Guest Author - Beth Green

When you mention Kansas City, Many people think of cows, wide open spaces and the Wizard of Oz. How many people associate Kansas City with Lewis & Clark, covered wagons, Jesse James, a President, and steamboats? Kansas City and the surrounding area is rich with history and museums.

Fort Osage, located in Sibley Missouri, was built in 1808 under the direction of William Clark, one of the first explorers of the American West, along with his partner Meriwether Lewis. Fort Osage was one of the first military outposts in the Louisiana Purchase. When Lewis and Clark were making their trek to the West, this site high above the Missouri River was first noted as a likely spot for a fort. Four years after first spotting the site, William Clark returned to design and build Fort Osage at the direction of the United States Government. In addition to being a military outpost, Fort Osage served as a government trade house for trade with the Osage Indians and other Indian nations. As a military outpost, Fort Osage was used to house soldiers who protected the newly acquired territory. The US government also used it to establish a relationship with the Osage Indians and eventually this site became the starting point for people heading west on the Santa Fe Trail.

Independence Missouri, 14 miles southwest of Sibley and a suburb of Kansas City, is the only place in the nation where the three Westward Expansion trails meet. The Oregon and California trails were one way trails that early settlers and gold prospectors used to make their way to the West Coast. The third trail, the Santa Fe, was a two way trail used to establish a commercial route from Independence to Santa Fe, New Mexico. The National Frontier Trails Museum in Independence is open 7 days a week and features interpretive exhibits to guide visitors along the three trails.

The first successful daylight bank robbery in peacetime in the United States was pulled off near Kansas City in the town of Liberty Missouri. In 1866, two men entered the bank, claiming to need change for a 10 dollar bill. As the teller approached to assist the men, one of the men pulled a gun and demanded all the money in the bank. After the money was stuffed into sacks, the tellers were locked in the vault, and the two men, members of the James gang, rode off on horseback. Visitors can visit the bank office where the robbery occurred, complete with the original vault and a calendar clock that is set to the day and time of the robbery

Kearney Missouri, north of Liberty and Kansas City, is the birthplace of Jesse and Frank James. The family home and slave cabin, Jesse’s original grave site, and a museum of James artifacts, is open year round. Visitors should also check out Jesse’s grave at Mt. Olivet Cemetery in Kearney.

An Independence museum also boasts a connection to the James gang. The 1859 Jail, Marshal’s Home and Museum on Independence Square, once housed Frank James and other members of the James gang. After Jesse was shot in St. Joseph, Frank turned himself in and was kept in this jail until his trial. Visitors to the Jail and Marshal’s Home can see the actual cell that Frank stayed in during his incarceration.

Independence was also home to Harry S Truman, the 33rd President of the United States. Visitors to Independence can tour the Truman home, where Harry and his wife Bess lived both before and after his Presidency. On historic Independence Square, take a walk through the courtroom that Harry presided in when he was a Jackson County judge. A must-see is the Truman Presidential Museum and Library, in which you can find a replica of the White House Oval Office, various exhibits, and the grave sites of Harry and Bess Truman. After a day spent visiting the Truman sites in Independence, stop in for a cold drink at Clinton’s Soda Fountain on the Square, where Harry had his first job.

The Steamboat Arabia Museum, in Kansas City’s River Market area, houses the remnants and contents of the Steamboat Arabia. The Arabia was traveling along the Missouri River from St. Louis in 1856 when she hit a tree trunk buried below the water’s surface. Within minutes the boat and her cargo lay at the bottom of the river. In 1987, the Hawley family unearthed the steamboat in a field (the river changed course many times between 1856 and 1987); salvaged what they could of its contents, and opened the museum. Visitors to the Arabia can see many items used in the 1800’s; the steam engine and boilers used to power the boat, and a replica paddle wheel. Besides viewing the boat’s cargo, visitors can also view the remains of the only casualty in the disaster: a mule.

Kansas City and the surrounding area has a rich and colorful past. The museums and sites mentioned here are only a small sampling of what is available. With such a diverse history, there’s sure to be something for everyone in Kansas City.