As Midtown grew, its streets and boulevards bloomed with homes and businesses, connecting us to other neighborhoods and other parts of the city.
The block between 38th and 39th between Main and Baltimore was a key location, in part because of Main Street’s importance as a commercial corridor and also because of the easy access to streetcar lines on both Main and 39th. Development began in 1901, when savvy businesswoman Barbara Bescher bought a lot at the corner […]
A President Spent the Night on this Block Read More »
In the 1930s, while most of their 3800 Main Street block was being saturated with storefronts—the Madrid Theater and a garage that would become the Unicorn Theater—it was still the long-time home of the Dunn family. And they heard a suggestion that they were “losing money in their front yard.” The Dunn’s home at 3820 Main
West Side of 3800 Block of Main Thrived in Developing Midtown Read More »
When Barbara Bescher bought a lot at the corner of 39th and Main in 1901, the home she built for herself was practically the only thing on the block. But just two decades later, in 1924, the savvy businesswoman sold the property for more than 20 times what she paid for it. The property she purchased
The NE Corner of 39th and Main Holds Layers of History Read More »
When Midtown began to develop in the late 1800s, it was a posh residential area where well-to-do Kansas Citians built mansions to escape the crowded downtown. They settled along streets such as Broadway, Troost, and Main. However, by the 1920s, rapid development in the area and the streetcar lines along those major streets caused a rapid
Midtown Mansion Converted to Business, Moved to Main Street Read More »
A bank building now sits at the southwest corner of Armour Boulevard and Main Street, offering no hint of the important mansion that once occupied the site. But from the time it was built in 1888 until it was razed in 1927, the Thomas H. Mastin home was one of the best known mansions in
Mastin Mansion Once Dominated the Block at Armour and Main Read More »
The block between Main Street and Wyandotte, from 31st Street to 31st Terrace, never contained many homes but had several businesses that served Midtown residents. The block featured auto repair shops, an ice company, and a popular softball park. A recent aerial photo of the block. Main Street Storerooms, Signs, and Ambulances From the earliest
A Business Block at 31st and Main Read More »
Despite being known as perhaps the grandest home in Kansas City at the turn of the 20th century, the mansion at 3000 Troost was razed in 1938 to make way for commerce and apartment buildings. Mrs. Samuel B. Sebree (formerly Alice Smith) remembered the days between around 1900 and 1920 when she lived in the home
Home at 30th and Troost Housed Millionaires and Musicians Read More »
Although Westport is best known for its role as a frontier trading outpost, few remnants of that pioneer past remain standing. The Westport we know today, including this block from Westport Road to Archibald and from Broadway to Central, was mostly built in the early years of the 20th century, with Westport Road making the
Do You Remember this Block of Westport Road from Broadway to Central? Read More »
If they hadn’t left behind their name on Armour Boulevard and several neighborhoods south of the Plaza, the Armour family’s brief prominence in Kansas City might easily be forgotten. Best known as part of the Chicago-based meatpacking dynasty, the Armours who ran the Kansas City branch of the company were a major influence on social
Armour Family Left Name, Legacy in Midtown Read More »
In the early 1900s, Armour Boulevard and its surrounding blocks were the center of life for many wealthy Kansas Citians, who built large mansions and lived comfortable lives attended by their servants. That’s true of the block between Armour and 36th Street from Walnut to Warwick. But by 1940, Armour’s elite residents had moved on,
The Heyday of a Block of Armour Read More »