By Asia Jones
During our urban hikes, explorers see not only rich architecture and vibrant art but experience pieces of our city’s history along the way. We’re celebrating the legacy of strong women and their impact on Kansas City by sharing a few of the gems you’ll find along our urban trails.
Sharing Mexican American History
One of our most popular hikes is our Crossroads Art District & Westside Urban Hike. On the longer version of this hike, we introduce urban explorers to Mexican American advocate Irene H. Ruíz. While working for the Kansas City Public Library, Irene hosted civil rights leaders and social justice advocates from across the nation including César Chávez. She was also responsible for collecting and organizing a number of oral histories from Mexican immigrant families in KCK! Hikers can hear more of her story during our stop in front of the Kansas City Public Library: Irene H.Ruíz Branch.
Early Kansas Settlers
In our Strawberry Hill & Downtown KCK urban hike, we tell the stories of the Wyandot Nation in this eclectic Eastern pocket of Kansas City, Kansas. However, the Wyandot nation was not the only Native American people in this area. The Wyandot people bought much of their land in KCK from the Delaware Nation. The life of Delaware “pioneer woman” Annie Grinter is a fascinating story also originating from Wyandotte County. Grinter and her husband relocated to the Wyandotte County area in the 1830s and by 1857 they were farmsteading and also operated a trading post and the first non-military post office in Kansas. Learn more about the Grinter Place along the Kaw River and its status as the oldest existing family residence in Wyandotte County.
A cool piece of history our urban hikers will learn about includes the story of the Conley Sisters: Eliza (Lyda), Helena and Ida. They were the descendants of one of the oldest families in the Wyandot nation and in 1906 made a stand to protect their Native American heritage. In 1906 Congress put up the Wyandot Burial Ground for sale where the oldest Conley sister Sarah-je, their mother, father and ancestors were buried. Taking action, the sisters locked the gate, built a fence and a 6 x 8 shack over the graves, lived there and armed themselves with their father’s shotgun. This was just the beginning of their stand to protect their family’s heritage but you can learn more about these courageous Wyandot women by joining us on a Strawberry Hill & Downtown KCK Urban Hike! First, check out this episode of People’s History of Kansas City to prepare before hitting the urban trails.
The list of exciting, trailblazing women that our urban hikers will learn about doesn’t stop here! Sign up for one of the hikes mentioned or our Kaw Point hike returning on the third Friday in May to learn more about the women who shaped Kansas City.