Nothing fancy about it. It's literally just a house. I can literally walk up to it in 5 minutes.read more

The Truman House is a great demonstration of how a T33 lived his life during and after his…read morepresidency. Short and sweet. You'll want to go to Independence Square's Main Street to get tickets to visit the house first. There you'll watch a video about President Truman and his family. You'll find out about how he was a family man, humble with a sense of humor. Tours are available every 15min until 4pm, Wednesdays thru Sundays. You can park across the street from the Truman house, in front of the Noland house... but there is also parking on the off streets. The tour size per group is limited to eight (8) folks per group, first come first serve... so, planning ahead is best, but if you're a small group, you can drop in - like I did. No pictures of the inside. The tour is limited to the porch, where the former President and his family hung out most; the kitchen, the dining room, and the first floor living areas. Considering the amount of wealth presidents have access to, the home is a great demonstration of a long lost value - dedication and service. Truman believed he could go back to a simple life in his own hometown... and he did his very best to keep it so. The tour also gives a time warp feel as the home is shown as it was back in 1982, when Bess Truman passed away. Ranger Jeff was friendly and super knowledgeable, he posited all kinds of questions to us. We were in an out within 30min. Afterwards, I was able to look at the Noland House across the street. It had additional artifacts from the Truman family. It's small, and is paired well with the Truman Library and Museum to get the totality of Truman and his life.

Giving a five star review for an abandoned building seems out of place, but my visit today has been…read moredecades in the making and is an afternoon that i can't wait to tell friends about and share photos. Built in 1897 as Kansas City's workhouse jail and later served as a storage facility, marine training center and an animal euthanasia center until being abandoned in 1972. With it's dark history, graffiti, collapsed roofs, dark stairwells, debris, and remnants of homelessness everywhere, my solo visit was slightly macabre and a bit scary not knowing if I was alone when turning each corner. I did run into two other explorers and one homeless person in my self guided tour of the darkside. There was talk about a decade ago of renovating the property into a venue for weddings and concerts but that failed to materialize. My advise to you is put on your big-boy pants (or girl) grab a friend and go explore an iconic architectural piece of history before it's too late.

Really neat place to wander around BUT there are a lot of dangers here and you shouldn't bring your…read morekids. You need to wear closed, thick shoes, too. There's a lot of needles and broken bottles, etc. because the property is actively used. Graffiti is outstanding.

Beautiful park to walk through, and plenty of shade if you just want to rest and people watch…read more This park is adjacent to the Country Club Plaza shopping area, which puts you well within walking distance for food and drink options when you're done soaking in the vitamin free (*D). At the southern end of the park is the J.C. Nichol's Memorial Fountain. Folks were walking, running, and biking on the paved trail around and through the park. I didn't expect to find this beautiful fountain here, but it was a beautiful surprise. The walkways of the park put you less than a block away from Country Club Plaza, but I was well within walking distance of the Kemper Contemporary Museum of Art and Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. Great green space.

As someone who runs and walks solo about 50% of this time, this is not a favorite of mine. One…read morewould think that with all of the people on the plaza you would feel comfortable, but I don't. There is a hill covered with trees and that section gives me the creeps.

This house always gets attention from people who drive by. I grew up across the street from it and…read morepeople would always drive by really slowly when they caught sight of it. This ultra mod house doesn't really fit into our turn of the century neighborhood...but it defiantly adds interest. The view from Valentine is not so spectacular. It stands out because of its Yellow color and bubble dome. (The dome area is awesome containing nothing but a circular couch and build-in speakers...this is such a party house.) The really shocking view is from the park, 30 or 40 feet below. Anyway, its an interesting house in an interesting neighborhood. One could spend a day checking out this whole midtown area with the Frank Lloyd wright house and Thomas Hart Benton home down the street and 39th street shops and restaurants close by too.

Sauer Castle has been a part of my life since I was a kid…read more My dad used to take me and my siblings up to the castle at night on family drives and tell us great ghostly stories. Once me and my school buddies could drive, we would make many journeys up to this area, drink and freak ourselves out. I've taken many friends on the drive through Argentine in KCK up the steep incline of a road to the castle to gaze. There are many stories about this place, so many that I have no idea which are true and which are not. I should do the research to find out, but there is something inside of me that wishes to keep *all* the stories I have heard alive and well. But the few that I can think of at this time include: There was an underground railroad tunnel to the Kaw River from this residence. The wife hanged herself on the second story balcony from the bell tower rope.....her ghost could be seen on the balcony in a flowing white gown. There is an outline of an old pond (fountain) on the grounds that two children had drown in. The stories talk about the husband's ghost walking the house and grounds protecting his property. I've been told that the stones and woodwork in the house was imported from Germany. He chose this site because it sat on top of bluff of the Kaw River and he could see the entire city. That's what I've been told through the years, again, I don't know what is and isn't true. When I was a teenager there was a caretaker that lived in the house. He supposedly had guns and dogs to help him take care of all of the curious people making the pilgrimage up to look at the castle from afar or up on the *private property* itself. Since then, the caretake has passed, the house had a huge auction and the house in now surrounded by a chain link fence. I don't know who owns it, but I hope something great happens with this legend of a castle. I'm sure I gave myself crows feet from all of the squinting I've done at this location hoping to see a ghostly figure. (and at times sure that I did see things) I'm sure I've given myself some anxiety disorder from the tricks my imagination has played on me because of this place. I wouldn't change a thing because I love every memory I have of this place. Not only Sauer Castle, but much of the neighborhood itself, stories run rampant in this *interesting* part of town. Now.....go! Go check it out for yourself and I hope you don't get lost in trying to find this mysterious, fantastic piece of local flavor!

Okay so it kind of cracks me up that Sauer Castle is on Yelp. It is on the National Register, and…read morehas a sort of local legend charm to it here in the metro area. I found out about Sauer Castle back when I was dating my now husband. We went on a ghost tour around the city and this was one of the stops. I won't bore everyone here with Sauer Castle lore but it's well worth the wikipedia read. Every once in a while if I'm in the area I'll drive by and see how the renovations are going on this place. It's kind of remarkable to see and take in, even just from the road, as it's in a very modest neighborhood and all of a sudden there is this massive victorian mansion. The ghost stories only make the place all the more interesting. I believe it's currently been purchased and is being restored so who knows, maybe one day this will be a landmark folks can explore - I'd love to go inside. Until then it will just be one of my favorite little off the beaten path KC landmarks.

The play kitchen got set on fire (according to a young child), the manager of the kitchen is a 4…read moreyear old, I was handed a whole fake loaf a bread and a whole fake eggplant, I got stuck in the slide, the castle was closed and the AI robot guy doesn't have any jax lines. Horrible experience. (No but all jokes aside, this place is awesome, great place to bring your kids for a fun adventure, awesome experience)

This is a HORRIBLE place i kicked my friends neck on the slide. The ai robot guy is off brand chat…read moregpt. The play kitchen got set on fire according to a little kid. The manager of the play kitchen was a four year old and that four year old handed my friend a whole loaf of bread and a whole eggplant My friend also somehow managed to pull up the rope swing chair that was broken anyways i will come back!

I had no idea this museum existed until recently. This small complex contains the jail, marshall's…read morehome, an old one room schoolhouse and a modern building containing historical artifacts related to the jail and the Independence area in general. Priced at $6 for admission, it is well worth a visit. The 2 story stone jail presents a bare-bones authenticity of what crime and punishment meant during the civil war era and late 19th century. Placards featuring a variety of prisoners tell their stories as you wander through the thick walled cells. The focal point of the museum is Frank James cell that he spent several months "locked up" in. Quite an elaborate set-up compared to the others. Any history lover will find this place a great way to spend an hour. I'd love to see this place promoted more in Kansas City tourism information.

I love how the square hasn't really changed but the atmosphere has changed. Certain people are here…read morenow and they're messing things up even though they're not from around here but it's still a great place to live except for the pleasant heights tower.

Omg! This is a small quaint place that have a lot of history here. Love just going and walking…read morearound this spot. Great places to eat. Lots of stores to shop! There's even a local movie theater here that shows the latest movie up to date. The farmers market is great to see and a fav. When there's like special events like Santa-Cali-Gon, Island Festival, etc, it's nice to see the community here showing out and supporting.

Quick snapshot of the man from Independence, MO…read more If you're interested in visiting the Truman house at 219 Delaware, you will need to stop here for tickets and a time slot. This site on Main will put you in touch with the NPS Rangers who will have you watch a short film about the 33rd President, his rise to the Presidency, and his rise attempt to normalize after leaving office. After the film you will have the opportunity to head over to Delaware and visit the Noland House (which belonged to his aunt and uncle), which houses a small assortment of Truman artifacts, or you can stroll from Independence Square (5 blocks to the house), along the same streets that President Truman walked before, during, and after his presidency. The house itself is as it was when Bess Truman passed away in the 1980s. Inside you will find a very unassuming life that her husband attempted to keep. He tried his best to not let his role as leader of the free world get to his head. Despite that, the former president was a point of interest for folks passing through Kansas City and Independence, Missouri. During the 30-ish minutes, Ranger led tour, you can't take photos, but you can certainly understand the Trumans did their best to live a peaceful and "normal" life and that's the way they lived the entire time. It's surprising how many generations of Trumans lived in that tiny little home, but they made the most of it. This site adds another touch to the life of the 33rd POTUS, and adds another layer to the exhibits you can see at the Truman Library and Museum down the road.

The people who work here are super helpful and knowledgeable about Truman. They know the sites…read more They saved me lots of time with their tips. They were great in giving you the necessary information you needed to explore this area that is rich with the history of the 33rd President. I highly recommend them.