By the 1920s Kansas City embraced automobiles as the favorite method of transportation. Despite the advantages of electric streetcars, another innovation, the automobile, gradually replaced them. Cable cars gradually disappeared from the landscape of Kansas City and most of the United States.

The Kansa Indians: A History of the Wind People, 1673-1873 by William E.In the early twentieth century, electric streetcars proved to be more energy efficient, required less maintenance, and were easier to construct than cable cars.

Kansas City Then and Now by Monroe Dodd.

Butler and Dan Viets, edited by Donna Martin

Walt Disney’s Missouri: The Roots of a Creative Genius by Brian Burnes, Robert W.

Kansas City Style: a Social and Cultural History of Kansas City as Seen Through Its Lost Architecture by Jane Flynn and Dory DeAngelo.

Truman and Pendergast by Robert Ferrell ('Can you be an honest man in a corrupt system? Depending on the author, they give Harry a bit more or a bit less credit in that area,' says Eli Paul.).

Pendergast! by Larry Larson ('It has a sense of humor,' says Eli Paul.).

Deaths on Pleasant Street: The Ghastly Enigma of Colonel Swope and Dr.

Take Up the Black Man’s Burden: Kansas City’s African American Communities, 1865-1939 by Charles E.

Action before Westport, 1864 by Howard N.Bleeding Kansas, Bleeding Missouri by Jonathan Earle.Bridge by Evan Connell (historical fiction) Architecture A to Z: An Elemental, Alphabetical Guide to Kansas City's Built Environment by Steve Paul.A City Divided: The Racial Landscape of Kansas City, 1900-1960 by Sherry Schirmer ('Traces the development of white Kansas Citians’ perceptions of race,' says Monroe Dodd.).Wilson ('This book talks about the long battle between rich and poor, the middle class, and Democrats and Republicans in Kansas City during the late 19th century and early 20th century,' says Monroe Dodd.) The City Beautiful Movement in Kansas City by William H.Kansas City: An American Story by Rick Montgomery and Shirl Kasper.Tom’s Town by William Redding ('The nitty gritty of politics and reality and rum-running,' says Monroe Dodd.).City of the Future by Henry Haskell Jr.Kansas City and How it Grew by James Shortridge ('As a geographer, he really tells you why Kansas City happened here,' says Eli Paul.).

Local historian Monroe Dodd and Missouri Valley Special Collections manager Eli Paul gave us their recommendations of the best books for local history lovers, focusing on those that are a really good read. After all, even if you can't get outside to explore the city, you can still do it from the comfort of your home. It’s cold outside, so now is the perfect time to curl up with a good book.Ĭentral Standard took the opportunity to seek out some of the best books about Kansas City history.

Kansas City by Rick Montgomery