John McCoy
KCQ: How Did Kansas City Come to Be?
In hindsight, Kansas City’s development as the largest city in western Missouri seemed inevitable. Its location at the confluence of two rivers made it a likely transportation hub and a gateway for westward expansion. But as reader Ken Truax pointed out, Independence was once the city destined to make it big in the region, and he wondered how Kansas City took over that role. While exploring KC’s origins, we also take up Michael Vuinovic’s question: How did Westport, which isn’t close to the rivers, become such a significant part of Kansas City’s development into a dominant trade community?