UMKC LaBudde Special Collections

53 years later, our community still feels the reverberations of these events. The past echoes loudly in the present, and though there have been changes, there are still structural, systemic barriers that have simply evolved with the times. The work must go on. One small step we are taking is conducting a survey to get community feedback on the name of the collection these images came from, the 1968 Riot Collection: https://umkc.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_6o1n3UNcdYIBM7r From MS 235 1968 Riot Collection: photo 047

Here the Crown Drug Store is seen completely destroyed in the aftermath of the previous night in our only photo from April 11. By this time, most of the chaos of the previous night had dwindled, with only a few calls to police. Image from MS 235 1968 Riot Collection: photo 057

The night of April 10, 1968 would see the most violence. The area most affected was the Prospect Corridor, which was virtually razed to the ground by fires. Pictured here are scenes from Lincoln High School, where police fired tear gas while classes were in session, looted stores, and police officers barricading themselves behind cars at the Byron Hotel, where four people would be shot and killed by police. All images from MS 235 1968 Riot Collection except the last: slide 018, slide 026, photo 084, Associated Press, William P. Straeter

Today marks the 53rd anniversary of the beginning of the 1968 Uprising in Kansas City. Over the next few days, we will be sharing photographs detailing the events as they unfolded. These are scenes from the early marches to City Hall on April 9, and the chaos that erupted on that day after a pop bottle hit a police officer in the shoe. Included are iconic photographs of the marchers, activist Bruce R. Watkins, and journalist Lena Rivers Smith. All images from MS 235 1968 Riot Collection: photo 046, slide 009, photo 006, photo 072, photo 109 For a deeper dive into the events and the context surrounding them, visit our digital exhibit: https://library.umkc.edu/exhibits/uprising

We know through painful experience that freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed. Frankly I have never yet engaged in a direct action movement that was well timed, according to the timetable of those who have not suffered unduly from the disease of segregation We must come to see with the distinguished jurist of yesterday that ‘justice too long delayed is justice denied.’ -Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: Letter from Birmingham City Jail, April 1963 Photograph: Cover of The Crisis magazine, April 1968 (MS 308 Dorothy Johnson Collection, LaBudde Special Collections)

The recording of Eight Days in April: Race, Rebellion, and Reconciliation is now available! Thanks to all of our collaborators Prospect Business Association KC Bruce R. Watkins Cultural Heritage Center and State Museum for making this exhibit opening a fantastic event! https://umkc.hosted.panopto.com/Panopto/Pages/Viewer.aspx

It’s event week! Don't forget to register for the virtual opening of Eight Days in April: The Story of the 1968 Uprising in Kansas City, tomorrow, Thursday, February 18 from 6:00-7:30pm. Check out the event page and register!

UMKC Alert: UMKC will continue remote working and learning Wednesday, but most campus buildings will be closed to assess and repair any damage from the extreme cold. Student living and dining spaces will remain open as usual.

Don't forget to register for our upcoming event, Eight Days in April: Race, Rebellion, and Reconciliation! https://umsystem.zoom.us//regis/WN_NfhEdeuQSBGiUTdWJ_eCIw

Our latest exhibit, Eight Days in April: The Story of the 1968 Uprising in Kansas City: https://library.umkc.edu/exhibits/uprising, is now available to view online. The original exhibit will be available to view at the Bruce R. Watkins Cultural Heritage Center and State Museum when it is safe to open to the public. Please register to virtually attend the exhibit opening event, which will be held on February 18 from 6:00-7:30pm. More information on the event can be found here: https://library.umkc.edu/news-events/eight-days-event

The UMKC Libraries are seeking a collaborative individual to manage the Cataloging and Metadata Management department, to provide bibliographic access to a wide range of print and non-print formats, and to actively coordinate shared cataloging services. The Head of Cataloging & Metadata Management is responsible for bibliographic access and maintenance of collection resources in all formats for the UMKC University Libraries, including materials for the library’s general colle...ctions, and special and distinctive collections from the Health Sciences Library, Law Library, LaBudde Special Collections, Marr Sound Archives, and Music/Media Library. Follow the link for more information: https://library.umkc.edu/jobs/head-of-cataloging

Due to the winter weather, the UMKC Libraries are closing early today at 4pm. This includes the main library and the Health Sciences Library. We will open both locations at 10am tomorrow, February 9. Check your campus alerts for any other weather-related changes! Library services are always open online at http://library.umkc.edu. Be safe and warm, everyone!

We are pleased to announce that photographs from our Grand Emporium Collection are now available in the UMKC Digital Special Collections! In 1985, local music promoter Roger Naber and his business partner George Myers bought the Grand Emporium. They would go on to host over 7,400 shows at the venue, making it a fixture of Kansas City music culture. The building was sold in 2004, and its manuscript collection, consisting largely of flyers, posters, and photographs, was gifted... to LaBudde in the summer of 2004. We are thrilled to be able to release the more than 4,000 photographs in the collection digitally for all to see! Check out the photos in Digital Special Collections: https://dl.mospace.umsystem.edu//object/umkc:grand-emporium Visit the Collection page: https://library.umkc.edu/archival-collections/grand-emporium

Check out this fantastic article from Kansas City Magazine by Nicole Bradley about our new Westport Trucker Collection, featuring an interview with the UMKC Marr Sound Archives’ Chuck Haddix: The Trucker is very important to meit’s the stuff that shaped my life and career and sparked my interest in writing, says Haddix, who grew up north of the river but bought the newspaper at a shop called Tiny Tim’s Magic Circus in Westport. In those days, there was no internet. You had these underground radio stations, but this is what brought the community together. Link: https://www.kansascitymag.com/westport-trucker/

Scores, letters, royalty statements, contracts, books, audio recordings, photographs, and a brand new digital exhibit! The Barney Kessel Collection has it all! But what exactly goes into organizing someone’s legacy? Check out this recent article from the UMKC Foundation featuring the Kessel Collection and all the behind-the-scenes work that went into processing it. https://umkcfoundation.org/jazz-greats-legacy-enriches-uni/

Hooray! Our photos from the Children's Mercy Hospital are now online! (link in bio) A little more information: "The not-for-profit hospital was founded in Kansas City in 1897 by two sisters, Alice Berry Graham and Katherine Richardson, one a doctor, the other a dentist, to serve the poor and ill children of the area. The hospital grew quickly and expanded to become one of the most important medical resources for children in the region. The collection features photos of patients, staff, and volunteers all through the hospital's history. Photos of the many events held to entertain the children and classroom activities to continue their education provide a glimpse into the day to day life of the children passing through Children's Mercy Hospital." This description is by @garthdjesi

It’s Election Day here in Kansas City for the Missouri State Primary, and we’re highlighting some images from our collections of one of KC’s most recognizable political organizations, Freedom, Inc. Freedom Incorporated of Kansas City was founded in 1961 by Leon M. Jordan and Bruce R. Watkins. Freedom, Inc. publishes literature related to current ballot issues and candidates and provides Freedom Ballots and voter guides ahead of elections to help voters parse through large or ...complicated ballots and make informed decisions with ease. The first two images are from the in-process Herman Johnson Collection. The first image is a flyer depicting founder Leon M.Jordan, who had recently been assassinated, the second image is a page of instructions for volunteers working at polling places on election day, which you may see them doing at the polls today. The final photo comes from our Richard Bolling Collection and depicts Freedom, Inc. Representative Harold Holliday, Sr. and founder Bruce R. Watkins sitting with Bolling. Freedom, Inc. was instrumental in helping to elect many of KC’s first Black politicians, and helped advocate for the passage of the Public Accommodations Ordinance in 1964. Today they continue to provide guidance on voting to support the Black community and provide information on and advocate for voter rights. Recent changes like voter ID laws, requiring reasons and notarization to cast mail-in/absentee ballots, and the consolidation of polling places, which make people travel further to vote and complicates commutes for those who use public transportation, have a real impact on who is able to vote and disproportionately effects the voting rights of people of color, people with disabilities, and those in low-income areas. LaBudde Special Collections doesn’t endorse any political parties or candidates, but if you are registered and able, we strongly endorse casting your vote today and getting registered to vote in November if you’re not. For more information on Freedom, Inc. visit their website: https://freedomincorporated.org/