National Register of Historic Places

McConahay Building

Kansas City, Jackson County, Missouri
Listed
May 21, 1978
Type
Building
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
78001655

About this property

The McConahay Building in Kansas City, Missouri is a two-story Tapestry Brick building designed by prominent Kansas City architect Nelle E. Peters in 1922. From the building's completion (in May 1922) to June 1923 the McConahay building housed Laugh-O-Gram Studio, Walt Disney's first commercial film studio, which occupied a five-room suite of studios on the second floor. Here, he developed the cartoon character Mickey Mouse based on resident mice that he trained. He frequently ate at the Forest Inn Cafe in the building's first floor. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. The application for listing describes the building as "a fine local example of tapestry brick design architecture; exterior facades are of brickwork interspersed with cut stone and/or terra cotta blocks to form geometric designs". Historical status generally protects buildings from demolition, but it had deteriorated to the point where this had been considered. A local organization, Thank You Walt Disney, Inc., has acquired the building and is in the process of restoring it.

Location

1121--1131 E. 31st St.
Kansas City, Jackson County, Missouri
39.07037, -94.57033

Categories

INDUSTRYCOMMERCEARTARCHITECTURECOMMUNICATIONSSOCIAL HISTORY
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Nearby Historic Sites

Shankman Building
Industrial
0.1 mi
Michelson Building
Industrial
0.1 mi
Firestone Tire and Rubber Company Service Station
Industrial
0.1 mi
Woolworth, F.W., Building
Industrial
0.1 mi
Campbell-Continental Baking Company Building
Industrial
0.2 mi

Nearby Battles

Price's Raid — Battle of Westport
1864Civil War
1.8 mi
Battle of Byram's Ford
1864Civil War
1.8 mi
Kansas City Skirmish 1861
1861Civil War
2.1 mi
Battle of Westport (Kansas forces) 1864
1864Civil War
2.6 mi

Questions about this property

When was McConahay Building listed on the National Register?

McConahay Building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on May 21, 1978.

What type of historic resource is McConahay Building?

McConahay Building is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for McConahay Building?

The period of significance for McConahay Building is recorded as the industrial era.

Can I research the history near McConahay Building?

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