Kris and Kates

This bright pink ice cream cone-shaped restaurant is a business that is hard to miss in downtown Maryville! The very first Kris and Kates was purchased by Gary and Dianna Powers in 1997. Originally, this business was a Twistee Treat and opened in 1993. Mr. and Mrs. Power gave the business to their children, Kris and Kate. Kris and Kate transformed the building into a 50s and 60s-themed restaurant, featuring many pictures of Elvis Presley and loudspeakers. Kris and Kates was only located in St. Joseph, Missouri. However, in 2022 the location if Maryville opened. The ownership of this business has stayed in the family, and it is currently owned by Austin and Kelly Evans.

The intersection of 4th and Buchanan Streets where Kris and Kates is currently located used to hold a Beer Depot and an ice house. These businesses were not directly located in the exact spot where Kris and Kates is, but they are what occupied the general area for many earlier years. Sanborn maps depicted these businesses being located at this intersection in 1886, 1891, 1900, and 1909. During this time period in Maryville, businesses were being added and removed quite frequently. The consistency of these businesses throughout the years illustrates their importance to the town and community members.

According to The Maryville Tribune, the beer depot was heavily regulated in the town by the Board of Aldermen. The regulations consisted of 6 sections all approved by the major, Howard McCommons, on June 10, 1896. Section one stated that a license was required in order to manage a beer depot. Section 2 explained that only beer depots, drug, or dram stores could house alcoholic beverages. Section 3 explained the taxes had be paid to own and operate a beer depot. It was required to pay the city collector $400 per year for a license tax and the City Collector $200 to validate your license for 6 months. Section 4 stated that a fine of between $10 to $100 would be given to any citizen who operated a beer depot without proper licensing. Next, Section 5 stated that beer depots could not be opened on Sundays. Lastly, Section 6 simply stated that after these rules were published they were instated immediately.

The ice house, which also was located at this intersection, is much more difficult to find specific information about. During these time periods, Downtown Maryville had many different ice houses, and newspaper records do not go into detail about the varying locations. However, consistently throughout the newspaper articles in The Maryville Tribune, Mr. Shoemaker was one of, if not the main owner of the ice houses in Downtown Maryville. An interesting event that occurred at an ice house in Downtown Maryville during this time period was a large and destructive fire with suspicious circumstances surrounding its origin. This fire was said to have caused between $7,500 to $10,000 in damages. Although no specifics can be found on this individual ice house, in a general sense, the ice houses were a topic of discussion among members of Maryville.

Overall, the ice house and Beer Depot were staple businesses in Downtown Maryville during this time period. The newspaper articles published during this time can give great insight into the history of these businesses. This allows us to better understand what came before Downtown Maryville's beloved Kris and Kates restaurant and ice cream parlor.

1886 Sanborn Map: Maryville, MO,https://dl.mospace.umsystem.edu/mu/islandora/object/mu%3A138882.

1891 Sanborn Map: Maryville,

MO,https://dl.mospace.umsystem.edu/mu/islandora/object/mu%3A138882.

1900 Sanborn Map: Maryville,

MO,https://dl.mospace.umsystem.edu/mu/islandora/object/mu%3A138882.

1909 Sanborn Map: Maryville, MO,

https://dl.mospace.umsystem.edu/mu/islandora/object/mu%3A138882.

Howard McCommons, "Ordinance No. 451.", The Maryville Tribune, June 18, 1896.

"A $7,500 Fire Monday Morning Destroys Shoemaker Ice House", The Maryville Tribune, July 22, 1909.

Kris and Kates Ice Cream, https://www.krisandkates.com/history.