Local History Blog

Railroad tycoon envisioned a grand Belgian settlement in Kansas City. Then came cholera

Today, Guinotte Avenue is a rather unassuming stretch of road running through Kansas City’s predominantly industrial East Bottoms. One hundred seventy years ago, however, the thoroughfare was the embodiment of one man’s dream to make Kansas City a…

The Strange Case of Mr. Swope and Dr. Hyde

For more than a century, Kansas City has been haunted by the mysterious death of philanthropist Thomas Swope. Suspect number one is his nephew-in-law, Dr. Bennett Hyde, who stood to inherit a sizable portion of the Swope family fortune. But did…

What happened to Kansas City's first school for Black students — and its historical marker?

Walking past Dr. Jeremiah Cameron Park in Westport, a reader noticed a marker for something called the Penn School and wrote to What’s Your KCQ?, a partnership between the Kansas City Public Library and The Kansas City Star, to learn about it. The…

KCQ serves up a history of early KC hamburger stands

While the hot dog is considered quintessential cuisine for the July Fourth holiday, the hamburger is undeniably king among American eats. It is a menu staple at restaurants throughout the U.S., not to mention the backyards and ballparks in which…

Was Lee’s Summit named after Robert E. Lee? What’s Your KCQ? examines the complicated legacy of the town’s namesake

Many assume Lee’s Summit was named for Confederate General Robert E. Lee, and a reader asked What’s Your KCQ?, a collaboration between The Kansas City Star and the Kansas City Public Library, to find out the truth. Not only is the Kansas City,…

KCQ Explores the History and Legacy of Kansas City’s Pioneer Mother

With Mother’s Day weekend approaching, it is fitting that What’s Your KCQ? respond to a query about Kansas City’s…

Winning the home front: KC women at work during World War II

“Grandma has come out of the kitchen.” The North Ameri-Kansan, a weekly magazine from North American Aviation’s Kansas City, Kansas, plant, proudly proclaimed this in November 1942. It wasn’t just one, either. Thirty-nine women with grandchildren…

IMPOSSIBLE ADVENTURES OF COMICS IN HISTORY

It’s easy to say that reading for entertainment has taken a backseat to television and video games in today’s visually driven culture. A popular form of amusement, however, still has the power to capture the imagination of both younger and mature…

Kansas City’s post-WWI Black social club. What’s Your KCQ? investigates the Beau Brummel Club

In 1920s Kansas City, hotel ballrooms, restaurants, and nightclubs teemed with crowds excited to hear the region’s signature jazz sound and eager to take advantage of the city’s lax alcohol prohibition enforcement. By visiting “Paris of the…

What is the history of the Rosedale Memorial Arch? What’s Your KCQ? investigates

When the Sporting Kansas City soccer club released new state line-themed jerseys in February 2022, fans noticed that one of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art’s shuttlecock sculptures, along with the Rosedale Memorial Arch, appeared together on the…