Originally part of the Overland Trail, Military Avenue was laid out from Downtown Omaha westward through the town of Benson and past in 1857 by Captain Edward Beckwith for the U.S. Army. Originally designated as a shipment road for moving military supplies to Fort Kearny, thousands of travelers moving to the Pacific Northwest used the road for the next fifty years. Purposely laid out over high ground, emigrants and freighters had a clear view of the surrounding country as a protection against attacks.[4]
^National Park Service. (1995) National Register of Historic Places, 1966 to 1994. The Preservation Press National Trust for Historic Preservation, National Conference of State Historic Preservation Officers. p 472.