Kansas City’s Liberty Memorial Opened in 1926 as the National World War I Museum and Memorial
The property, buildings, and tower are stunning
The Liberty Memorial was designated as the country’s official war memorial and museum in 2004 and is dedicated to world War I. Temporarily closed in 1994, it reopened in December 2006 with renovations including an enlarged facility exhibiting an artifact collection that began in 1920.
The idea begins
The inception of a World War I memorial began with the forming of the Liberty Memorial Association which included prominent Kansas City residents. The chosen president was Robert A. Long, a lumber baron, and philanthropist. He had also donated $70,000. The treasurer was James Madison Kemper. Businessman and philanthropist, William Volker, helped to acquire the land for the memorial. The landscape designer was George Kessler.
A fund drive in 1919 included 83,000 contributors with a collected figure of $2 million in a short amount of time.
A local politician named Harry S. Truman who had returned from the war as an Army captain was a contributor. Gen. John J. Pershing and four other Allied military leaders took part in the site dedication in 1921 before 200,000 people. President Calvin Coolidge spoke at…
