In The Loop: Jan 23, 2022
This Friday, January 28, marks the date in 1978 when the Coates House Hotel caught fire in 5-degree weather, resulting in the deaths of 20 people and a total loss of the southern end of the historic building. It remains the worst fire, in terms of lives lost, in Kansas City history. As a 12-year-old, I recall seeing the damaged building rise behind tall, chain-link fences erected along Broadway and Tenth streets to keep people away from the damaged and dangerous structure. Little did I know then, as I rode in the car with my parents, that I would become a resident of the Coates House just a little more than a decade later.
If the horror of the 1978 fire weren’t enough to conjure stories of the old hotel being haunted, just the long, long history of the site would lend itself to ghost tales. Construction of the Coates House (originally the Broadway Hotel) began in 1857, but was halted by the Civil War, during which the foundation of the building was used as part of the federals’ Camp Union. The hotel was finally completed in 1868, and it became a landmark of prestige, luxury, and importance in the city. In subsequent years, presidents, politicians, and celebrities would visit the site either as hotel guests or event attendees. The building we see today, the “New Coates House Hotel,” was started in 1889, and was said in some accounts to have incorporated some of the original 1868 structure; other accounts claim the 1868 hotel was completely demolished.
About 122 years after the hotel’s 1868 opening, I moved into the Coates House. I previously had the pleasure of living in a newly constructed Quality Hill apartment a couple blocks away, but I was thrilled to live in the historic hotel building—restored and reopened in the 1980s as modern apartments. I lived by myself at first, but moved to a nicer unit with a view of the skyline when a college buddy suggested we could save money—and have a killer bachelor pad—as roommates.
Entering the lobby of the building from the south, there was a grand staircase so old that the marble had worn down on one side from a century of footsteps. It was a noticeably wide set of stairs, and I was once told that it was made that way to accommodate the expansive hoop petticoats that women wore in the 19th century. The apartments were fairly “suburban”, but outside the living spaces there were oddities and curiosities. From the exterior, on Tenth Street, you could peer into the “basement” and see creepy remnants of the once-opulent swimming pool. Back in the lobby, an elevator was tucked into a corner for those times we didn’t want to climb the steps to our apartment. One day, while riding the elevator, my roommate and I were startled by the sound of a barking dog. But there were no dogs on the elevator (in fact, in contrast to today’s trends Downtown, I don’t think any dogs lived in the building). We shrugged it off, but it happened again and again on other rides: Barking from the bottom of the ride to the top, and vice versa. We honestly never completely figured it out, but decided to tell ourselves that a cable (or something) was brushing against the mechanics of the elevator shaft.
Decades after moving out, I continue to wonder if that dog still barks, and to whom it belonged.
Brig. Gen. Charles E. McGee, a Tuskegee Airman who flew hundreds of combat missions in three different wars—and served at one time as a leader in Kansas City’s aviation industry—died last Sunday at 102 years old. The Kansas City Star tells the story of McGee’s life in the first link below, followed by a story from KCUR 89.3 FM about the Downtown airport terminal being renamed for McGee in June 2021:
LINK: Charles McGee, Tuskegee Airman who ran Kansas City’s downtown airport, dies at 102
LINK: Kansas City's Downtown Airport Terminal Renamed For Tuskegee Airman Who Once Managed It
I never knew there were fake homes in Midtown until we moved to the neighborhood this past summer. But now, the secret is out:
A streetcar passes Katz drugstore and the Central Business College at the northeast corner of 8th and Grand in 1920. See below for this same spot today.
8th and Grand today: Notice the exposed bedrock in both photos. The building barely visible to the left of the bedrock with red and gold stripes is a former White Castle restaurant from the 1920s, now Buffalo Mane Barber Shop.
Artful City: A weekly selection with a Downtown connection
Quick Clip: The city in motion—just a few seconds at a time
Downtown Lens: A single image depicting the urban aesthetic
Give a friendly Downtown-Kansas City welcome this week to….
Fans of WWE Smackdown this Friday night at T-Mobile Center
Followers of #IMOMSOHARD at their Getaway Tour performance Saturday night at Arvest Bank Theater at the Midland
Audiences for Garrick Ohlsson, Master Pianist, Friday at the Folly Theater
Coaches and administrators attending the last day of the United Soccer Coaches Association Annual Convention today at Bartle Hall
Participants and fans at the last day of Rockstar Championships cheer and dance competitions today at Municipal Auditorium
Audiences for the last performance of Wicked: The Broadway Musical today at the Music Hall
Got a tip about Downtown KC?
Know a favorite artwork by a Downtown artist, or a piece located in a Downtown art gallery or art museum? Let me know, and I might feature it in “Artful City.”
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Thanks for reading!
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Until next week—enjoy the city!
