Dedicated in 1970 as a three-story structure known as the General Library, UMKC's Miller Nichols Library has grown thanks to the support of area philanthropists to include more individual and collaborative spaces for students, resources for faculty, and several unique archival collections that serve scholars and the Kansas City community. The library was named in honor of Miller Nichols in 1991 following a $1.5 million donation that supported the completion of the fourth floor.
The Fine Arts building joined the University of Kansas City campus with its completion in 1942, housing the Chemistry and Biology departments. For the first three decades, the structure was known Chemistry-Biology Building. The building was renamed in 1972 in the midst of a wave of expansion. With the departments of chemistry and biology moving to the Spencer Chemistry Building and Biological Science Building, the Department of Fine Arts moved to this building which was renamed accordingly.
The E.F. Swinney Gymnasium was dedicated in 1941. Two years earlier, with encouragement from William Volker, Edward F. Swinney, the president of Kansas City's First National Bank, made two major donations to the University of Kansas City: one of $300,000 to build the gymnasium and another of $500,000 to start an endowment to maintain it once it was built. In the 1980s, the building was expanded into the Swinney Recreation center in order to add modern equipment, more basketball courts, and a swimming pool.
Now located between the Swinney Recreation Center and Miller Nichols Library, this campus landmark contain the remains of the University Playhouse. Constructed in 1948, this was the original main campus theatre at the University of Kansas City, a private institution of higher education created by civic leaders in 1933. The organization joined the University of Missouri system in 1963. The Playhouse the result of efforts led by university supporters and theatre connoisseurs Clarence R. and Mary Bell Decker. With support of campus leaders, the university purchased the building from the U.S. Army as war surplus. Prior to being moved to the campus and converted into a theater, the wooden structure previously served as a large auditorium at Camp Crowder in Neosho, Missouri. The building slowly fell into disrepair leading to the administration's decision to demolish the structure in 1978. Today, all that remains is a decorative patio of Arkansas stone, along with a once large fireplace that is now used as decoration for the two intricate ceramic masks representing Comedy and Tragedy. Given its location at between the central quad, library, and student centers, the beloved campus landmark continues to serve some of its original function as a place where students gather and hold social and community events.
Constructed from 1912 to 1914 for industrialist and local newspaper publisher Walter S. Dickey, this stately mansion became the first building of the University of Kansas City after philanthropist William Volker acquired the property and donated it to the new university in 1930. Volker was one of the strongest advocates for the new university, and with his help, classes started in the fall of 1933 despite the financial turmoil wrought by the Great Depression. The building was later renamed in honor of former chancellor Clarence Scofield who oversaw the transition from a private university to a member of the University of Missouri system. Dr. Scofield became the last president of the University of Kansas City in 1961, and following the successful merger, he retired as chancellor of the University of Missouri-Kansas City in 1965.
Referred to simply as "the library" for much of its early years, this was the University of Kansas City's third building and was renamed in 1984 to honor Ernest Newcomb, one of the key founders of the university and the school's executive secretary from 1928 to 1938. The building originally housed the library and a small auditorium and its completion in 1936 reflected the growth of the university and its student body. This library became home to the large Snyder Collection in 1937 after the collection's purchase by William Volker; the central figure in the establishment. The library's collection and the needs of the university outgrew the capacity of this building leading to the creation of Miller Nichols Library in the 1960s. In the decades that followed, the former library building housed classrooms and offices, the university's telephone switchboard, and the State Historical Society's Western Historical Manuscript Collection before its move to Miller Nichols Library.
Manheim Hall became the second building on the campus of the University of Kansas City when it was completed in 1935, just two years after the first courses were held in the former mansion known today as Scofield Hall. This building was also a gift from the university's leading founder, philanthropist William Volker, and met the needs of the rapidly-growing university by offering laboratory and classroom space. Initially called the Science Building, this structure became the home to KCU's departments of chemistry, biology, geology, physics, and home economics. In 1999, the Science Building was renamed Manheim Hall in honor of sociology professor Ernest Manheim.
Originally constructed as an addition to neighboring Haag Hall and known as the Haag Hall Annex in its early years, this UMKC building was completed in 1972 to provide much-needed classroom space. The building reflected changes to higher education with two large lecture halls, a feature the university had previously been lacking. In 1983, the building was renamed Royall Hall in honor of Norman Royall, a longtime professor of math and physics who earned a national reputation for his textbooks and educational films.
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Flarsheim Hall was built in 1999 to be the new home of several of UMKC's science and technology departments. When it was built it was one of the largest buildings on UMKC's campus. The building was named in honor of Robert Flarsheim, who had left his estate, worth nearly $9 million, to the university when he passed away in 1991.
This exhibit within UMKC's Flarsheim Hall shares the work of the late Dr. Richard J. Gentile, Professor Emeritus at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. The exhibit debuted at the Box Gallery in downtown Kansas City and was moved to this location in October, 2022. The exhibit invites students, faculty, and guests to the university to explore and learn about this region during the Ice Age when herds of giant mammals lived in the area. Most of the species on display became extinct about 10,000 years ago. This exhibit compares skeletal remains of Ice Age mammals with their modern day relatives including the giant ground sloth, woolly mammoth, mastodon, saber-toothed cat, and the giant beaver. The first photo within this Clio entry, as well as the 360-degree image within the Google Streetview section of this Clio entry, show how the exhibit now appears on the UMKC campus. The rest of the photos depict the exhibit during its 2021 debut at the Box Gallery.
Known as the Liberal Arts Building for its first decade-and-a-half, this campus building doubled the University of Kansas City classroom space when it was completed in 1937. The new building gave the school its first cafeteria in addition to classrooms to accommodate the school's enrollment which had grown from 260 students in 1933 to more than 800 students. In 1951, the anonymous donor who funded the building was revealed to be local philanthropist Lena Haag. Once this was revealed, the building was named in her honor.
Now home to the Department of English and the Department of History at UMKC, this campus building was completed in 1950 and served as the original home of the University of Kansas City Law School. Construction on the building began in the early 1940s, an effort that was placed on pause following the outbreak of World War II. In 1979, UMKC's School of Law moved to a larger modern facility, and this building was converted to classroom and office space for the College of Arts and Sciences. In 1980, the building was renamed Cockefair Hall in honor of Carolyn Benton Cockefair, an assistant professor of English in the 1940s and 1950s
Established in 1946 through a six-million-dollar gift from Herbert and Linda Hall, this independent science research library includes an arboretum. Both the grounds and the library are open to the public. One of the largest science libraries in the United States, the collection began with the acquisition of the library of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1946. The availability and decision to acquire this collection shaped the direction of the library, which now also holds a sizable collection from the Franklin Institute and the Engineering Societies Library. The library holds over two million items, including a quarter million patents and records of leading scientific organizations. The collection is the largest of any private STEM-centered library in North America that is open to the public and is known for its collections related to the history of science and technology.
Sculptor Eugene Daub was commissioned to create this work to honor University of Missouri - Kansas City supporters Henry and Marion Bloch who provided substantial funding in support of the creation of the Bloch School of Management and other initiatives of that train students Kansa City area students in business and other related academic disciplines. The sculpture was dedicated in 2013 as part of the celebration of the opening of the Henry W. Bloch Executive Hall which is located near this sculpture. Eugene Daub was commissioned to create the statue honoring Rosa Parks in the U.S. Capitol as well as the Lewis and Clark statue in Kansas City.
This historic Kansas City home was completed in 1923 and the home of Uriah and Mary Epperson, local business owners and philanthropists. The couple shared a love of music and the arts and donated considerable sums to charitable institutions around Kansas City. The Collegiate-Gothic mansion has 56 rooms and cost $450,000 at the time it was built. The home has belonged to the University of Missouri-Kansas City since 1942, although it has been underutilized for over a decade due to accessibility requirements. Plans are underway to find funds to restore the mansion and find a new use for the property.
The National Museum of Toys and Miniatures opened in 1982 and offers visitors the chance to explore the world's largest collection of fine-scale miniatures, dolls and dollhouses, antique toys, and offers dozens of exhibits related to the history of toys. The museum is housed in the historic 1911 Tureman Mansion and included a collection that has grown to over 86,000 artifacts. The museum began when lifelong friends Mary Harris Francis and Barbara Marshall decided to donate their collections to start the museum. Francis collected old toys as a hobby, while Marshall commissioned handcrafted miniatures from professional artists worldwide. In 2015, the museum reopened after an 18-month renovation that saw the addition of new interactive exhibits and an expanded collection of artifacts. Since that time, the museum's first floor has been dedicated to fine-scale miniatures while the second floor offers exhibits of toys from the past two centuries.
This Tour is a Walking Tour.
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Starting with 260 students in 1933, the University of Kansas City grew from local philanthropist William Volker's belief that a great city deserved a great university. With stops at buildings and other campus landmarks, this walking tour explores the history of Kansas City's urban university through the lives of students, faculty, and local supporters over the past ninety years.
