Alexander Majors Historic House and Museum

How One Person Helped Open the West

Alexander Majors House and Museum

8201 State Line Rd., Kansas City, MO 64114, 816.333.5556

Open year round. Saturdays and Sundays, 1:00 – 4:00 or by private reservation.

$5 for adults, $2 for children through 12 years. 

    If you stand at the corner of 82nd St. and State Line Rd. today, you will see a bustling mid-county area crowded with residential neighborhoods and businesses. It’s hard to imagine that 150 years ago, the area was a sprawling prairie that seemed distant even to the citizens of Kansas City. 

    Only a few houses dotted the vastly unsettled land at that time. One of those homes, the Alexander Majors Historic House, still sits in its original position on a 5-acre park just four blocks north of Ward Parkway Shopping Center. The house, first built in 1856, sits majestically looking westward over what was once the gateway to a new world. 

    Majors’ house was restored in 1984 and filled with period furnishings. The barn and the blacksmith shop were rebuilt in the likeness of the originals. Guests can take a guided tour of the house then stroll through the grounds at their leisure. 

    The beautifully restored antebellum home of 3,400 square feet features original white pine flooring and millwork. From the bay windows in the upstairs master bedroom, guests can almost imagine the rolling prairies that Majors viewed from that vantage point. 

    Majors played a big role in opening the west to the world. From his office on the first floor of his home, Majors ran the freighting operation of Russell, Majors and Waddell. The firm was instrumental in bringing supplies to settlements and forts west of Kansas City. One of the firm’s employees was 12-year-old Willy Cody. Willy, later known as “Buffalo Bill” Cody, eventually became the most famous rider of the Pony Express. Majors’ firm also started and operated this celebrated 1,966-mile delivery route across the west. The estate also offers interesting information on the Pony Express and the westward routes used by Majors’ firm. 

    The Alexander Majors House and Park can be rented for private parties. The large, refinished barn seats more than 200 people. Nine picnic tables under enormous shade trees are perfect for family reunions and birthday parties. 

    The Majors’ house is one of three mid-1800s homes still standing in this neighborhood. Also visit the Wornall House Museum at Wornall Rd. and 61st Ter. The Bent & Ward Home is still a private residence. It sits on the north side of 55th St. just east of Ward Parkway. It has a historical marker in the front yard.

For more information about the Majors’ house, visit AlexanderMajors.com.

Donna Schwartze is a freelance writer from Prairie Village.