Albert Marty Building

Constructed in the Romanesque Revival tradition in 1886, the Albert Marty Building is one of the oldest remaining structures in Kansas City's West Bottoms. The building represents a period of rapid growth that followed the construction of Union Depot in 1877. The building's history also reflects the larger history of the West Bottoms, serving as warehousing space for farm implement suppliers in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when this was the epicenter of rail traffic. The building was later utilized for manufacturing, including the Columbia Burlap Bag Company whose name remains on the structure. The building survived the shift away from warehousing and the closure of the stockyards and numerous Missouri River floods, and serves as a reminder of the late nineteenth-century architecture.

The Central Industrial District of Kansas City, known locally as the West Bottoms, developed slowly in the years leading up to and immediately following the Civil War. Following the construction of the Hannibal Bridge in 1869 which became the first railroad bridge to cross the Missouri River, the West Bottoms grew quickly and soon became a major manufacturing, agriculture, and warehousing center. With its connections to the nation's railroads, large structures were built throughout the West Bottoms owing to the connections it offered to major cities in the northern, midwestern, and southwestern United States.

Steam engines like the Hannibal raced from Kansas City to Chicago at speeds over 30 miles per hour after 1869 when the Hannibal Bridge across the Missouri River linked the existing lines. The completion of the bridge set off a railroad boom and made Kansas City the hub of a rail network extending into the Great Plains and the Southwest.

With this, growth in the West Bottoms took off, and the area became the home to numerous agricultural and industrial businesses. Albert Marty, a local real estate and land developer, saw the potential in this and commissioned the construction of the Albert Marty Building, a warehouse in an ideal location near the railroad depot and local businesses. When the Union Depot was constructed in 1877, the West Bottoms saw increased construction that would later include this building.

It is unknown which of the many local architectural firms Marty hired to design his building. However, its Romanesque Revival style was a favorite of Van Brunt & Howe, so most believe this building was also their work. If this were true, it might be the last building of their design to still stand in Kansas City, as most of the rest have been demolished.

Buildings of this style are usually blocky, compact, and made of solid, heavy brick, and the Marty Building is no exception. The wide doorways and arched windows were also characteristic of the Romanesque Revival tradition. Since the building has been almost completely unchanged since its initial construction, apart from some renovation efforts to keep it in good shape, it remains a good example to this day of American Romanesque Revival architecture.

After its construction, the multiuse building supported a variety of businesses that operated in the West Bottoms. The first occupants were various farm implement suppliersarm implement suppliers who used it for warehouse and office space. Some of its initial owners included Marseilles Manufacturing and Peru Plow in 1886 and Stowe Brokerage Firm and Kansas City Hardware Company in 1887. It housed the Gustin-Bacon Manufacturing Company from the 1910s to 1964. After this, it moved hands from them to the Columbia Burlap Bag Company, whose name is still printed on the building, to a tire company, and to an antique vendor.

In 1903, a severe flood of the Missouri River took place, swelling to nearly 13 feet above the natural riverbank, and a similar flood followed in 1908. These events damaged most historic buildings in the West Bottoms to the point that they either collapsed and were so damaged that they needed to be demolished. Owing to the design and sustainability of the Marty Building, city planner Adriance Van Brunt used this building as an example when updating city building codes. From then on, buildings in the West Bottoms, as well as other neighborhoods nearby the Missouri River like the Stockyards, were built with elevated ground-level floors, heating equipment on the roof, and no basements. Since the Missouri River can be especially flood-prone, this design proved essential to the Marty Building's durability.

Millstein, Cydney E. Marty, Albert Building - National Register of Historic Places Registration Form, Missouri State Parks. August 6th, 2012. Accessed October 14th, 2022. https://mostateparks.com/sites/mostateparks/files/Marty%2C%20Albert%2C%20Bldg.pdf.