The bend where the Missouri River is joined by the Kansas and Little Blue rivers has a long history of population. Some archaeologists now believe that this area was populated as far back as 14,000 years ago by a variety of cultures, (see ancient cultures links). These cultures include the Hopewells whose artifacts show a well settled culture as recently as 200 BC. These early settlers were followed by a migration of more nomadic groups, including the Osage, Shawnee, and Pawnee, for the next 1700 years or so until the arrival of Coronado in 1541. In his quest for the cities of gold, he may have come as close as the Kansas River at Bonner Springs by some accounts.

In 1795 Daniel "Morgan" Boone Jr, arrived and is noted as the first english speaking white man to arrive in the area. The Boone family continued to have influence on this frontier river port for several years, he is buried here and there is a movement to upgrade the neglected cemetery. The Louisiana Purchase would change our area forever. In 1803 Thomas Jefferson won approval from Congress to create what we now know as the Lewis and Clark Expedition. In late June of 1804 Lewis and Clark arrived in the Kansas City area. Their descriptions show that trade on the river by both French fur traders and native americans, was already in high gear in the area. Clark himself moved back to the area after the expedition and developed Ft Osage.

The next half century would turn this trade center on the rivers into major hub of trade and communications for the new country. No less than 4 of the major overland trails that developed the western half of the United States began in the Kansas City area. Independence and Westport became major starting points, while cities like Raytown became the final frontier provisioning points on the trails. Leavenworth and St Joseph developed their own starting points and development during the same period. It was during this period that the "golden age" of Westport began.

The civil war era created another major change in the Kansas City region. With Kansas admitted to the union as "Free State" and Missouri as a "Slave State", tensions were obviously high at the city where the two met. There were approximately a dozen recognized Civil War battles fought in the Kansas City area if you include the Quantrill raids, which were part of the bloody border wars of the era. While the battles raged, quieter, but no less important battles were being fought by the underground railway. Quindaro, Kansas, now part of Kansas City, Kansas, is the most well know portion of the history of "bleeding Kansas".

With the advent of the railroad, Kansas City began to grow up, and take charge of the region. As one of the western most points where barge traffic on the river could meet the railroad, we turned into a city almost over night. We remain one of the largest railroad hubs in the world to this day. And the river remains a major commercial waterway with barge traffic coming and going at all hours. As the telegraph and then telephone replaced the earlier forms of communication, like the Pony Express, Kansas City became a major player in the new medium. As the early lines followed the railroad, we became a major hub of communications. Centralized switchboards created a massive number of first human then computerized switching stations in our city. We stay in the front of commerce by being one of the most fiber optic complete areas in the country. As the highway systems became complete with the finalization of the Interstate Highway system. the point where 3 interstate highways meet the rail and barge systems, Kansas City, has became one of the major trucking centers in the US. With the addition of the Free Enterprise Zone, international shipping has become a vital part of our city. Now, cargo arrives here from around the world to take advantage of our transportation and communication capabilities.

For more history on our city please view the links, there are many well done places to visit to learn more on our ancient, yet always in the forefront of history, city, where the Kansas river meets the Missouri River.