Researching Linwood Boulevard helped me gain an overall understanding of how Cities change of Time. There were new streets built, streets widened and streets renamed. The density of my are fluctuated, buildings were built, and then destroyed, sometimes replaced by new buildings other times by bare parking lots. It seemed that there was a theme of reusing buildings with a new purpose. Some houses became places of businesses and a gas station became a tire repair store. This section Linwood seemed to be at its height in 1950, there were more residential buildings and businesses, and over the years the block slowly died down. It was interesting to see how new streets formed, new buildings were built, older buildings were re-purposed and buildings like the Seventh day Adventist Church that ceased to exist.
The most historic building on the blocks is the Kansas City Athenaeum. The Kansas City Athenaeum was formed in 1894 by joining several women’s groups together. The members of the group formed as a way for women to receive a college level education in subjects such as art, music, literature, science, and economics. The group was also very active in civic and charitable events. Their building was completed in 1914, and remains in use today.
The block tells an interesting story and I only uncovered the surface. I would like to more of the details about the buildings that cease to exist. I wonder what their stories are? Perhaps sometime I’ll have to eat at that Texas Tom’s as well.
