The Kansas City Library District is an officially designated area roughly bounded by 9th and 11th Streets on the north and south and Main Street and Broadway on the east and west in Downtown Kansas City, MO. The District contains four buildings individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places and the West Ninth Street-Baltimore Avenue Historic District, also listed on the National Register.
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Originally developed as a commercial and entertainment area in the 1880s, the Library District took its new name in 2003 in connection with the move of the Kansas City Public Library's Central Branch to a building formerly the headquarters of the First National Bank of Kansas City. At that time, many of the commercial office buildings adjacent to or nearby were converted to residences and the City of Kansas City initiated plans for major streetscape improvements within the district which established a more distinctive character.
The Library District has a walking tour guide available through the Kansas City Public Library's website. The walking tour guide begins at the steps of the Library's public garage on 10th Street, between Wyandotte Street and Baltimore Avenue.
The Central Library's parking garage has a distinctive facade on 10th Street, using images of 22 giant bookspines to create a "community bookshelf." The Wyandotte Street facade includes enlarged historic postcards with images of 10th Street and 9th Street from the early 1900s. The Baltimore Avenue facade next to the Kansas City Club includes giant banners with images of the Great Hall of the Library of Congress' Jefferson Building and a fanciful image of a gathering of famous Kansas Citians in an architectural fantasy by local artist Bob Holloway.
The 22 "Community Bookshelf" book titles (in order from West to East on 10th street):[1]
(Building Entrance)