Kansas City History

Forty years ago this month, the comedic basketball troupe, the Harlem Globetrotters, added a woman to its roster. NPR's Ashley Montgomery has the story of legendary athlete Lynette Woodard, a Wichita native and University of Kansas star.

The University of Missouri–Kansas City recently restored one of the last remaining murals of a nearly forgotten Spanish painter. Hear the story of Luis Quintanilla and how he ended up in Kansas City.

The state's new congressional map uses Troost Avenue as a dividing line, and groups majority Black neighborhoods in east Kansas City with rural communities in the middle of the state. Community leaders worry the new divide will mean the needs of underserved urban neighborhoods go ignored.

El artista español Luis Quintanilla huyó de la Guerra Civil Española para escapar de la persecución, pero la mayor parte de su obra fue destruida. Hoy en día, uno de los dos únicos murales que quedan, se encuentra en un rincón de la Universidad de Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC). Recién restaurada, la extraña y fascinante obra maestra de Quintanilla es un testimonio de los inmigrantes y del peligro del autoritarismo.

Artist Luis Quintanilla fled the Spanish Civil War to escape persecution, but most of his work was destroyed. Today, one of his two remaining murals sits in an otherwise ordinary corner of the University of Missouri-Kansas City. Newly restored, Quintanilla’s bizarre and enthralling masterpiece stands as a testament to immigrants and the danger of authoritarianism.

At the Kansas City Renaissance Fair and beyond, you can explore historic arts and heritage crafts — including blacksmithing, armor and chainmail making, basket weaving and more — with local artisans, classes, and clubs.

Raquel Reyes’ family owns a paleteria in Kansas City, though her family lineage traces back to another famous American Girl doll. Her author, Angela Cervantes, is a Kansas City resident herself.

Edward McCabe helped establish an all-Black Kansas town on his mission to create a state inhabited and run by freed slaves. In a new book, author Caleb Gayle writes about how McCabe earned the nickname of "Black Moses" and what his quest for liberation meant.

Former Kansas City Star photographer Raymond Corey captured behind-the-scenes images and everyday rural life in the Midwest for decades. A new exhibition of his work highlights 50,000 negatives donated to the State Historical Society of Missouri by his family.

In 1977, Judy Heumann led a 26-day occupation of a federal building that pressured the government to enforce a key civil rights law known as Section 504. Decades later, as the Missouri and Kansas attorneys general try to weaken those protections, activists are putting up another fight.

Signed 35 years ago this month, the ADA was the world’s first comprehensive civil rights law for people with disabilities — guaranteeing equal opportunity in public accommodations, employment, and more. But it likely wouldn't have passed without the relentless pressure of grassroots activists and Kansas Republican Bob Dole.

Kansas City será la ciudad más pequeña de Norteamérica en ser anfitrión de la Copa Mundial de la FIFA 2026. Pero es posible que no hubiera adoptado este deporte en absoluto, de no ser por el esfuerzo de los primeros inmigrantes que lucharon por este deporte, incluso antes de que existieran los campos de fútbol.