As a frequent traveler around the South, I've seen plenty of Civil War markers and battlefields,…read morefrom Antietam to Sharpsburg to Gettysburg and more, but I'm not a Civil War expert. I know the conflict reached into Western Missouri, but I had honestly forgotten the specifics, so finding this marker in Independence snapped that history back into focus. The sign lays out the 1864 skirmish where Union forces under General Alfred Pleasanton clashed with Confederate troops led by General James Fagan. It reads, "On the 22nd Fagan's Division of Price's Army was defending against the advance of Union Gen. Pleasonton from the east. Two of Fagan's Brigades were driven from the Little Blue River to the eastern edge of town. The Union attack was made first from the NE with Philips' Brigade and the 2nd Arkansas (Union) both on foot. McNeil's Brigade then charged through town mounted. Cabell's Brigade came up to stop the Union advance. He was driven back and many of his men were surrounded. Near this spot two of his guns were captured and he barely escaped." The marker is Tour Stop E and it was erected by the City of Independence. It provides directions to Stop F, West on Lexington to Crysler. [Review 828 of 2026 - 546 in Missouri - 26009 overall]

Excellent opportunity awaits those who want to get more involved in the business community. The…read morestaff here work hard to provide several activities per month including a Wednesday morning wake up that is very well attended, lunch and learns, legislative updates, economic development and young professionals. The member support for ribbon cuttings and member events is great too. Stacey is your go to person if you want to know more! Our business has benefitted from the new relationships and grown our sales. It's worth checking out even if you wouldn't describe yourself as an extrovert!

I joined a bunch of chambers when I first started my business, not just to meet and network with…read morenew friends, but in the hopes that the chamber would help me grow my business. The Chamber helped me meet some of my nearest and dearest friends, who I got to know first at networking events, and then developed great friendships. But, if you think the Chamber is going to step in and help you grow your business, even if you serve on the Diplomats or on committees, it won't happen. The Chamber's purpose is to propose for and fight for legislation, and to be a forum for networking. Don't come here expecting anything else and you'll be fine. The OP Chamber is one of the best in KC. A great program that a friend of mine went through was "Leadership Overland Park" - an 8-week course that introduces participants to a panoramic view of living, working, and governing in our fair city.

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.

My husband and I moved to downtown Kansas City from the suburbs a few years ago, and I was…read moreinitially nervous about safety. Those concerns quickly disappeared, largely thanks to the Bumblebees who are consistently present in the area. The Rivermarket is clean, welcoming, and truly feels like a neighborhood. On the few occasions I've called to request assistance with distressed homeless neighbors, they've responded promptly and with genuine kindness. Simply having them around makes me feel safer and more at ease living downtown.

I communicated our community's concerns about litter in our Downtown KCMO neighborhood between 7th…read more(Admiral Boulevard) & 8th Street between Cherry & Charlotte Streets to ambassadors Brian & Sheila in person & by telephone, and to Downtown Community Improvement District's CEO, Mr. Santos Ramirez, by email. They responded to my requests for their heavy metal trash receptacles for our neighborhood by placing one at the corner of 8th & Chatlotte, and another at Cherry & 7th. There are well over 500 families living in three residential condominiums in our Downtown KCMO neighborhood, and many more residing in adjacent areas including workers, which need trash receptacles to dispose of litter & trash. This is a great beginning. Eventually, we hope that Downtown Community Improvement District (CID) will be able to place one if their heavy duty trash cans on each & every street corner throughout Downtown. We cooperate by picking up litter & placing it in their trash cans. The more accessible these trash containers are, the cleaner Downtown KCMO will be. Let's keep Downtown beautiful!

"Is Kansas City in Kansas or Missouri?"…read more "Both," he answered. I'm still unsure but from the amount of going In and out of Kansas and Missouri I'm convinced he's correct. I turned up my nose on the thought of going to Missouri / Kansas as my initial visit from years ago was a bit too country-ish and small for my taste. This time around we opted to stay in the city with the main purpose of watching the Kansas City Royals play at Kaufman Stadium. I AM IN LOVE WITH THIS CITY!!! KC is clean, with well thought out communities and well manicured public parks and roads! The people have been very friendly with just a very few unpleasant encounters but overall the diversity is growing and I don't feel like such an outsider. Perhaps it's because we were in the city but the overall vibe is super cool with a mix of fit, professionals, young families and 30-40-ish singles. I love the mix of brick warehouses turned loft space apartments with the growing number of luxury apartment high rises. This is a city embracing the past and cohesively integrating it into its future. The outskirts of the city surrounded by historic landmarks (West Bottoms, the Jazz District & Union Station) as well as a growing suburban areas like Overland Park and Lee's Summit (also home to the Country Club District). Speaking of districts, KC is considered amongst the top 10 cities for creatives and top 20 amongst the most cultured KC is home to some of the coolest districts: Crossroads, Westport, River Market, West 39th Street and West Bottoms. I just can't get over how clean this city is!! All the preconceived ideas I had about Kansas/Missouri are just that - preconceived! A visit to Kansas City will reveal that this isn't just a "City of Fountains" (it indeed is with its registered 200 fountains in the metropolitan area alone) but a city with its share of museums (World War I, National Negro Baseball Museum, Nielson-Atkins Museum of Art and the Vine Jazz Museum), award winning Kansas City barbeque haunts as a growing culinary list of places that eat at. Did I mention how clean this city is? That's what won me over - all the lawns and parks are so neatly manicured and zero trash anywhere. Seriously!! Also, the racial diversity is evidenced by the different people I've encountered. Perhaps because it's a city versus a small town like say, Parsons, KS the novelty of seeing a minority is not as high. Who'da thunk that I'd be singing the praises of Kansas City?

Talk about a bunch of crooks. I used $14 in water and yet my bill was over $90 because of their…read morefees. Someone needs to audit them.

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.

If you haven't been to the presentations and exhibits at the Linda Hall Library on the UMKC campus,…read moreyou are missing out on a plethora of extraordinary events. Everything from a small outdoors concert, to great speakers, adventurers, astronauts, and authors from all walks of life, on more diverse subjects than you can imagine. And then there are tours of the historic trees and tree peonies in the Arboretum, and bird walks. And almost all are free to attend! Even if at first think I may not be interested when I read the description of one of their presentations, once there, I find I couldn't possibly be more wrong! Today's was the screening of one of the most fascinating (and humorous) films I've ever watched, "From Fossils to Flesh," about the the development and creation of incredibly detailed life-sized sculptures of dinosaurs for the Edelman Fossil Park & Museum of Rowan University in New Jersey. All of the creatures were brought to life in the studio of world-renowned Paleoartist, Naturalist, Maker, Sculptural artist, Gary Staab, in Kearney, Missouri. I highly recommend googling The Linda Hall Library to check out their many FREE offerings, and you'll not only be enticed to attend, but you might also want to sit down and read from the vast collection of historic and modern books and publications in this renowned science library!

What a fantastic library!…read more I've been wanting to come to the Life Beyond Earth exhibition since it opened in October 2024. I got here near the end of April in 2025. It closes in June. Glad I made it! This exhibition does a great job of covering a lot about outer space, including, but not limited to, aliens, exoplanets, UFOs, astrobiology and exobiology. There are various displays throughout the rooms covering astronomy, the history of observation of space from the Renaissance, all the way up to the Tic Tac and Gimble UAPs. There's also a very nice display about historical cookbooks and different recipes used early in the 20th century and by various branches of the US military to feed their troops. Everyone working here was very kind and welcoming. There is free parking directly in front of the library for patrons, not for students. Just FYI, the Linda Hall Library is on the campus of UMKC.

The Truman home is probably the most authentic presidential home I've visited. When done with the…read morepresidency, Truman returned home to Independence, Missouri. He had no pension or secret service. He loved his community and focused on family and building his presidential library. This home was in his wife, Bess's, family before they inherited it. They lived in it the rest of their lives. Bess died in 1982, leaving all of it to the nation. Their daughter Margaret, helped ensure the home looked exactly as it would have during her parents' lifetimes. Truman's coat and hat hang under the staircase. The linoleum in the kitchen is tacked down where it came loose, as the Truman's were frugal. Bess's original First Lady portrait is above the fireplace. This is the most accurate, intact, unbothered presidential site I've seen. The ranger, I think her name was Katie, did a great job. Spoke with ease, full of info. Independence is a nice little town, full of Truman history. Nice little shops and restaurants. Very walkable. Make sure you stop at the visitor center (the old firehouse--there is a film) to register for your free home tour tickets. Across the street you can see where the secret service set up in a brick craftsman (again, the secret service was charged with protecting former presidents well after Truman left office). You can also see Truman's cousins' home (reviewed separately), which is full of neat and rarely seen photos and info on Truman's early life. Then when you're done with all that, hop over to the Truman presidential library (reviewed separately).

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