All Library locations will be close early Wednesday, November 27, at 5 p.m. & will be closed Thursday, November 28, for Thanksgiving.
For 816 Day, Carry a Piece of KC History in Your Pocket
Monday, August 15, 2022
816 Day (August 16) is the annual, city-approved celebration of all things Kansas City. Get your KC pride on by checking out this list of books and resources about the people, places, and history that have contributed to our community’s culture.
View full listPut a Portal to the Past on your Phone
If you enjoy learning about the people and places that have made Kansas City what it is today, you’ll love browsing KCHistory.org, the online home of the Library’s Missouri Valley Special Collections. The site hosts a treasure trove of digitized photos, maps, postcards, and other historical materials that tell the stories of our city’s growth and development over time.
Want to carry a bit of KC with you on the go? We’ve selected a handful of historic images and made them available as background wallpapers for your mobile phone. Free to download and use on your device, these snapshots and postcard images can give your modern tech a bit of old-school style by showing off our community’s past.
Explore more stories, resources, and images at KCHistory.org.
Tip of the cap to our northern sibling, Toronto Public Library, for this idea!
Downloadable Cell Phone Wallpaper Graphics
Map of Kansas City school districts
1930
Portion of blue-line map of Kansas City, Missouri, showing boundaries for lower grade schools in the Kansas City School District. Produced by Gallup Map and Supply Company.
Streetcar on Main at 31st Street
1957
View facing northeast showing Main Street south of where 31st Street crosses. An electric streetcar, cars driving along a portion of Main Street, and Midtown buildings can be seen.
Liberty Memorial Rededication
1961
Aerial view of crowd at base of the Liberty Memorial.
Train Time – Union Station Lobby
1950
Interior view of two train passengers standing in the lobby of Union Station.
Truman Sports Complex
Aerial view of the stadiums looking south; shows baseball game in progress.
Union Station and skyline
1945
View looking north of Kansas City’s downtown skyline.
Walnut Street, North from 12th Street
1909
Postcard of Walnut Street looking north from 12th Street.
Power and Light Building
1931
Postcard of the Kansas City Power and Light Building at Baltimore Avenue and 14th Street.
Charlie Parker Memorial sculpture
1999
At 17th Ter. and the Paseo in the 18th and Vine District. Designed by artist Robert Graham, it was unveiled on March 27, 1999.
