Atkins-Johnson Farm and Museum

The Atkins-Johnson Farm and Museum is a historic home on the property of the Big Shoal Heritage Area. The Farmhouse, which dates back to the 1820s, is recognized as the oldest continuously occupied home and farmstead in Clay County, MO. It was restored and opened as a history museum by the City of Gladstone, MO in 2013 and features both permanent exhibits and four different temporary exhibits a year. Additionally, the museum offers guided tours, special events, and educational programming. The Big Shoal Heritage Area is also home to the Big Shoal Cemetery, Big Shoal Farm, a walking trail, and the Gladstone Farmer's Market (Saturdays, May-October). The museum house is open Wednesdays-Saturdays, 11:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. from April through early December. The grounds are open from sunrise to sunset year-round.

Inside the walls of the Atkins-Johnson Farm and Museum, visitors can see the original log cabin built in the late 1820s – early 1830s built by one of the first owners: either William Hightower or John Hightower. In 1834, Johnathan Atkins purchased 130 acres including the two-story cabin, and three generations of their family would go on to live on the property.

The Atkins were an industrious family. With the help of their nine children and _ enslaved laborers, the Atkins family farm became a booming business. They used their land to operate a farm with crops and livestock, a wool carding business, a blacksmith shop, a livery stable, and a steam mill. William Atkins, Johnathan’s son, took over farm operations after Jonathan’s death. When William died, his siblings sold the property.

The Atkins family was also very involved in the burgeoning community life around their farmstead throughout the nineteenth century. The previous owners (the Hightower family) had donated part of their land to the Big Shoal Primitive Baptist Church, and the Atkins family continued their tradition of a close relationship with the church and its parishioners. They also volunteered their house as an early polling location in Clay County.

Rudolph Schroeder purchased the farmstead in 1902. The Schroeders operated a truck farm out of the property and sold their produce at the Kansas City Market.

In 1920, the Johnson Family purchased the property. Mary and John Johnson operated the farmstead with the help of their five children. Their family owned the farm until it was sold to the City of Gladstone in 2005. In the early years, the Johnson family operated it as a truck farm. In later years, the family used the home but rented out part of their fields.

The City of Gladstone purchased the property in 2005 to turn the property and into a museum, which was opened in 2013. Today, the home is open for tours from April to early December and the grounds are open to guests year-round. The museum is partnered with other local history sites and works with them to tell the history of the property, agriculture in Missouri, westward expansion, life during the Civil War in western Missouri, the experience of the enslaved in Western Missouri, and more.

1.      Fenner, Krislin. “The Atkins-Johnson Farm: A Piece of History in Our Midst.” Coming Home to Gladstone Magazine, Spring 2009, 17-22. Accessed December 4, 2019. https://3b664d6a-bfab-4735-83bb-6288db49100d.filesusr.com/ugd/0db143_1edcde6373564057b4237d89ab1ab0a0.pdf.

2.      “Big Shoal Cemetery.” Coming Home to Gladstone Magazine, Spring 2010, 13-20. Accessed December 4, 2019. https://3b664d6a-bfab-4735-83bb-6288db49100d.filesusr.com/ugd/0db143_5b77bf7659b54079857a83bd2ec90f39.pdf.

3.      “About Us.” Atkins-Johnson Farm and Museum Official Website. Accessed December 4, 2019. https://www.atkinsjohnsonfarm.com/about-us.