The block of South Hyde Park, bounded by Holmes, Kenwood, 41st, and 42nd, is now mostly single-family bungalows. However, from the 1920s to the 1940s, it also held a grocery store and was home to the Meiners grocery family. Census records illustrate how the block began to fill in during the early 1900s with families headed by salesmen, bookkeepers, and railroad workers.
The area surrounding this block was known as Sunny Slope (40th to 45th and Troost and Holmes), a subdivision annexed into Kansas City in 1897. Early mentions of houses on the block included 4101 Kenwood in 1904 and 4100 Holmes in 1908. By 1910, other newly completed homes were being offered either for sale or rent, with newspaper ads pointing out the proximity of Gillham Park and, later, Westport High School, which opened in 1907.
A 1909-1950 Sanborn map of the block.
As part of our Uncovering History Project, the Midtown KC Post is examining each block in Midtown. A set of 1940 tax assessment photos is available for many blocks.
Unfortunately, the 1940s for this block are not available, but other history can be gathered from newspaper articles and old census records.
Although nearby Main Street and Troost Avenue were evolving into commercial corridors, this block was lucky enough to have its own grocery store from the 1920s to the 1940s. Meiners Brothers sat among the homes at 4108 Holmes. The Meiner family was well-known in the grocery business from 1888 until around 2003. The 1930 census shows Herman Meiners living just behind the grocery at 4109 Kenwood with his wife, two sons, and a servant.
The block’s residents were a mixture of native-born and immigrant families. In 1935, Bernard Cooney of Great Britain, living at 4100 Holmes, was among forty-seven foreign-born Kansas City men and women who became citizens. (They were from Germany, Great Britain, Italy, Sweden, Russia, Jugo Slavia, Greece, Poland, Lithuania, Finland, Czecho-Slovania, Belgium, Syria, Austria, and Denmark.)
The census records from 1910 give a glimpse into life that decade:
- 4104 Holmes: William M. Smith, a tinner with his own shop, lived here. He was an Irish immigrant with two daughters, Mabel and Hazel, both born in the United States to a Canadian mother.
- 4110 Holmes: Above the storefront lived England-born grocer Arthur Martin.
- 4122 Holmes: Divorced laundress Maggie Abbott, born in Missouri, shared this home with three sons, Oscar, William, and Eugene, and a boarder named Marion Goins, a cook in a local restaurant.
- 4126 Holmes: This family included hatwork manager Arthur Bishop and his wife Zoe, both born to parents from the United States.
- 620 E. 42nd: Joseph T. Hopson, a house-wiring electrician, lived here with his wife, Emma.
- 618 E. 42nd: Electric company inspector James Morrison shared this home with his wife Lula.
- 616 E. 42nd: This home was occupied by Hal Clark, a cigar company salesman, his wife Leafy, daughter Marguerite, and brother-in-law Hurley Begun, a newspaper carrier.
- 614 E. 42nd: Life insurance salesman Horatio T. Cravens lived here with his wife Anna and daughter Leda.
- 612 E. 42nd: Elmer Erwin, a brokerage company shipping clerk, shared this home with his wife Mary.
- 610 E. 42nd: Odd job laborer Elbert Cleveland, wife Nellie, and son Earl lived here.
- 4141 Kenwood: Widow Carrie Knox lived here.
- 4111 Kenwood: Railway mail carrier William Cleary headed the family at this home, which also included his wife, Clara, and two daughters, Mary and Ruth.
- 4109 Kenwood: Newton B. Ford, who listed his occupation as a hardware commercial traveler, shared this home with his wife Martha and stepdaughter Rosemary Ford.
- 4107 Kenwood: Wholesale hardware bookkeeper Guy Wasson lived here with his wife Minnie; father-in-law and mother-in-law Mary and William McIntyre; brother-in-law Harry McIntyre, a wholesale hardware clerk; and a boarder, Harry Bryant, a hardware industry office boy.
- 4105 Kenwood: Joseph H. Crawford, a bookkeeper in the city auditor’s office, shared this home with his wife Helen, sister-in-law Elizabeth Sheriff, and niece Anne.
A 1909-1950 Sanborn map of the block.
By 1930, when the census was again recorded, the block had seen some changes. More houses had been built and many more residents called it home.
4100 Holmes: Irish immigrants Margaret and Bernard Cooney lived here.
Historic photos courtesy Kansas City Public Library/Missouri Valley Special Collections.
Mary Jane Wasson, 25, lived on the block in 1925. She died on her way home from a Panama cruise vacation when her sister-in-law’s car plunged down an embankment near Marshall, Mo.
Actually the Meiners Grocery Store was there well into the 1960’s. My grandfather Arthur Meiners operated it until the late 50’s when he became ill. The store continued to operate with Meiners cousins taking over. I remember visiting the store as a little girl with my mother Janet Meiners Rogers.
Arthur Meiners and family lived at 4108 Campbell during the 30’s through the 50’s