Jackson County (Mo.) Historical Society

Portals to the Past by David W. Jackson

Designing the face of KC

This holiday season we’re exploring a timeline of local history in four installments, this being the third. A River Runs By It: The Story of Jackson County, Missouri, highlights how much history transpires in less than one lifetime.

Here are some history morsels in memory of those who lived from 1876-1926, the next 50 years of our timeline:

Following the Civil War, Jackson County went on a building spree; some examples of which are still standing today, some we’ve lost. Kansas City’s Jewish community organized the city’s first synagogue, Temple B’Nnai Jehuda. The stockyards and Union Depot in the West Bottoms were constructed, as was the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception on Quality Hill. The New York Life Building, arguably the city’s first skyscraper, opened at 20 W. 9^th Street. The Vaile Mansion was built in Independence; an example of postwar opulence. And, Octave Chanute’s Kansas City Bridge across the Missouri River put Kansas City on the map for good. In 1889, the community incorporated in 1850 as the “Town of Kansas” grew to become “Kansas City.”

In 1907, 1.25 million immigrants entered the United States; thousands arrived in Jackson County. The down side to progress and growing population affected social norms that had their roots in the antebellum era, and resulted in entrenched segregation. For example, by 1920, Kansas City’s African-American population was confined to an area bounded by 9^th Street, Prospect, 27^th Street, and Troost. Its commercial center became the legendary intersection of 18^th and Vine.

The beginning of the 20^th Century introduced notable icons to Kansas City like J.C. Nichols, who got his start in real estate in 1903 and developed the Country Club Plaza in the 1920s. Nichols’ neighborhoods were well designed and remain today some of the best examples of American urban planning. In 1910, Joyce Hall was selling postcards out of his room at the downtown YMCA. By 1922, his postcard business had evolved into a major enterprise that would eventually become the industry leader, Hallmark Cards. Tom Pendergast, elected as Jackson County Marshal in 1903, established himself as the kingpin of the Democratic Party in Jackson County by 1922. He then endorsed a young, unsuccessful businessman, Harry S Truman, for the position of Eastern District Judge of the Jackson County Court.

European hostilities in 1914 eventually affected American lives. It was during the World War I era that Kansas City acquired many of its most enduring landmarks: Union Station at 23^rd and Main Streets; “The Scout” statue installed in Penn Valley Park; and, following the Great War to end all wars, the Liberty Memorial—the nation’s only museum solely dedicated to World War I that recently debuted a world class museum.

Prohibition and women’s suffrage followed in 1920. The era of flappers, speakeasies had begun. By the mid-1920s, over 150 speakeasies, nightclubs and dance halls were doing business in Kansas City.

The 1920s were remarkable for other reasons as well: Walt Disney opened Laugh-O-Gram Studios on 31^st Street. Architects Nelle Peters and Mary Rockwell Hook designed distinctive homes and commercial buildings. Nell Donnelly turned her talent with a needle into a multi-million dollar industry. The Negro National League organized at the Paseo branch of the YMCA, giving birth to the Kansas City Monarchs, whose roster included baseball legends Satchel Paige, Jackie Robinson, and Buck O’Neil.

Take this opportunity to recognize your own part in local history, and think of how you wish to perpetuate your legacy. Much history is preserved and made available to the public; donations of original materials to our permanent collections are always welcome.

David W. Jackson is archivist for the Jackson County (Mo.) Historical Society’s Archives and Research Library at 112 W. Lexington Ave. Suite 103, Independence, MO, 64050. The society collects and makes available original documents and photographs to the public. For more information, or to donate historical materials, visit www.jchs.org, call (816) 252-7454, or e-mail info@jchs.org.

Privacy Statement