 people, 156,738 households, and 94,983 families residing in the city. The population density is 1,301.5/km² (3,370.7/mi²). There are 165,731 housing units at an average density of 553.1/km² (1,432.4/mi²). The racial makeup of the city is 78.39% White, 13.31% African American, 0.67% Native American, 1.74% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 3.91% from other races, and 1.92% from two or more races. 7.54% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 156,738 households out of which 30.0% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.8% are married couples living together, 13.0% have a female householder with no husband present, and 39.4% are non-families. 31.9% of all households are made up of individuals and 9.4% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.42 and the average family size is 3.10.

In the city the population is spread out with 25.6% under the age of 18, 11.0% from 18 to 24, 30.8% from 25 to 44, 20.7% from 45 to 64, and 11.8% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 34 years. For every 100 females there are 95.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 92.2 males.

The median income for a household in the city is $40,006, and the median income for a family is $50,821. Males have a median income of $34,301 versus $26,652 for females. The per capita income for the city is $21,756. 11.3% of the population and 7.8% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 15.6% are under the age of 18 and 7.4% are 65 or older.