The 1957 renovation created more space for Branch offices, including the accounting department.
November 7, 1957, was a special day at the Kansas City Fed’s Omaha Branch, then at 1701 Dodge St.
More than 200 bankers and business leaders from Nebraska and Wyoming were on hand, and all four of the Bank’s boards of directors—Kansas City, Denver, Oklahoma City and Omaha—were present.
The occasion: The official opening of the renovated Branch office, culminating a project that added two floors to what had been a three-story building and created much-needed elbow room for fast-growing operations.
The Branch, which would move in the 1980s to its present building at 22nd and Farnam streets, opened in 1917 in what was then known as the First National Bank Building at 1219 Farnam St. The Branch would quickly outgrow that space and move in 1925 to a newly constructed building at the Dodge Street location.
To address rapid growth, the Bank undertook the 1957 project at the Dodge Street facility, increasing space from 52,914 square feet to 84,150 square feet, expanding offices for business lines, installing modern recessed lighting, enhancing security features and nearly doubling vault space.
According to an employee newsletter at the time, the official opening was widely covered by the local press and “was the first time that the four boards of directors had met jointly at one of the Branch offices.” Such joint meetings are common today.
The views expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the positions of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City or the Federal Reserve System.