Alfred Sorenson

Alfred Sorenson (HM13IF)

Location: Omaha, NE 68111 Douglas County
Buy Nebraska State flags at Flagstore.com!
Country: United States of America
Buy United States of America flags at Flagstore.com!

N 41° 16.695', W 95° 57.61'

  • 0 likes
  • 0 check ins
  • 0 favorites
  • 545 views
Inscription

1850 - 1939

Alfred Sorenson, the doyen of Omaha newspapermen, was a picturesque figure familiar around Omaha. His varied career led him to seek the offices of U.S. Senator twice and Congressman once. He was unsuccessful all three times, but remarked that he did it merely for "the joy of running and advertising."

Mr. Sorenson was born near Milwaukee, Wisconsin, educated at Racine College, and then graduated from Harvard Law School in 1870. He came to Omaha in 1871, joined the Omaha Bee, and in 1872 was made city editor, remaining in that capacity until 1881. He became city editor of the Omaha Republican for two years. Returning to the Bee as managing editor for five years, he then became managing editor of the Omaha Herald. From 1889 to 1899 he worked on newspapers in Denver, Salt Lake City, Butte, Montana, and San Francisco. After returning to Omaha, he started his own publication, the Examiner, which expounded his rare philosophy in editorial comment which was widely read and which was simply signed, ironically, "The Senator."

He also gave Omahans a great service through his book, The Early History of Omaha. Three editions of this popular work were published, in 1875, 1889, and 1923. An interesting and humorous writer, he also wrote many articles for magazines. His special sense of humor was ever present, as shown on his 70th birthday when he wrote his own obituary and sent it to Omaha newspapers for their morgues. (The paragraphs above are excerpted from the obituary Mr. Sorenson wrote nineteen years before his death in 1939.)

Beside Mr. Sorenson lie his wife, Mary, their daughters, Blanche and Grace, and Alexander MacKenzie, the husband of Mary's sister, Emma (who is buried elsewhere in the Cemetery). The stones to the south are those of Mary's father, William D. Brown, her mother, Martha, and her other sister, Helen Brown VanCamp. William Brown was the original owner of the Lonetree Ferry Company, which founded Omaha in 1854.

Historic marker dedicated on May 30, 1988
Details
HM NumberHM13IF
Tags
Year Placed1988
Placed ByProspect Hill Cemetery
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Sunday, September 21st, 2014 at 8:17am PDT -07:00
Pictures
Sorry, but we don't have a picture of this historical marker yet. If you have a picture, please share it with us. It's simple to do. 1) Become a member. 2) Adopt this historical marker listing. 3) Upload the picture.
Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)15T E 252080 N 4573873
Decimal Degrees41.27825000, -95.96016667
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 41° 16.695', W 95° 57.61'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds41° 16' 41.70" N, 95° 57' 36.60" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)402
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 525-539 Cemetery Rd, Omaha NE 68111, US
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

Is this marker missing? Are the coordinates wrong? Do you have additional information that you would like to share with us? If so, check in.

Check Ins  check in   |    all

Have you seen this marker? If so, check in and tell us about it.

Comments 0 comments

Maintenance Issues
  1. Is this marker part of a series?
  2. What historical period does the marker represent?
  3. What historical place does the marker represent?
  4. What type of marker is it?
  5. What class is the marker?
  6. What style is the marker?
  7. Does the marker have a number?
  8. This marker needs at least one picture.
  9. Can this marker be seen from the road?
  10. Is the marker in the median?