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Title
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SC223 Folly Theater Collection Finding Aid
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Description
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Open since 1900, the Folly Theater has assumed several names and identities over the decades, from a vaudeville, burlesque, and Shakespearean playhouse to an X-rated movie theater. Today, it serves as Kansas City’s oldest performing arts venue. The Folly Theater Collection contains photographs, scrapbooks, posters, administrative and financial records, building blueprints, and various artifacts that document the theater’s diverse history.
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Date
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1877/2014
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Object Type
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Finding Aid
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Title
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SC205 Organized Crime Files - Series 4: Unione Sicilione
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Description
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This series contains photographs, miscellaneous documents,and newspaper clippings pertaining to the Sicilian-American criminal brotherhood known as the Unione Sicilione, or Unione Siciliana, and individuals suspected of having ties to organized crime, mafia, and mob activity in Kansas City.
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Date
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1950/1961
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Object Type
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Archival Material
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Title
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SC205 Organized Crime Files - Series 2: Kansas City Gangsters -Italian
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Description
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This series contains files on criminals of Italian descent suspected of having ties to organized crime, mafia, and mob activity in Kansas City. Items include: mug shots, photographs, KCPD and FBI records, short biographies, and newspaper clippings. While most of the documents are undated, many contain arrest records from the 1930s until the year 1950. This series is arranged alphabetically by surname.
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Date
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1934/1964
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Object Type
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Archival Material
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Title
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SC193 Richards and Conover Hardware Company Collection Finding Aid
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Description
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The Richards and Conover Hardware Company was started in 1857 by John Francisco Richards and continued to operate as a family-owned business until it closed in 1999. This collection, donated by a former president of the company and descendant of John F. Richards, consists of the business records created and maintained by the company’s owners and employees.
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Date
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1854/1999
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Object Type
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Finding Aid
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Title
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Kansas City in 1879
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Description
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Promotional booklet for Kansas City, Missouri. Item includes sections covering the development of the city's business interests, a list of buildings constructed in 1878, its history, its geographic advantages, descriptions of various businesses and public institutions, descriptions of its suburbs, and advertisements.
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Date
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1879
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Title
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SC125 David H. Perkins Papers Finding Aid
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Description
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The David H. Perkins Papers contain correspondence, publications, writings, photographs, artwork, and ephemera created and collected by David H. Perkins over the course of his life. A life-long Kansas City area resident, Perkins was a writer, editor, teacher, critic, and activist with interests in literature, art, politics, and urban and housing development projects. The collection consists of professional and personal materials.
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Date
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2014-10
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Object Type
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Finding Aid
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Title
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SC7 Missouri Valley Historical Society Records Finding Aid
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Description
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The Missouri Valley Historical Society (1913-1940) was the successor to the Kansas City Historical Society (1906-1913) and the Early Settler's Society and Historical Association (1896-1906). All these organizations focused on the history of the Kansas City area and the region in general. The Society was especially active during the presidency of John Barber White (1913-1923).The collection consists of official records, correspondence, and business records of the organization. Historical material may be found in vertical files, manuscripts, scrapbooks, etc. The collection also includes the papers of the Gold Star League which contains photographs, correspondence, and biographical sheets on soldiers of World War I from the Kansas City area.
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Date
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1830/1940
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Object Type
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Finding Aid
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Title
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SC207 Italian Mission Collection
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Description
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In 1908, the Central Presbyterian Church of Kansas City established a settlement house to assist Italian immigrants in the community. Commonly known as the Italian Mission, the initiative grew to offer a kindergarten, free health clinic, recreation center, dual-language publications, and a church to the Italian community and other residents living in Kansas City’s Northeast neighborhood. This collection includes the operational and financial records of the mission and related projects, as well as personal papers of its long-time leader, Dr. John B. Bisceglia, and his family.
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Date
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1816/2009
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Object Type
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Finding Aid
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Title
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Future: The Newsweekly for Today
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Description
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First issue of the anti-corruption, Kansas City-based newspaper, Future: The Newsweekly for Today. The front page includes a statement on the newspaper's objective, maintaining that the newspaper is not against any certain political party or vice, but that it is simply for "good government." Featured articles include: “Council Passes Cab Ordinance” (pp. 2 & 4) discussing councilman Frank H. Backstrom’s reaction to the ordinance and detailing other ordinances appropriating bond funds.; "Adult Education--A Fine Work" (pp. 2 & 6) concerning "the program of adult education going forward under the FERA, with the hearty co-operation of the city's Board of Education" and supervised by Roy Gallemore. It describes courses offered at Lincoln High School and its "sixty-three colored teachers employed, a goodly number as compared with the hundred and sixteen white teachers."; “Trivia” (pp. 2 & 6) and "Borderline Businesses Pay Most Sugar" (pp. 3 & 8) on the bombing of the Harlem Nightclub as an example of the vulnerability of semi-legitimate ("borderline") nightclubs and other businesses in Kansas City to its strong-arm tactics of organized crime through the police department. A photo of the Harlem Nightclub bombing is included.; "What, Precisely, Is a Machine?" (pp. 3 & 5) on the definition of political machines and the Pendergast machine in Kansas City fitting this definition through unofficial financing, voting fraud, etc.; "A New Administration for the County" (pp. 3-5) detailing the new administrative officials, new budget laws, and efforts to reduce the city deficit. A picture of J. W. Hostetter, Eugene I. Purcell, and Battle McCardle is included.; “NYM” (p. 4) on the National Youth Movement began in Kansas City in May 1932 with a portrait of Joseph C. Fennelly.; "May We Present Mrs. Charles N. Seidlitz" (p. 5) on Alice Richards Seidlitz "one of the founders of the Junior League of Kansas City," wife of Charles Seidlitz ("president of the Seidlitz Paint and Varnish Company"), and daughter of George Richards ("son of the founder of Richards and Conover Hardware Company"). A photo of Alice is included.; "Be Proud, Citizens!" (pp. 5 & 8) on the ironic description of Kansas City by Judge Brown Harris "as 'probably the most law-abiding city in the United States.'" Irony due to the judge's association with the Pendergast machine and "federal indictments" in relation to the Union Station massacre of Eugene Reppert ("former director of police"), Thomas Higgins ("chief of detectives"), George Rayen ("of the police motor theft bureau"), Tom Bash (sheriff), etc.; Book review (p. 7) of "Heaven's My Destination" by Thornton Wilder (author of "Our Town" and "The Bridge of San Luis Rey"), describing a scene in the book with the main character (a devoutly religious man) unknowingly eating at one of Kansas City's "bawdy houses" and experiencing other misadventures.; Also included in the newspaper are advertisements for local businesses and articles on sports, fashion, finance, cooking, music, and national and international news.
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Date
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1935-01-11
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Object Type
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Newspaper
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Title
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Future: The Newsweekly for Today
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Description
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Issue of the anti-corruption, Kansas City-based newspaper, Future: The Newsweekly for Today. The front page includes an article, continued on page 8, with a photo and description of Kansas City FBI agent Lieutenant William Gordon, "commended by J. Edgar Hoover," in an article about the crime-fighting operations of the Federal Bureau of Investigations and its relation to Kansas City crime. Sheriff Bash, Chief Coffey, Director Reppert, Chief of Detectives Thomas Higgins, and Lieutenant George Rayen are also discussed. Other featured articles include: “Journey to the K.C. Market” (pp. 2 & 6), about visiting the City Market, where the vendors are described as local farmers or Greek importers and noting the bad car and trolley traffic; “Nicking Street Car Riders’ Nickels” (p. 3), photo and biographical article about Brigadier-General E. M. Stayton, "Kansas City street railway commissioner," resident of Independence, and former teacher in Independence starting in 1907. Description of his "farcical" role in actual city government and high salary coming from the Pendergast machine; “Sock! Splat!” (p. 3), about boxing competitions at International Arena, at 15th & Troost, attended by “the henchmen of Boss Cash Welch”; “The King’s Men” (p. 4), arguing that there is no hope for clean government from local and state leadership, but expressing hope for better leadership from Senators Bennett Clark and Harry Truman and encouraging readers “to work, day and night, … to vote against the existing regime”; and “May We Present Thomas Leslie Johnson” (p. 5), photo and biographical article about Thomas Leslie Johnson, or Thomas Johnson, "insurance executive, churchman, Y. M. C. A. leader and all around efficient citizen of this community," growing up in Kansas City; also included in the newspaper are advertisements for local businesses and articles on sports, fashion, finance, cooking, music, letters to the editor, and national and international news.
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Date
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1935-02-08
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Object Type
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Newspaper
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Title
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Future: The Newsweekly for Today
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Description
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Issue of the anti-corruption, Kansas City-based newspaper, Future: The Newsweekly for Today. The front page includes an article, continued on pages 3 and 8, about the election frauds in Kansas City government, with a photo of fraudulent signatures in a precinct book and a photo of Gil Bourk, promoter of "permanent registration." Other featured articles include: “Missouri Valley Authority” (p. 2), about a proposed Missouri analog of the New Deal Tennessee Valley Authority; “Better Driving” (p. 2), a notice about the decrease in automobile-related deaths in Kansas City from 14 in 1934 to 5 in 1935; “Harlem Afternoon” (pp. 2 & 5), about the village of Harlem, Missouri, on the north side of the Missouri River across from Kansas City, including an interview of "Captain Kade," former pilot of the Annie Cade ferryboat during the 1903 flood; and “May We Present Mrs. Herbert V. Jones” (p. 5), a portrait and biographical article about Mrs. Herbert Jones, or Eleanor Jones, president of the Women's City Club at the Gate City Bank Building in 1921, president of the Consumers' League in 1922, president of the League of Women Voters in 1932, and general chairman of the Jackson County women's work committee in 1933; also included in the newspaper are advertisements for local businesses and articles on sports, fashion, finance, cooking, music, letters to the editor, and national and international news.
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Date
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1935-02-01
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Object Type
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Newspaper
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Title
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SC99 Philip A. Gambone Papers Finding Aid
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Description
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Two boxes contain the Phil Gambone architecture research papers of notes, correspondence, photographs, photocopied articles, etc., and note cards for work on a book on Kansas City architecture. The book was to have been published in the 1970s, but the research and publication were never completed. Includes photographs of the New England Building (folder 25), a list of log cabins in Kansas City (folder 20) and a list of 1922 Kansas City landmarks (folder 19).
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Date
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1972/1975
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Object Type
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Finding Aid
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Title
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SC164 KCPL Reference Hard to Find Collection Finding Aid
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Description
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The materials within the KCPL Reference Hard to Find (HTF) Collection were compiled by Kansas City Public Library reference librarians and staff members to provide an easy to access source of information concerning topics of local and regional interest. The collection primarily consists of newspaper and magazine clippings, pamphlets, brochures, other forms of printed material, and typed notecards.
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Date
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1980/2005
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Object Type
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Finding Aid
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Title
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SC58 Mrs. Sam Ray Postcard Collection Finding Aid
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Description
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Mildred Kittell Ray was born in Halstead, Kansas, on September 22, 1895. An avid collector of postcards (buttons, too), Mrs. Ray, at the age of 72, initiated a column in the Kansas City Times and Kansas City Star entitled "A Postcard from Old Kansas City." The columns ran for 23 years. They proved to be extremely popular with the reading public, and two selected sets of articles were collected and published in book form; the first volume won a national design award from the American Institute of Graphic Arts. The collection consists of over 16,000 postcards and materials associated with Mrs. Ray's writing career. Subjects in the postcards include Kansas City, Missouri, Kansas, the other states of the US, a large number of foreign countries, an assortment of different topics (humor, holidays, etc.), and card format (wood, leather, copper, etc.). Items related to Mrs. Ray's career as a writer include: correspondence; research materials such as newspaper clippings and handwritten notes; draft, manuscript, and published versions of early "pre-postcard" historical articles; postcard articles that were rejected by the publisher; and the texts of lectures and presentations given by Mrs. Ray. Graphic materials make up another part of the collection, with items like advertising envelopes, ephemera from Emery, Bird, Thayer, and a number of photographs. An audiotape of a speech given by Dick Ray (Mrs. Ray's son), on February 13, 1998, at the official debut of the Library's online version of the newspaper column is included in the collection.
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Date
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1890/1998
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Object Type
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Finding Aid
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Title
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SC86-1 James M. Greenwood Papers Finding Aid
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Description
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James M. Greenwood was the leading educator in Kansas City for 40 years (1874-1914). In his tenure as superintendent of schools, he became recognized locally, nationally, and internationally. He was born in Illinois on November 15, 1837, and died at his desk on August 1, 1914. Greenwood's papers include correspondence primarily sent to Greenwood (1891-1917); reports and speeches (1906-1913); an unpublished manuscript on the history of Missouri; personal journals (1910, 1914); notebook kept by Mrs. Greenwood (1892-1896); and miscellaneous, primarily personal items. These papers cover the middle to late part of Mr. Greenwood's tenure as Superintendent of the Kansas City School District. A few published items are included but the bulk of the collection is handwritten or typewritten. Mr. Greenwood's interest in mathematics is evident as a subject of his speeches and outlines.
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Date
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1891/1941
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Object Type
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Finding Aid
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Title
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SC34 Liberty (Mo.) Tribune Papers Finding Aid
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Description
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This collection contains items ca. 1832-1880s submitted to the Liberty (Mo.) Tribune for publication in the newspaper. They cover a variety of topics. Of particular interest are letters written from California during the Gold Rush as well as letters sent from along the trails to the west. Items pertaining to Liberty, Missouri, and the surrounding Clay, Ray, and Platte Counties provide a glimpse of life in western Missouri during the mid-nineteenth century.
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Date
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1800/1889~
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Object Type
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Finding Aid
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Title
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SC35-2 Henry R. Rule Autograph Collection Finding Aid
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Description
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This collection contains various items which include the autographs of famous people like political figures, including many presidents, literary greats, Civil War personalities, etc. Includes a letter written by Walt Disney, August 17, 1937, addressed to the Kansas City, Mo. Public Library. Most of the autographs appear to come from Mr. Henry Rule who wrote and corresponded with individuals who provided him the autographs.
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Date
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1792/1939
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Object Type
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Finding Aid
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Title
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SC28 Rudolph Umland Collection Finding Aid
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Description
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This collection consists of notes, correspondence, and miscellaneous papers accumulated by author Rudolph Umland as he wrote articles about Kansas City history for local periodicals. Umland was a Nebraska author who, after leading the Nebraska Federal Writers’ Project and serving in World War II wrote for local, regional, and national publications while working in the Social Security Administration.
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Date
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1970~/1979~
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Object Type
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Finding Aid
Pages