Laura B. Wood (1874-1942), Builder
Laura B. Wood was born on February 16, 1874 in Ohio. Her parents were George and Elizabeth McFarland and her original name was Laura O. McFarland. The family moved to Burt, Nebraska in 1882 and subsequently to Thayer County (1892-1902).[1][2][3][b] Laura's surname changed several times before she married Wray W. Wood in 1918. She divorced Wray Wood in 1928 but remained Laura B. Wood (B. for Broderson, her penultimate spouse) for the remainder of her life.[a][c] Laura had her only child, Alta Mae Ward, in 1895 with George Ward.
Laura Wood became active in buying, selling, and building houses in Lincoln around 1920. From a few houses annually in the late 1920s, she was building dozens of properties per year through the 1930s and early '40s. In 1941 she claimed "22 Years Dependable Real Estate Dealings in Lincoln." That advertisement added: "I Specialized in Building of Small Homes" and that she offered a full range of real estate services including "PROPERTY MANAGEMENT...SALES, LEASES, LOANS...APPRAISALS."[4] She titled herself as "Nebraska's Only Woman Builder" in April 1942 and her obituary in May of that year noted "she built approximately 375 homes, all in the southeast part of the city."[1] Wood died on May 18, 1942 in Lincoln. Her daughter Alta Mae Ward maintained the Laura B. Wood Agency after her mother's death, then changed the business name to Ward Real Estate Agency in 1953.[1][2]
This page is a contribution to the publication, Place Makers of Nebraska: The Architects. See the format and contents page for more information on the compilation and page organization.
Contents
Compiled Nebraska Directory Listings
1932-1942
Educational & Professional Associations
1929: associated with general contractor Ernest L. Lowell (1884-1933).[23][24]
1932-1941: Laura B. Wood, Real Estate, New Home Building, Rentals, Property Management, Mortgage Loans etc., Lincoln, Nebraska.[4]
1939: John S. Jones & Francis M. Adcock, contractors for Wood.[10][13][15]
1942: Laura B. Wood, Builder, Lincoln, Nebraska.[1][3]
Buildings & Projects
Frame residence (1922), 2655 South 13th Street, Lincoln, Nebraska.[17]
Frame residence (1925), 2667 South 13th Street, Lincoln, Nebraska.[18]
Frame residence (1926), 2731 South 13th Street, Lincoln, Nebraska.[19]
Frame residence (1926), 1611 Van Dorn Street, Lincoln, Nebraska.[20]
Two residences (1929), 1665 and 1673 Woodsview, Lincoln, Nebraska.[23][24]
Residence (1938-1939), 2757 South 16th Street, Lincoln, Nebraska.[10][11]
Residence (1938-1939), 2769 South 16th Street, Lincoln, Nebraska.[10][12]
Residence and garage (1938-1939), 1828 Pawnee Street, Lincoln, Nebraska.[10][14]
Residence (1939), 1730 Pawnee Street, Lincoln, Nebraska.[5][10]
Residence (1939), 1501 Burr, Lincoln, Nebraska.[10][13]
Residence (1939), 4128 Randolph Street, Lincoln, Nebraska.[10][15]
Residence and garage (1939), 3155 South 25th Street, Lincoln, Nebraska.[10][16]
Residence (1939), 1730 Pawnee Street, Lincoln, Nebraska.[5][10]
Residence (1939), 1840 Pawnee Street, Lincoln, Nebraska.[10][22]
Residence and garage (1941), 1800 Pawnee St., Lincoln, Nebraska.[1][7]
Residence and garage (1941), 1801 Otoe St., Lincoln, Nebraska.[1][8]
Residence and garage (1941), 1810 Otoe St., Lincoln, Nebraska.[1][9]
Notes
a. While working as the urban design planner in the Lincoln/Lancaster County Planning Department, architect Stacey L. Hageman unraveled Laura Wood's complex biography and researched her substantial contribution to south Lincoln's built environment. This page is founded on Hageman's research.
b. Laura Wood's family moved to a Lancaster County farm (1902-1911) and then to Lincoln in 1911.[1][2][3]
c. Laura was married in Lincoln to George Ward (1894-ca. 1899), Rudolph Schichtman (1899-?), Henry H. Walter (1901), saloon owner Christian Broderson in Lincoln (1901-1915), and Wray W. Wood (married 1918-divorced 1928)[21].
References
1. "Laura B. Wood, long Lincoln builder, dies," (Lincoln) Nebraska State Journal (May 19, 1942), 1 (illustrated).
2. “Laura B. Wood” FindAGrave.com Accessed September 13, 2018 via https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/74862985/laura-b.-wood/photo
3. Obituary for Elizabeth McFarland (L. B. Wood's mother), Lincoln (Nebraska) Journal Star (April 29, 1929).
4. Lincoln city directory, 1941, under "Building Contractors."
5. City of Lincoln Building Permit #29826, April 27, 1939.
6. City of Lincoln Building Permits #31066 & #31068, September 29, 1939; and Laura B. Wood advertisement in 1941 Lincoln City Directory, illustrated with photo of 1740 Pawnee.
7. City of Lincoln Building Permits #35299 & #35300, September 15, 1941.
8. City of Lincoln Building Permits #35297 & #35298, September 15, 1941.
9. City of Lincoln Building Permits #35536 & #35537, October 15, 1941.
10. "Nebraska's Only Woman Builder Completing Her 11th New Home This Year," Lincoln (Nebraska) Sunday Journal and Star (August 27, 1939), 12-B (including photos of 1730 Pawnee, 2757 So. 16th, and 2769 So. 16th).
11. City of Lincoln Building Permit #29201, December 22, 1938.
12. City of Lincoln Building Permit #29168, December 10, 1938.
13. City of Lincoln Building Permit #29793, April 25, 1939, issued to John S. Jones (but listed in Laura Wood's advertisement of her 1939 homes).
14. City of Lincoln Building Permits #29154 and #29155, December 26, 1938.
15. City of Lincoln Building Permit #30080, May 25, 1939, issued to Francis M. Adcock (but listed in Laura Wood's advertisement of her 1939 homes).
16. City of Lincoln Building Permits #29794 and #29795, April 25, 1939, issued to John S. Jones (but listed in Laura Wood's advertisement of her 1939 homes).
17. "Building Permits," Lincoln (Nebraska) Star (July 2, 1922), 2; and City of Lincoln Building Permit #10205, issued June 26, 1922.
18. "The Building Record," Lincoln (Nebraska) Journal Star (December 3, 1925), 10; and City of Lincoln Building Permit #14834, issued December 2, 1925.
19. "Building Permits," Lincoln (Nebraska) Star (March 10, 1926), 14.
20. "The Building Record," (Lincoln) Nebraska State Journal (September 23, 1926), 2; and City of Lincoln Building Permit #15860, issued September 22, 1926.
21. "Asks Divorce," Lincoln (Nebraska) Star (May 16, 1928), 6.
22. City of Lincoln Building Permit #28618, issued September 9, 1938.
23. "Open for Inspection Toady...Two beautiful new...Homes...1665 Woodsview [&} 1673 Woodsview...Laura B. Wood [&} E. L. Lowell General Contractors," (Lincoln) Nebraska State Journal (August 4, 1929), 10.
24. "Ernest Leslie Lowell," Find a Grave, website accessed on-line January 2, 2023 at https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/21600188/ernest-leslie-lowell
Page Citation
E. F. Zimmer & D. Murphy, “Laura B. Wood (1874-1942), Builder,” in David Murphy, Edward F. Zimmer, and Lynn Meyer, comps. Place Makers of Nebraska: The Architects. Lincoln: Nebraska State Historical Society, January 2, 2023. http://www.e-nebraskahistory.org/index.php?title=Place_Makers_of_Nebraska:_The_Architects Accessed, December 5, 2025.
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