Kansas City Sports and Concert Events

Kansas City

Kansas City is a city in Clay, Cass, Jackson, and Platte counties in Missouri. Often abbreviated KCMO, Kansas City is the center of the Kansas City metropolitan area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. As of the 2000 census, the city had a population of 441,545, making it the largest city in Missouri. Combined with Kansas City, Kansas, the population is 588,411, but the entire urban area (in both states) is well over a million and a half. Significant non-native settlement of the area dates to 1831, when members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the Mormons) coming from Kirtland, Ohio and New York State purchased about 2,000 acres (8 km?) of land in the Paseo and Troost Lake areas. Conflict between the Yankee Saints and southern Missourians led to the expulsion of the Mormons from Jackson County in 1833. About this time a dock was established on the Missouri River to land supplies for Westport Landing (now Westport). The land surrounding the dock was bought by "Town Company" in 1838. The area outside of Westport Landing was renamed the Town of Kansas, after the local Kanza Indians, in 1839. The town was incorporated by the state of Missouri as the City of Kansas on March 28, 1853. At the first municipal election in 1853 there were sixty-seven voters from a population of 2,500. In 1889, with a population of around 60,000, the city adopted a new charter and changed its name to Kansas City. In 1897, Kansas City annexed Westport. Kansas City is well-known for its spacious parkways and many parks. The parkway system winds its way through the city with broad, landscaped medians that include statuary and fountains. One of the best examples is Ward Parkway on the west side of the city, near the Kansas state line. Swope Park is the nation's largest in-city parks, comprising over one thousand acres (4 km?), and including a full-fledged zoo, two golf courses, a lake, an amphitheater, day-camp area, and numerous picnic grounds. Kansas City has always had one of the nation's best urban forestry programs. Kansas City ranks second in the world in number of fountains (160), exceeded only by Rome. Kansas City has a number of attractions, among them are: Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, 18th and Vine Historic District, Crown Center, Country Club Plaza, Kansas City's Union Station, now home to Science City, restaurants, shopping, and theaters, Liberty Memorial -- Only major World War I memorial in the United States, Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art, Airline History Museum, Toy and Miniature Museum of Kansas City, Westport, Worlds of Fun and Oceans of Fun, Kansas City Zoo, Charlie Parker Memorial, at 17th Terrace and the Paseo. Among the major educational institutions present in Kansas City are: Avila University, DeVry University of Kansas City, The Pembroke Hill School, Rockhurst High School and Rockhurst University, University of Missouri - Kansas City, Kansas City Art Institue. Kansas City Sports team presently include the Kansas City Chiefs of the NFL's American Conference Western Division; The Kansas City Royals, of MLB's American League Central; The MLS's KC Wizards; the MISL's KC Comets; the ABA's KC Knights; and the newly formed Kansas City Outlaws in the United Hockey League.