Every block of Midtown Kansas City has a unique history, and the block between Armour and 36th, McGee and Gillham is steeped in Catholic history and the transformation of Armour Boulevard from a boulevard of mansions to a busy street lined with luxury residential hotels. Sanburn map from 1909-1950 showing the block and surrounding areas […]
A Grand Home on Armour Boulevard Read More »
It would be easy to drive past Drexel Hall at the corner of Linwood and Baltimore daily without knowing the layers of history within its walls. Beginning with its unusual beginnings as a spur-of-the-moment purchase by a shrewd businesswoman, to its early days of concerts, dances, and suffrage association meetings, to the fiery union rallies
Drexel Hall Built by Shrewd Businesswoman Read More »
The Swedish Evangelical Mission Church in the Volker neighborhood was once a center of Swedish life in Midtown. In 1940, the church still stood at the corner of 42nd and Terrace Streets. The history of the surrounding block shows the diverse cultures that settled the area, with Swedish and other immigrants moving into the homes
Swedish Immigrants Settle in Volker Read More »
This area of Coleman Highlands at W. 34th Street and Karnes Boulevard looks much as it did when it was developed in the early 20th century. The Coleman Highlands block, the focus of this week’s look back in history, is a peaceful residential area, part of a historic district developed in the early 20th century.
A Quiet Block in Coleman Highlands Read More »
The block between Archibald and 41st Street and between Central and Baltimore today is part of Nutterville, an area of brightly-painted and carefully landscaped homes that have been converted to business spaces by the James B. Nutter company. Homes that once stood on the block along the west side of Baltimore Street are gone, for the
Nutterville Stands Out in Westport Read More »
The northwest corner of Westport Road and Main Street is a crucial Midtown intersection. As such, businesses and institutions have always seen the benefit of locating there, at the intersection of two major streets and in the heart of residential neighborhoods. That has meant that the corner has seen a lot of changes over the
Businesses Replaced Homes on Westport and Main Streets Read More »
The Roanoke neighborhood, developed from around 1900 to 1920, has always made a solid effort to keep its single-family homes. While other neighborhoods in Midtown often saw their homes divided as rooming houses and later into multiple apartments, Roanoke’s residents were vigilant in preventing that from happening within their boundaries. 1909-1950 Sanborn Fire Insurance map shows
Roanoke Fought Boarding Houses Read More »
It’s a Jiffy Lube today, but the building at the corner of Linwood and Gillham Plaza once housed Sight Brothers Motor Company, Kansas City’s oldest Chevrolet dealer. Next door to the south, when this photo was taken in 1940, many people attended funerals at the Stine & McClure Chapel, and next door on the west
Business Flourished at Corner of Linwood and Gillham Plaza Read More »
A February 1944 newspaper clipping shows Kansas City Life Insurance Company President Walter Bixby exchanging a $6.5 million check for the Einstein’s Theory of Relativity manuscript. As scientists and science geeks across the world celebrate the centennial anniversary of Albert Einstein’s Theory of Relativity, a Midtown Kansas City company plays an interesting role in the
Kansas City Life’s link to Einstein’s Theory of Relativity Read More »
The Kansas City Athenaeum Club said it had sold its 101-year-old building at Linwood and Campbell to the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority DEED Foundation. Both groups describe the transfer of the historic building as a perfect fit for the site , which has a century of history and now has a past and a future involving important women’s
Historic Athenaeum Building Changes Hands Read More »