The imposing new city hall, on the east side of Main Street, between Fourth and Fifth streets, appears in this Post Card much as it did when it came into service, October 24, 1892, with W.S. Cowherd as mayor. The site was originally the slope of a ravine; its surface was 55 feet below the present surface of Fifth street. But the deep hollow had been filled through the years by dumping earth and rubbish into it. The stone, brick and iron of the proposed hall would weigh more than 55 million pounds, and therefore required a strong foundation. According to John W. Taylor of the pioneer family of brick manufacturers and contractors that emigrated from Oldham, England, and were responsible for much of Kansas City’s early brick work, it was necessary to install 60 circular, sheet metal caissons five feet in diameter to support the structure. These caissons were filled with vitrified brick and imported cement and extended into the ground as deep as 55 feet to bedrock. Eighty years occupancy of the North End location ended in October, 1937, when the present 30-story, 5-million-dollar city hall was erected at Eleventh and Oak streets, and Bryce B. Smith, mayor, and H.F. McElroy, city manager, moved uptown. The old building was wrecked in late 1938 to provide additional space for the city market. Kansas City Star, May 24, 1969.
Reproduction (printing, downloading, or copying) of images from Kansas City Public Library requires permission and payment for the following uses, whether digital or print: publication; reproduction of multiple copies; personal, non-educational purposes; and advertising or commercial purposes. Please order prints or digital files and pay use fees through this website. All images must be properly credited to: "Missouri Valley Special Collections, Kansas City Public Library, Kansas City, Missouri." Images and texts may be reproduced without prior permission only for purposes of temporary, private study, scholarship, or research. Those using these images and texts assume all responsibility for questions of copyright and privacy that may arise.
