Early Advocate for the Blind Lived on this Block near Rockhurst

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A few of the homes on the block between 51st and Rockhurst from Forest to Tracy, including one where an early crusader for the blind lived, have been replaced by buildings associated with Rockhurst University. However, most of the bungalows and other single-family residences stand as they have since the early 1920s, a decade after Rockhurst was established. This […]

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Valentine Mansion Once Housed Pioneer Family, Children of Working Mothers

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An important homestead once stood where the south edge of the Valentine neighborhood touches Westport, near what is now the parking lot of the Sunfresh grocery store. The home of Westport pioneer George Schaefer proudly occupied the corner of Pennsylvania and Schaefer Street (now known as West 39th Street Terrace). The family built the home

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A Memorial Day Look Back at the Westport Cemetery

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In the early 1800s, the graves of a riverboat gambler, a rugged Indian agent, and prominent early settlers shared space in a small plot of land now in the middle of the Westport Entertainment District. According to the Kansas City Times of May 30, 1970, “The Westport cemetery was established in 1835, when Edgar Price,

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Famous “Bachelor Retreat” Once Stood at 36th and Main

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The block between Main and Walnut from 36th to 37th Streets has seen many changes since it attracted its first residents in the late 1800s. Its history reflects the movement of people from the north to the new “south side” around the turn of the century, which brought new homes, businesses, and a church to

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West Side of 3800 Block of Main Thrived in Developing Midtown

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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

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