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Place Name
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Kansas City
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Place Status (Type)
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city
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Capital Of
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Wyandotte County
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Population
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149,767 (1990)
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Location
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Wyandotte County, Kansas (KS), United States, North America
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Latitude
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39°07'N
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Longitude
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94°43'W
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Kansas City
, adjacent cities of the same name, one (1990 pop.
149,767)  Wyandotte co., NE Kansas (inc. 1859); the other (1990
pop. 435,146) in Clay, Jackson, and Platte cos., NW Mo. (inc. 1850);
39°07'N 94°43'W. They are at the junction of the Missouri and
Kansas (or Kaw) rivers and together form a large commercial,
industrial, and cultural center. They are a port of entry, the focus of
many transportation lines, with markets for wheat, hay, poultry, and
seed. Both cities have meat, dairy, and agr. processing and packaging
plants. Among the chief manufactures of the metropolitan area are auto
bodies, chemicals, petroleum and paper prods., machinery, and
transportation equip.; also printing and publishing. During the 1970s
and 1980s the outlying towns and cities that comprise Kansas City's
suburban area developed their own industries, businesses, and corporate
bases for various companies. As a result, the pop. of the 2 adjacent
cities declined, and nearby suburban communities and housing
developments grew. The area was the starting point of many Western
expeditions; the Santa Fe and Oregon trails passed through here.
Several historic settlements of the early 19th cent. (including
Westport) have become full-fledged cities. Kansas City, Kansas (KS), is the
seat of 2 junior cols., 2 theological seminaries, the Univ. of Kansas
Medical Center, and a state school for the blind (est. 1868). It has an
agr. hall of fame, a Shawnee mission (1839), and several mus. A
19th-cent. Native Amer. cemetery is being incorporated into a unique
center city mall. Kansas City, Mo., is the site of the noted Nelson Art
Gall., the Atkins Mus. of Fine Arts, and the Country Club Plaza
(finished in 1922; one of the 1st U.S. shopping malls). Among its
educational institutions are the Univ. of Missouri-Kansas City, Avila
Col., Park Col., Rockhurst Col., Kansas (KS) City Art Inst., a col. of
osteopathy and surgery, a conservatory of music, 2 community cols., and
a number of theological schools. The city has a philharmonic orchestra
and several theaters. The Kansas City Star has a distinguished
history; it was founded (1880) by William Rockhill Nelson and headed by
him until 1915. The Kansas City Royals (baseball) and the Kansas City
Chiefs (football) are the major sports teams. The city has long been
noted for its music history, particularly for jazz and swing, popular
here since the 1930s, when black musicians were attracted to the city
and made their music nationally famous. Kansas City holds various jazz
and blues festivals throughout the year, and a Jazz Mus. opened in
1997. Richards-Gebaur Air Force Base lies to the S.
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