Old Photos: Vintage Kansas City

On my rare visit to Barnes and Noble, a store that encourages consumer to buy books online, I discovered a new batch of books containing vintage photos of Kansas City and other nearby places of interest. While I admire the effort to collect and annotate enough historic photos for a book, I don’t see myself paying over $20 for one of them. I am afraid many of these will be read at the coffee shop upstairs.

Luckily there are plenty of old photos online to entertain a cheap person like myself and even some books that can be read and downloaded for free. For example, check out A Birthday Book Of Kansas City 1821-1921 by Charles Phelps Cushing (obviously you should do it at work). The following photos and captions are taken from this book.

Kansas City
The Past and Present, on this block there is one of the newest and one of the oldest buildings in Kansas City. At Tenth Street and Grand Ave. arises the frame of the new Federal Bank Building. The oldest church building still in church use in Kansas City is the Catholic Church of St.Peter and St.Paul. southwest corner of Ninth and McGee streets. Sarvent

The Public Library
The Public Library, 292,000 volumes, annual circulation over one million, twelve branches, 26 deposit stations, 120 school collections. Also house the W.R. Nelson Art Gallery and the Daniel B. Dyer Historical museum.
Main Street
Main Street, in the retail shopping district. Cushing.

The Liberty Memorial

Convention Hall
Convention Hall, seating capacity 12,000. Anderson
Kersey Coates Terrace
A hillside shantytown once clung to the sides of this cliff – now made into much admired part of Kansas City’s famous park and boulevard system. Kersey Coates Terrace. Cushing
Paseo
A bit of the Paseo, part of the park and boulevard system. Cushing.
The Scout
The Scout, Cyrus Dallin’s statue bought by public subscription. It stands dominant on the hill in Penn Valley Park, southwest of the Memorial site. Sarvent.
Country Club District
Country Club District , a charming group in a picturesque spot. Baird.
A representative pretentious home
A representative pretentious home. Anderson.
One of the reasons Kansas City is a good place to live in.
One of the reasons Kansas City is a good place to live in. Baird.
Kansas City Stockyards
A birdseye view of part of Kansas City’s Stockyards and packing district, cattle pens and chutes in the foreground. Cushing.
The Missouri River Levee
The Missouri River Levee, the site of the “Westport Landing” as it is today. Photo shows docks of thebarge line to St.Louis and a new bridge. Cushing
First Bridge over Missouri
Harper’s Weekly printed this picture in its issue of August 6, 1869 with the comment that “to Kansas City belongs the honor of building the pioneer bridge over the Missouri.” The editor made further comment that may sound more strange in modern ears. “Kansas City, Mo., though not so well-known in the East as Leavenworth, Omaha, St.Joseph and possibly some other Missouri River towns, enjoys remarkable advantages of natural location and commercial facilities.