About Us

Woodsshire is a residential neighborhood developed by the Woods Brothers Corporation and platted in 1925. It features 131 single-family homes: 104 within the area defined by the entrances on 17th and 20th streets; 16 homes on the east side of 17th between Calvert and High; and 11 homes on the south side of High between 17th and 20th. 

The neighborhood was built on the former site of an airfield, where Charles Lindbergh made his first flights with an instructor. That history is commemorated with a plaque at the 20th Street entrance.

By the outbreak of World War II, 86 homes had been built in Woodsshire. Between 1945 and 1957, another 38 were added, making the neighborhood about 95 percent complete. 

Woodsshire was designed by Lincoln native and Harvard-trained landscape architect Ernst Herminghaus, who called it “a modern English garden subdivision.” His layout and landscaping were intended to create a beautiful, peaceful, private neighborhood. 

Central to that plan were the circles and the park. Although the plantings have changed from the original specifications, the park and circles still look much as Herminghaus envisioned them. Today, almost 100 years later, we continue to appreciate his well-planned vista from the center of the park looking north. He designed the plantings to perfectly frame the tower of the State Capitol—although it didn’t yet exist! The new Capitol was under construction, but the tower wasn’t completed until 1932. Herminghaus knew it was coming, though (he also designed the landscaping for the Capitol), and planned for our future enjoyment. 

Woodsshire was the first residential subdivision with a private park in the state of Nebraska. In 2011, it was designated a Historic Residential District on the National Register of Historic Places.

From the beginning, Woodsshire was intended to be a community. The Woods Brothers required buyers to join the Woodsshire Homes Association and stipulated that the Association maintain the park and the circles (then called “round points”). That’s still true today. The neighborhood has a governing board, collects dues for park maintenance and neighborhood events, and holds an annual meeting for all homeowners. Neighbors pitch in for cleanup days in the spring and fall. We hold a neighborhood garage sale in April, and we celebrate the Fourth of July together with a picnic in the park.

Listed below are the current members of the Board of Directors. If you’d like to get involved in neighborhood governance, use the email form under “Contact” in the menu.

Written by: Christie Nelson