Timeline of Kansas City, Missouri

The following is a timeline of the history of Kansas City, Missouri, United States.

19th century

1838 - Settlement named Town of Kansas.^[1]
1840 - City Market active.^[1]
1846 - Population: 700.^[2]
1850 - June 3: Town of Kansas formally organized municipality in Jackson County.^[3]
1853 - March 28: City of Kansas incorporated by Missouri.^[3]
1854 - Bleeding Kansas
1857
- Chamber of Commerce established.^[2]
- November 9 - Union Cemetery founded by a special act of the Missouri General Assembly, as the private corporation Union Cemetery Assembly^[4]
1860 - Population: 4,418.^[5]
1863 - August 13: The collapse of the Union Women's Prison kills four and maims several other women, which the pro-Confederate bushwhackers will cite revenge as a justification for the Sacking of Lawrence.^[6]
1864 - October 23: Battle of Westport.
1867 - March 1: First meeting of the Kansas City Public Schools Board of Education.^[7]
1869 - July 3: Hannibal Bridge over the Missouri River opens, first railroad bridge across the river.^[1]^[8]
1870 - Population: 32,260.^[9]
1871 - Kansas City Bar Library Assoc. formed.^[10]
1872 - Elmwood Cemetery established.
1875 - Fetterman Circulating Library in business.^[10]
1880 - Population: 55,785.^[5]
1882
- Kansas City Club founded.
- First electric lights used in KC; implemented by KCP&L
1885
- Kansas City Art Institute founded, later attended by Walt Disney
- First overhead electric trolleys in the US used here.^[5]
1889
- The city of Kansas City formed by merger of Westport and City of Kansas.^[1]
- Kansas City Public Library building opens.^[11]
1890 - Population: 132,716.^[5]
1892 - Court House built.^[5]
1893
- City Hall built.^[5]
- Kansas City Athletic Club active.
1895 - Kansas City School of Law founded.
1897 - December 20: City workhouse castle opened, old workhouse abandoned.^[12]^[13]
1900
- July 4: 1900 Democratic National Convention held. ^[5]
- Federal Building constructed.^[5]
- Population: 163,752.^[5]

20th century

1900s-1940s

1903 - Automobile Club of Kansas City active.
1904 - Children's Mercy Hospital active.^[14]
1908 - City Hospital built.^[5]
1909 - Kansas City Zoo opens in Swope Park
1910
- Hall Brothers in business.
- Population: 248,381.^[5]
1913 - Cook Paint and Varnish Company in business.
1914
- Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City and Paseo YMCA^[15] open.
- Union Station rebuilt.^[16]
1915 - Kansas City Polytechnic Institute established.^[17]
1917 - Rockhurst College opens.^[1]
1919 - Truman and Jacobson's haberdashery in business.^[18]
1920 - Population: 324,410.^[1]
1921 - Laugh-O-Gram Studio founded by Walt Disney
1922 - WPE radio begins broadcasting.
1923
- Fairyland Amusement Park opens at 7501 Prospect
- Laugh-O-Gram Studio files bankruptcy and closes
1926
- Ararat Shrine Temple and Bagdad Theatre^[19] open.
- Liberty Memorial dedicated to World War I veterans, opens
1927 - Downtown Airport opens, dedicated by Charles Lindbergh
1928
- June: 1928 Republican National Convention.
- F. W. Woolworth Building constructed.
1931 - Kansas City Power and Light Building constructed.
1933 - June 17: Kansas City massacre.
1936 - Holy Land Christian Mission founded.^[14]
1937 - Kansas City City Hall rebuilt.
1945 - K.C. native Harry S Truman sworn in as President of the United States after President Franklin Roosevelt's sudden death
1946
- Linda Hall Library established.
- William E. Kemp becomes mayor.
1948
- Harry S Truman wins Presidential election
- First national leadership conference of the Future Homemakers of America (FHA), now Family Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA).
1949
- Crest Drive-In cinema active (approximate date).^[19]
- Richard Walker Bolling becomes U.S. representative for Missouri's 5th congressional district.^[20]
- Industrial Bearings Transmission, now IBT, Inc. founded at 1625 Grand

1950s-1990s

1951 - July: Great Flood of 1951.^[21]
1954
- U.S. Weather Bureau Severe Local Storms Unit relocated to Kansas City.
- Paseo Bridge opens
1955
- The city gains its first major professional sports team when the Philadelphia Athletics of the American League relocate to Kansas City
- H. Roe Bartle becomes mayor.
1956 - First runway opens at Kansas City Industrial Airport, now KCI
1957
- Kansas City Ballet founded.
- Ruskin Heights Tornado (F-5).
1959 - Five KC firefighters killed in gas tank explosion on Southwest Blvd.
1963
- The Dallas Texans of the American Football League relocate to Kansas City and become the Chiefs
- University of Missouri–Kansas City established.
- Ilus W. Davis becomes mayor.
1964 - Kansas City Repertory Theatre founded^[22]
1967
- Kansas City Chiefs win American Football League championship and play in first Super Bowl, losing to Green Bay Packers
- Sister city relationship established with Seville, Spain.^[23]
- Athletics relocate to Oakland at the conclusion of the season
1968 - April: 1968 Kansas City, Missouri riot.
1969
- Kansas City Royals baseball team formed.,^[24]
- Kansas City Chiefs win Super Bowl IV
1970 - Population: 507,330.^[1]
1971
- Crown Center opens.
- Charles Wheeler becomes mayor.
1972
- Sister city relationship established with Kurashiki, Japan.^[23]
- Arrowhead Stadium opens
- NBA comes to Kansas City when the Cincinnati Royals relocate and become the Kings
- Kansas City International Airport becomes the city's primary passenger airport
1973
- Sister city relationship established with Morelia, Mexico.^[23]
- Worlds of Fun opens.
- Kauffman Stadium opens as Royals Stadium.
1974
- Kemper Arena opens.
- NHL comes to Kansas City with the establishment of the Scouts as an expansion team
- Sister city relationship established with Freetown, Sierra Leone.^[23]
1976 - World Science Fiction Convention held.
1977 - Fairyland Amusement Park closes after extensive damage by windstorm
1978 - Sister city relationship established with Tainan, Taiwan.^[23]
1979 - Richard L. Berkley becomes mayor.
1980
- Hyatt Regency hotel opens.
- The Kansas City Royals win the American League pennant before losing in World Series to the Philadelphia Phillies
1981 - July 17: Hyatt Regency walkway collapse.
1982
- Kansas City Symphony active.
- Oceans of Fun opens
1985 - World Series won by Kansas City Royals with Manager Dick Howser
1986 - Town Pavilion hi-rise built.
1988
- ACT UP chapter founded.^[21]
- One Kansas City Place built.
- Serial killer Bob Berdella apprehended as "Kansas City Butcher"
1989 - Sister city relationship established with Xi'an, China.^[23]
1990 - Population: 435,146.^[9]
1991
- Kansas City Stockyards close.
- Emanuel Cleaver becomes mayor.
- Firefighters' Memorial Fountain dedicated at 31st & Broadway
- Sister city relationship established with Guadalajara, Mexico.^[23]
1993
- Sister city relationships established with Hannover, Germany and Port Harcourt, Nigeria.^[23]
- Great Flood of 1993
1994 - Bartle Hall Convention Center opens.
1995 - Sister city relationship established with Arusha, Tanzania.^[23]
1997
- City website goes online (approximate date).^[25]^{[chronology citation needed]}
- Sister city relationship established with San Nicolás de los Garza, Mexico.^[23]
1998 - Sister city relationship established with Ramla, Israel.^[23]
1999 - Kay Barnes becomes mayor.
2000 - Population: 441,545.^[26]

21st century

2001 - Regional Kansas City SmartPort economic development group established.
2004 - Sister city relationship established with Metz, France.^[23]
2005
- Penn Valley skatepark opens.
- Emanuel Cleaver becomes U.S. representative for Missouri's 5th congressional district.^[27]
2007
- Sprint Center (arena) opens.
- Irish Museum and Cultural Center active.
- Mark Funkhouser becomes mayor.
2010
- Population: 459,787.^[28]
- Paseo Bridge closed, demolished
- Christopher S. Bond Bridge opens, replacing Paseo Bridge
2011
- Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts opens.
- Sly James becomes mayor.
- Population: 463,202; metro 2,052,676.^[29]
2012
- Google Fiber service begins.^[30]^[31]
- Kansas City Startup Village established.^[32]
2014 - Liberty Memorial designated National World War I Monument.
2015 - World Series won by Kansas City Royals
2019 - Quinton Lucas elected mayor
2020 - Kansas City Chiefs win Super Bowl LIV
2021 - Chiefs lose Super Bowl LV
2023 - Chiefs win Super Bowl LVII
2024 - Chiefs win Super Bowl LVIII

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Nergal 1980.
^ ^a ^b Federal Writers' Project 1941.
^ ^a ^b Shortridge, James R. (2012). Kansas City and How it Grew, 1822-2011. University of Press of Kansas.
^ "Union Cemetery". Kansas City Parks & Rec. Retrieved August 4, 2023.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k Britannica 1910.
^ "Collapse of the Union Women's Prison in Kansas City | Civil War on the Western Border: The Missouri-Kansas Conflict, 1854-1865". civilwaronthewesternborder.org. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
^ Kansas City journal. [volume] (Kansas City, Mo.), July 4, 1897. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Lib. of Congress. <https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn86063615/1897-07-04/ed-1/seq-3/>
^ Rick Montgomery; Shirl Kasper (1999). Kansas City: An American Story. Kansas City Star Books. ISBN 978-0-9604884-0-7.
^ ^a ^b Population of the 100 Largest Cities and Other Urban Places in the United States: 1790 to 1990, US Census Bureau, 1998
^ ^a ^b Davies Project. "American Libraries before 1876". Princeton University. Retrieved March 5, 2014.
^ Whitney 1908.
^ "Ready for Its Hobo Guests". The Kansas City Times. December 20, 1897. p. 3. Retrieved July 19, 2020.
^ Lawson, Ben (January 2, 2018). "Taste & See KC: Kansas City Workhouse Castle becoming a ruin". KSHB. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
^ ^a ^b Mike Tigas and Sisi Wei, ed. (May 9, 2013). "Kansas City, Missouri". Nonprofit Explorer. New York: ProPublica. Retrieved November 30, 2014.
^ Nina Mjagkij (1994). Light in the Darkness: African Americans and the YMCA, 1852-1946. University Press of Kentucky. ISBN 0-8131-2801-3.
^ "Timeline". Union Station Kansas City. Retrieved November 30, 2014.
^ "Member Institutions in Missouri". Washington DC: American Association of Community Colleges. Retrieved October 30, 2014.
^ "Truman: Chronology". Independence, Mo.: Harry S. Truman Library and Museum. Retrieved November 30, 2014.
^ ^a ^b "Movie Theaters in Kansas City, MO". CinemaTreasures.org. Los Angeles: Cinema Treasures LLC. Retrieved March 5, 2014.
^ "Missouri". Official Congressional Directory. Washington DC: Government Printing Office. 1953. hdl:2027/mdp.39015038055821.
^ ^a ^b Kansas City Public Library. "Local history & genealogy: Alphabetical List of Special Collections". Retrieved November 30, 2014.
^ "History of the Rep". Kansas City Repertory Theatre. Retrieved December 20, 2017.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l "Kansas City Sister Cities". kcsistercities.org. Sister City Association of Kansas City, MO. Archived from the original on October 9, 2014. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
^ "Royals Timeline". MLB Advanced Media. Archived from the original on April 29, 2010. Retrieved November 30, 2014.
^ "City of Kansas City, Mo". Archived from the original on April 13, 1997 – via Internet Archive, Wayback Machine.
^ "Profile of General Demographic Characteristics: 2000". Kansas City city, Kansas QuickLinks. State & County QuickFacts. US Census Bureau.
^ Civic Impulse, LLC. "Members of Congress". GovTrack. Washington, D.C. Retrieved March 5, 2014.
^ "Kansas City (city), Missouri". State & County QuickFacts. U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on April 23, 2012. Retrieved March 5, 2014.
^ "30 Cities: An Introductory Snapshot". American Cities Project. Washington, DC: Pew Charitable Trusts. 2013.
^ "Google Fiber: Why does Kansas City get to go high-speed?", Christian Science Monitor, July 27, 2012
^ "Two Cities With Blazing Internet Speed Search for a Killer App", New York Times, September 5, 2014
^ "Kansas City Startup Village". 2012.

Bibliography

19th century publications

Business directory, 1866
Theo. S. Case, ed. (1888). History of Kansas City, Missouri. Syracuse, N.Y.: D. Mason.
William Griffith (1900), History of Kansas City, Kansas City, Mo: Hudson-Kimberly Pub. Co., OCLC 181275439, OL 23304661M

20th century publications

"Kansas City, Mo.". Kansas State Gazetteer and Business Directory, including a complete business directory of Kansas City, Mo. R.L. Polk & Co. 1908.
Carrie Westlake Whitney (1908), Kansas City, Missouri: its History and its People 1808-1908, Chicago: S.J. Clarke Publishing Co., OL 6544377M
"Kansas City (Missouri)" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 15 (11th ed.). 1910. pp. 661–662.
Federal Writers' Project (1941), "Kansas City", Missouri: A Guide to the 'Show Me' State, American Guide Series, New York: Duell, Sloan and Pearce{{citation}}: CS1 maint: ref duplicates default (link)
"Kansas City, Heartland U.S.A.", National Geographic Magazine, vol. 150, Washington DC, 1976
Ory Mazar Nergal, ed. (1980), "Kansas City, MO", Encyclopedia of American Cities, New York: E.P. Dutton, p. 179+, OL 4120668M
Rick Montgomery; Shirl Kasper (1999). Kansas City: An American Story. Kansas City Star Books. ISBN 978-0-9604884-0-7.

21st century publications

Paul S. Boyer, ed. (2001). "Kansas City". Oxford Companion to United States History. Oxford University Press. p. 417. ISBN 978-0-19-508209-8.
Wishart, David J., ed. (2004). "Cities and Towns: Kansas City, Kansas and Missouri". Encyclopedia of the Great Plains. University of Nebraska Press. ISBN 0-8032-4787-7.
American Cities Project (2013). "Kansas City (MO)". America's Big Cities in Volatile Times: City Profiles. Washington, DC: Pew Charitable Trusts.
William S. Worley (2002). Kansas City: Rise of a Regional Metropolis. Heritage Media Corp.
James R. Shortridge (2012). Kansas City and How it Grew, 1822-2011. University of Press of Kansas.
Mildred Ray. Kansas City Public Library. "Armour Meat Packing".

External links

Kansas City Public Library. "Local History and Genealogy Research Guides".
Items related to Kansas City, Mo., various dates (via Digital Public Library of America)

39°05′59″N 94°34′42″W / 39.099722°N 94.578333°W / 39.099722; -94.578333

[FOOTNOTENergal1980-1] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Nergal 1980.

[FOOTNOTEFederal_Writers'_Project1941-2] Federal Writers' Project 1941.

[KCaHiG-3] Shortridge, James R. (2012). Kansas City and How it Grew, 1822-2011. University of Press of Kansas.

[kcpuc-4] "Union Cemetery". Kansas City Parks & Rec. Retrieved August 4, 2023.

[FOOTNOTEBritannica1910-5] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k Britannica 1910.

[6] "Collapse of the Union Women's Prison in Kansas City | Civil War on the Western Border: The Missouri-Kansas Conflict, 1854-1865". civilwaronthewesternborder.org. Retrieved May 11, 2020.

[7] Kansas City journal. [volume] (Kansas City, Mo.), July 4, 1897. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Lib. of Congress. <https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn86063615/1897-07-04/ed-1/seq-3/>

[8] Rick Montgomery; Shirl Kasper (1999). Kansas City: An American Story. Kansas City Star Books. ISBN 978-0-9604884-0-7.

[census1998-9] Population of the 100 Largest Cities and Other Urban Places in the United States: 1790 to 1990, US Census Bureau, 1998

[davies-10] Davies Project. "American Libraries before 1876". Princeton University. Retrieved March 5, 2014.

[FOOTNOTEWhitney1908-11] Whitney 1908.

[Ready_for_Its_Hobo_Guests-12] "Ready for Its Hobo Guests". The Kansas City Times. December 20, 1897. p. 3. Retrieved July 19, 2020.

[Castle_KSHB-13] Lawson, Ben (January 2, 2018). "Taste & See KC: Kansas City Workhouse Castle becoming a ruin". KSHB. Retrieved April 14, 2020.

[NonprofitExplorer-14] Mike Tigas and Sisi Wei, ed. (May 9, 2013). "Kansas City, Missouri". Nonprofit Explorer. New York: ProPublica. Retrieved November 30, 2014.

[Mjagkij1994-15] Nina Mjagkij (1994). Light in the Darkness: African Americans and the YMCA, 1852-1946. University Press of Kentucky. ISBN 0-8131-2801-3.

[16] "Timeline". Union Station Kansas City. Retrieved November 30, 2014.

[AACC-17] "Member Institutions in Missouri". Washington DC: American Association of Community Colleges. Retrieved October 30, 2014.

[18] "Truman: Chronology". Independence, Mo.: Harry S. Truman Library and Museum. Retrieved November 30, 2014.

[cinema-19] "Movie Theaters in Kansas City, MO". CinemaTreasures.org. Los Angeles: Cinema Treasures LLC. Retrieved March 5, 2014.

[20] "Missouri". Official Congressional Directory. Washington DC: Government Printing Office. 1953. hdl:2027/mdp.39015038055821.

[kcpl-21] Kansas City Public Library. "Local history & genealogy: Alphabetical List of Special Collections". Retrieved November 30, 2014.

[22] "History of the Rep". Kansas City Repertory Theatre. Retrieved December 20, 2017.

[sister-23] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l "Kansas City Sister Cities". kcsistercities.org. Sister City Association of Kansas City, MO. Archived from the original on October 9, 2014. Retrieved December 30, 2014.

[24] "Royals Timeline". MLB Advanced Media. Archived from the original on April 29, 2010. Retrieved November 30, 2014.

[25] "City of Kansas City, Mo". Archived from the original on April 13, 1997 – via Internet Archive, Wayback Machine.

[26] "Profile of General Demographic Characteristics: 2000". Kansas City city, Kansas QuickLinks. State & County QuickFacts. US Census Bureau.

[GovTrack-27] Civic Impulse, LLC. "Members of Congress". GovTrack. Washington, D.C. Retrieved March 5, 2014.

[quickfacts2010-28] "Kansas City (city), Missouri". State & County QuickFacts. U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on April 23, 2012. Retrieved March 5, 2014.

[29] "30 Cities: An Introductory Snapshot". American Cities Project. Washington, DC: Pew Charitable Trusts. 2013.

[30] "Google Fiber: Why does Kansas City get to go high-speed?", Christian Science Monitor, July 27, 2012

[31] "Two Cities With Blazing Internet Speed Search for a Killer App", New York Times, September 5, 2014

[32] "Kansas City Startup Village". 2012.

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Timeline of Kansas City, Missouri

19th century

20th century

1900s-1940s

1950s-1990s

21st century

See also

References

Bibliography

19th century publications

20th century publications

21st century publications

External links