Kansas City architect E.O. Brostrom – designer of the Newbern Hotel, several churches and an advocate in the 1930s of tiny houses – was just one of the noted early residents of a Roanoke neighborhood block. The homes in the area from W. 37th to W. 38th between Jarboe and Valentine were built between 1900 and 1930, when the […]
Noted Architect Lived on This Roanoke Block of Well-off Families Read More »
It must have been quiet on this Summit Street block when D.P. and Sophia Thomson moved in around 1900. Although the Roanoke subdivision had been platted and laid out, it had been slow to develop. When the Thomsons moved in, theirs was the only home on the block that is today’s focus: Summit Street (now
Pioneering Photographer Was First Owner of This Roanoke Block Read More »
In the 1920s, the owners of single-family homes in the Roanoke neighborhood took a stand against the growing number of apartment buildings being erected across the city. Their concern about the development of multifamily housing has been a constant theme throughout Midtown’s history. Today, the block bounded by Valentine and W. 37th, Summit (Southwest Trafficway),
Roanoke Property Owners Took a Stand Against Apartments in 1920s Read More »
Contrary to how some folks perceive the past, Midtown families did not always stay in one place for many decades. It was more typical for people to move in and out of homes, whether rented or owned, as family members died, married, or moved to another neighborhood. This was true of the block bounded by
Families Moved In and Out of this Midtown block 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 »
The Roanoke at 813 W. 39th Street was one of Midtown’s early neighborhood theaters. It also drew large crowds after 1946, when it started showing Mexican movies. The theater, which no longer exists, was just off the corner of 39th and Summit, where Missie B’s operates today. It is part of the block we’re featuring
Theater at 39th and Summit Showed Mexican Movies? Read More »
The fine old mansions of Midtown’s Roanoke neighborhood stand seemingly unchanged by time. Roanoke, just west of Southwest Trafficway between 36th and 38th, was one of the first residential suburbs to be developed. Allen B.H. once owned this section of Kansas City. McGee was an early pioneer and Westport settler. McGee’s home was in the
Roanoke Neighborhood Undisturbed by Time Read More »