Ward Parkway Driving Tour

1. Raphael Hotel

Constructed in 1923 by Kansas City developer J. C. Nichols as the Villa Serena Apartments, this historic Kansas City building has been home to the Raphael Hotel since 1975. The building's architecture was designed in the Spanish Renaissance style of architecture to complement the adjacent Country Club Plaza and was inspired by the fine apartment buildings adjacent to Central Park in New York. The Villa Serena was acquired by the J.C. Nichols Company in 1974 and opened as a European-style boutique hotel the following year. Highlights of the hotel include the ornate lobby with two eighteen-torch chandeliers and the courtyard featuring a white marble statue by Italian artist Bernard Zuckerman. The Raphael is a member of Historic Hotels of America and has received recognition for its preservation efforts by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

2. Tribute to Married Love

Tribute to Married Love is a bronze sculpture of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill seated next to his wife Clementine and was dedicated on May 12, 1984. It is a larger replica of its original, both created by Oscar Nemon. Sir Churchill was an influential political figure for many decades and created relationships around the world. His ties to Kansas City started when President Harry Truman endorsed an invitation to speak in his home state of Missouri, at Westminster College in Fulton. Here, he would go on to deliver the famous “Iron Curtain” address on March 5, 1946. At the reception following this event, Churchill met Kansas City’s Joyce Hall, the founder of Hallmark. Their partnership started a few years later when Hall discovered Churchill’s artistic talents and used several of his paintings to create a Christmas Card collection for Hallmark in 1950. Their friendship continued until Churchill’s death in 1965. During construction around the Country Club Plaza in 1981, Miller Nichols commissioned Nemon for a piece to adorn the busy street corner. Nemon chose a statue of Churchill due to his personal ties to the area. The nearly 6 foot by 12 foot sculpture is accompanied by benches and a sound box playing recordings of Churchill’s speeches, and is a reminder of his international contributions and friendship with Hall that started on the remarkable March day in Fulton, Missouri.

3. Diana Fountain

The Diana Fountain is a bronze replica of the original 1912 lead sculpture Diana and the Loves, and are the only two casts of the piece. The Nichols Company commissioned New York artist Bernhard Zuckerman for the replica as the centerpiece of the grand entrance of the Alameda Plaza Hotel (now Intercontinental Hotel) for its opening in 1972. The eight-foot wide sculpture depicts the Roman goddess Diana resting on the ground, surrounded by cherubs as they pursue her with flowers. It is located in the center of a round reflection pool, backed by a 17 foot tall wall fountain.

4. Wagon Master statue

Bronze sculpture of a wagon train leader sculpted by Gus Shafer. It is one of several monuments in the Kansas City area that commemorate the region's connections to the Santa Fe, Oregon and California trails during the mid-19th century.

5. Union Position Historical Marker

The Union positioning is crucial to understanding the Battle of Westport, which occurred on October 23, 1864. It is notable as being the largest battle west of the Mississippi River and is often referred to as the “Gettysburg of the West.” This significant battle was the final nail in the coffin of Price’s 1864 Raid into Missouri, causing the Confederates to retreat southward, ending the last major Confederate offensive in the Trans-Mississippi theater of the war. The objective of Price’s Raid was to seize St. Louis and take Missouri for the Confederacy. The Union army forced the pro-southern Missouri State Guard and the Confederate Army out of Missouri by early 1862. Although countered by a Confederate guerrilla insurgency, Union forces were able to maintain control over most of the state for the remainder of the war. The Union Position historical marker is located on the triangle divider between Ward Parkway and Sunset Drive on the south side of Brush Creek and is part of a larger tour of the Battle of Westport developed by the Monnett Battle of Westport Fund.

6. Mary Rockwell Hook's Pink House

Mary Rockwell Hook, a pioneering Kansas City architect, designed several extravagant homes in Kansas City, including this structure in 1922. Known then as the "Pink House" this home in the Country Club District and near Kansas City's famed Ward Parkway is an example of Hook routinely drawing inspiration from her travels as she was intrigued by pink exteriors she saw in San Francisco during the 1915 World's Fair. Despite obstacles as a female architect in male-dominated the field, Hook gained a reputation as one of Kansas City's most innovative architects. She did most of her work in Kansas City early in her career, from roughly 1908 to 1927, and managed a rebuilding project in Paris after World War I, and she completed projects in other parts of the U.S. She spent the last fifteen years of her career (into her 70s) designing resorts and hotels in Florida; she lived past the age of 100.

7. Robert Ostertag House

Pioneering Kansas City architect Mary Rockwell Hook designed this home for Robert A. Ostertag, President of the Janssen-Ostertag Manufacturing Company, in 1922. Hook designed many of the prominent homes in Kansas City in that era, and the Ostertag House demonstrates that even some of Hook's less grandiose designs still attract attention in Kansas City's mansion-filled Ward Parkway. Despite facing many obstacles as a female architect, Hook gained a reputation as one of Kansas City's most innovative. Most of her designs were built in Kansas City early in Hook's career, from roughly 1908 to 1927, but she also managed a rebuilding project in Paris after World War I. Hook completed projects in other parts of the U.S. in her later years and she spent the last fifteen years of her career (into her 70s) designing resorts and hotels in Florida. The longevity of her career matched her life as Hook lived past the age of 100.

8. Bertrand Rockwell House

Kansas City architect Mary Rockwell Hook designed numerous homes in this part of Kansas City, including this stately residence for her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Bertrand Rockwell. Despite facing scrutiny from her male peers, Hook and other female Kansas City architects like Nelle Peters broke the "glass ceiling" and earned a reputation as one of the most innovative architects in the city. The house she designed for her parents was built between 1908 and 1909 in the Country Club District, one of several exclusive communities near or along Ward Parkway. Hook did most of her work in Kansas City early in her career while also leading a rebuilding project in Paris after World War I. Hook worked into her 70s, designing resorts and hotels in Florida.

9. Seth Ward House Historical Marker

This expansive Greek Revival mansion was constructed around 1871 for the family of Seth Ward, a frontier trader who arrived in Independence in 1837 and joined a fur trading expedition. Over the next three decades, Ward earned a fortune by providing supplies to frontier military units and later outfitting explorers and settlers at Fort Laramie. After several decades on the frontier, Ward returned to the Kansas City area in 1871. He and his second wife, Mary Ward, daughter of Westport hotelier John Harris, purchased this land from William Bent, another influential and successful trader and land owner in Kansas City history. At that time, Ward's property extended from 51st to 55th Street and Wornall Road to the Kansas-Missouri state line. The property enjoys a rich history that goes beyond Ward and Bent, entailing Mormons, Native Americans, western expansionism, Kansas City's first elected Mayor, and the bloody Battle of Westport during the Civil War in 1864, which took place on the historic property.

10. Memorial To Loyal Women of the Old South (1958-2017)

Between 1958 and 2017, this Ward Parkway intersection was home to a Confederate monument. The United Daughters of the Confederacy dedicated the memorial "To The Loyal Women of the Old South" in 1934. The monument was originally located near the entrance of the Country Club Plaza and was moved to this location in 1958. The monument's design differed from typical Confederate monuments centered on soldiers or generals. Instead, this memorial featured two benches on either side of a headstone with a United States flag and a Confederate flag. The memorial was vandalized in 2017, and within a week, the United Daughters of the Confederacy removed the monument to an undisclosed location.

11. Bernard Corrigan House

This mansion was built for Bernard Corrigan from 1912 to 1913 and designed by renowned architect Louis S. Curtiss. Corrigan was born in Quebec in 1847 and moved to Kansas City in 1858, where he amassed a fortune as a contractor, street railway tycoon, and real estate speculator. Corrigan also served as the city's police commissioner, with ties to the early days of the city's growing political machine the predated the infamous consolidation of power by Tom Pendergast. The Prairie School estate represents the luxurious residential architecture constructed in one of Kansas City's most exclusive subdivisions. Corrigan died two months before construction finished on the home, and his wife sold the property to Patrick J. White for more than $100,000 (equivalent to more than $3 million in the 2020s). In 1917, White sold the property to brewery mogul and amusement park owner Joseph J. Heim. Shortly after the federal government approved the 18th Amendment prohibiting alcohol, Heim sold the property to lumber magnate Robert Sutherland, who imported and planted 10,000 tulips each year until his death in 1941.

12. Charles S. Keith House

Completed in 1914, this mansion was the residence of coal baron and former Kansas City Mayor Charles S. Keith. Designed by the local architectural firm of Shepard, Farrar, and Wiser, the mansion was built in the Georgian Revival architectural style and featured 22 rooms, six bathrooms, and a beautifully landscaped lawn. In 1920, prominent real estate and Country Club Plaza developer J.C. Nichols purchased the home and lived here until his death in 1950.

13. Hunter Gary House

The Neoclassical-style mansion was constructed in 1922 for the family of entrepreneur Hunter Gary, who followed his father's footsteps and expanded the family's growing fortune in the telephone business and other investments that shaped early Kansas City. The estate was designed by acclaimed Kansas City architect John Van Brunt, Sr., and represents the high-end residential architecture constructed in Kansas City's most exclusive subdivisions in the early 20th century. The house is near Ward Parkway in the Country Club District, part of the city's parks and boulevard system that connected the city to the neighboring residential area, which was developed by J.C. Nichols around 1906. Today, Nichols is known both for innovative urban planning and for including restrictions that prevented Jewish and African American residents from purchasing property. Brunt drew inspiration from George Washington's eighteenth-century stately Mount Vernon residence in designing the estate for Hunter Gary. Like Mount Vernon, the Gary House is a rectangular mass capped by a hip roof with symmetrical pairs of interior chimneys. The home was sold to furniture maker Harry Abernathy in 1941 and was later home to the owner of a flour mill empire and a leading clothing manufacturer.

14. Tom Pendergast House

The mansion, completed in 1927, served as the extravagant home of Kansas City's Democratic Party boss, Thomas J. Pendergast. "Boss Tom" Pendergast wielded his power as the area's infamous political machine between the mid-1920s and mid-1930s, expanding the control built by his brother. Pendergast had enormous influence over almost every aspect of Kansas City's political, economic, and cultural life. Moreover, Boss Tom chose candidates for office who voted in line with his wishes, which secured prized city contracts for Pendergast's businesses, providing him with immense wealth that allowed him to build and reside in the historic mansion. However, the political corruption he orchestrated led to a federal indictment and time in prison, and millions of dollars in gambling debts left him broke.

15. George E. Nicholson House

This Neo-Classical Revival mansion was constructed from 1917 to 1918 for wealthy entrepreneur George Edward Nicholson along Kansas City's Ward Parkway. Nicholson earned a fortune operating cement plants, brick kilns, zinc mines, and gas companies throughout the Great Plains, Midwest, and South. By 1909, Nicholson's worth exceeded $4 million (equal to more than $120 million in 2024 dollars). At the end of World War I, Nicholson led a group of investors in purchasing the Kansas City Gas Company and the Wyandotte County Gas Company. Nicholson's decision to build his home beside Ward Parkway reflects the growth of the Country Club District, which attracted many of the wealthiest families from other parts of the city. In 1908, Real estate investor J.C. Nichols worked with the estate of the Ward Family, donating the land that would become Ward Parkway so that it would become part of the city's parks and boulevard system. The creation of Ward Parkway greatly enhanced the value of the Ward family's adjacent landholdings, and Sunset Hills and other neighborhoods adjacent to the parkway grew rapidly in the 1920s.

16. Michael H. and Rose Katz House

The Michael H. and Rose Katz Residence, built in 1928, was the home of drug store mogul Michael H. Katz and his wife, Rose. The imposing Tudor-style home sits along Kansas City's illustrious Ward Parkway, where numerous prominent local citizens purchased property and developed stately homes during the 1920s. Together with his brother Isaac Katz, Michael operated drugstores in Kansas City at the start of World War I, and the chain grew rapidly in the 1920s. At its peak, there were over sixty Katz stores from Oklahoma to the upper Midwest and consumers appreciated the opportunity to shop for housewares and other items while they awaited a prescription. Katz became a household name for Midwestern families, and many Kansas City residents recall seeing the ubiquitous Katz logo on products like their house brand beer and their store marquees. Michael and Isaac Katz supported numerous charitable causes, including Menorah Hospital and other Jewish institutions. UMKC's Katz Hall, now home to the departments of Architecture and Urban Planning, was completed in 1965 and was home to the School of Pharmacy prior to its move to the Health Sciences Building at the university's Hospital Hill campus.

17. Ward Parkway Mirror Pool Fountain

Designed in 1924 by architect Edward Buehler Delk, this fountain was originally created as a reflection pool and was the first water feature along Ward Parkway. The three water rings were installed in 1965. The nearly one block long pool is located in the median of Ward Parkway, one of the first major thoroughfares created in Kansas City as part of the Parks and Boulevards System. The parkway was created in correlation with the development of J.C. Nichols’ Country Club Plaza district and other neighborhoods in plans to expand the suburbs southward. It features an array of beautiful landscaping and ornate statuary that landed it as one of ten “Great Streets” in 2012 by the American Planning Association.

18. Meyer Circle Sea Horse Fountain

Dedicated in 1925, the Meyer Circle Sea Horse Fountain is one of Kansas City’s most iconic landmarks. Architect Edward Buehler Delk designed the fountain, which originally featured a 17th-century sea horse sculpture from Venice that was purchased by real estate developer J.C. Nichols during one of his trips to Europe. Nichols donated the statuary to the city to adorn the large traffic circle as the construction of Ward Parkway moved south alongside some of the residential neighborhoods his company was building in that era. The 30-foot marble fountain piece was later replaced with a sandstone replica in 1992. The fountain was deemed inoperable in 2015, area residents donated hundreds of thousands of dollars for needed repairs and the fountain was rededicated in October 2017.

19. Sixty-Ninth Street Fountain

Dedicated in 1930 by J.C. Nichols' real estate company, this Ward Parkway fountain demonstrates the growth of Kansas City's southern suburbs in the 1920s. One of several simple pedestal fountains that can be found in this part of War Parkway, this Ward Parkway fountain represents the continued influence of urban planners on the shape of the community. By the early 1900s, the city's fountains were designed for aesthetics while previous fountains in more urban areas were designed to provide drinking water for horses and humans.

20. Romany Road Fountain

Installed in 1930, this shallow pool and fountain were the centerpiece of a sunken garden constructed to enhance the newly built neighborhoods surrounding Ward Parkway. While the stone pool exists in its original form, the fountain has been replaced multiple times due to vandalism. The present is a two-tiered pedestal fountain. A single jet spouts from the summit of the upper bowl while the perimeter of the lower bowl contains the faces of four cherubs in which water streams from their mouths. To the north and the south of the pool, the shallow stone walls of the sunken garden are still visible, though much of them are concealed by trees and shrubbery.

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Ward Parkway Driving Tour

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