2. • TROOST is Dutch for
Comforter, ‘Paraclete’. The same
root gives us the words: “tree,
trust, true.”
• Troost Avenue: former
canoe trail of 18th century
Osage Nation.
• In 1808, most of the Osage
lands were sold to the U.S,
including present day Troost
Avenue.
3. Dr. Benoist Troost (1786-1859)
First Resident Physician in KC
Founding Father; Dutch Slave Owner
4. Porter Slave Plantation: 1832-1865
• 365 acre plantation owned by
Rev. James Porter
• 40-100 slaves, including
Simon (bought in 1829), Aunt
Ann, and ‘Fiddlin’ Dick’
• Stretched from 23rd to 31st
Streets, Locust Ave. to Vine
St.
• Big House at 2709 Tracy
• Slave Quarters surrounded
the house in a semi-circle,
west of Tracy
• Forests cleared to become
housing, crops, orchard, and
pasture land
12. Plantation Became Millionaire’s Row: 1865-1912
2709 Tracy Ave.
• Home of Mrs. W. Ewing Hall (granddaughter of Rev. James
Porter) at former site of “big house”.
• After Civil War, Porter family began to sell lots
• Porter and Hall made a fortune in Real Estate
26. Overview of Troost (cont)
• Millionaire’s Row: 1865 -1912
• City in a city: 1912 -1950
• Walt Disney: 1920-1922
• Jazz District: 1917-1939
• Immigrant Center: 1912-1950
– Jewish, Greek, Irish, African American
• White Flight: 1950s - 1980s
• Civil Rights: 1954 - 1968
• MLK and Riots: 1968
• Urban Redevelopment: 1968 -1985
• Ghost Town: 1985 – 2000
• Gentrification: 2000 – Present
• Troost Folks: 2004 - Present
• Future: TROOST VILLAGE -
Development without Displacement
27. References
DeAngelo, D. (1995) What about kansas city! a historical handbook. Kansas City:
Two Lane Press, Inc.
Photos and Illustrations
Claymore-Osage Indian (2006, May 23). Courtesy of Osage Nation in Pawhuska,
OK.
Cornfield. Retrieved April 12, 2008 from http://image02.webshots.com/2/6/91/84/81869184OTdXKJ_fs.jpg
Missouri Fruit Orchard. Retrieved April 12, 2008 from
http://www.bakerealty.com/missouri%20ozark%20photos.htm
Missouri Grazing. Retrieved April 12, 2008 from http://www.angelfire.com/mo3/
leunenfarms/Photo%20Gallery.htm
Missouri Forest. Courtesy of the Missouri State Archives.
Missouri Valley Special Collection Room of the Kansas City Public Library.
Articles and photos from The Kansas City Star and The Kansas City Journal.
Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. George Caleb Bingham, American, 1811-1879"
Dr. Benoist Troost, ca. 1859. Weblink: http://www.nelson-atkins.org/art/CollectionDatabase.cfm?
Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. George Caleb Bingham, American, Mary Ann
Troost, ca. 1859. http://www.nelson-atkins.org/art/CollectionDatabase_ImageView.cfm?id=28964
theme=American