Burlington Headquarters Building, Omaha

The Burlington Headquarters Building, or Burlington Place, is located at 1002 Farnam Street. This four-story brick building was originally designed by Alfred R. Dufrene and built in 1879 next to Jobbers Canyon. It was redesigned by noted Omaha architect Thomas R. Kimball in 1899, and vacated by the railroad in 1966. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974, designated an Omaha Landmark in 1978, and rehabilitated in 1983. Today it is office space.

Designed in the Italianate style in 1879, the original three-story building was constructed with load-bearing masonry walls on a foundation of limestone blocks. A flat roof, straight front and walls, and very little embellishment originally made this building virtually indistinguishable from its neighbors in the Jobbers Canyon. The structure had fireproof vaults on each floor and each office was finished in oiled southern pine.

In 1899 Thomas R. Kimball was commissioned to remodel the building. His new plans closely resembled the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad Company Building in Chicago, Illinois. Gutting the building, he placed a central atrium and an open staircase with galleries overlooking a courtyard. An elevator lined with quartersawn oak resembled much of the building's new interior, which Kimball also designed. Features include a combination of skylights, cast iron railings, staircases, columns, and ornamental detailing.