Kansas City Museum
R. A. Long House | |
Location | 3218 Gladstone Blvd., Kansas City, Missouri |
---|---|
Coordinates | 39°06′57″N 94°32′33″W / 39.1158°N 94.54241°W |
Area | 3-acre (12,000 m2) |
Built | 1909 |
Architect | Henry F. Hoit |
Architectural style | Beaux Arts |
Website | kansascitymuseum |
NRHP reference No. | 80002366[1] |
Added to NRHP | November 14, 1980 |
The Kansas City Museum is located in Kansas City, Missouri, United States. In 1910, the site was built by lumber baron and civic leader Robert A. Long as his private family estate, with the four-story historic Beaux-Arts style mansion named Corinthian Hall. In 1940, the site was donated by Long's heirs to become a public museum. Seventy-five years later, it began extensive renovation.[2]
Background
The 3-acre (12,000 m2) estate consists of Corinthian Hall, named for its
In the 1950s, the museum focused on display and interpretation of natural history. Early in 1951, taxidermy specimen displays expanded into the basement, along with mineralogical exhibits of fossils, rocks, and minerals.[5] During its heyday in the 1950s and 1960s, the museum housed hundreds of stuffed animals in lifelike dioramas and offered various presentations and classes in taxidermy. It featured a 50-seat planetarium, and a 1910-style soda fountain serving phosphates and ice cream.
By the 1970s, museum staff realized that the building was too small for its potential in local history and science and began to split it. Museum staff and civic leaders considered the newly empty
From 2005 to December 2013, the museum was managed by Union Station Kansas City, Inc., which maintains
Since May 2014, the City of Kansas City and Missouri's Parks and Recreation Department operate and manage the Kansas City Museum.[9]
References
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
- ^ Kansas City Museum Visitor Experience Plan. Gallagher & Associates. 28 April 2017. p. 2.
- ^ "3218 Gladstone Blvd". homefacts.com. Retrieved 28 April 2016.
- ^ Bradley, Lenore K. (May 22, 1980). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory Nomination: Long, R.A. Residence" (PDF). National Park Service. Retrieved 2009-05-05.
- ^ "Journey to Now" (PDF). Retrieved April 9, 2022.
- ^ Spencer, Laura (May 1, 2014). "A New Era For The Kansas City Museum".
- ^ "Union Station Kansas City, Inc". Propublica. Retrieved April 19, 2020.
- Kansas City Star. p. A1:2.
The Kansas City Museum will close on January 7, 2008, and not reopen until 2010 or later.
- Kansas City Star.
That phase could be completed in 2019