Long ago on independence square (Kansas City, Lee's Summit: houses, live, move to)

[Mad Anthonie]

Originally Posted by WCHS'59

How about M-78 Highway?

I have always considered the street all the way into Lake City Arsenal as being 23rd Street. Although at some point it ceases being named 23rd and is named M-78, although it is M-78 all along 23rd.

By the time "23rd" gets to M-7, though, it is on an east-west grid level with 1st Street South.

And to think when roads were first laid out under the Public Land Survey System they were 66 feet wide and one mile apart in each direction and straight north to south and straight east to west in those directions with no exceptions.

M-78 weighs in at 11 miles. For PD (and most others) it is generally referred to as 23rd St from Blue Ridge Blvd to R. D. Mize Road, then M-78 east from there. Postal addresses follow the same rules.

[Mad Anthonie]

Originally Posted by pearjas

Wow, Truman & 24 Highway were my first two thoughts... I'm always wrong on these questions... amazing I was actually on the right page for a change.

We tossed this easy one out for you. Next time take a swing at it!

[Mad Anthonie]

Originally Posted by WCHS'59

The Bus Stop café was on the southwest corner of Lynn and Lexington. The building is still there.



Busses parked in a row on Lynn facing south. The café was wide enough to have a counter for service on the east side and a row of benches along the west wall for waiting passengers. An announcer called arriving and departing buses. A least on the route I rode, there were two busses working, which provided every thirty minute service. The drivers would always wave at each other when the two passed along the way.


(Prior to this café, buses converged on the southwest corner of Main and Lexington with riders standing and waiting on the sidewalk with no shelter.)


The more I think about it, the bus I would take home proceeded south along Lynn across the bridge that then crossed the tracks south of Walnut. At Short or Elm Street it would turn east to Noland Road and then proceed south on Noland to 23rd. I remember the side rails on that bridge as being wood painted white. The floor was apparently wood also as the 1916 Sanborn shows it as a frame bridge.


After the bridge was condemned, the bus turned east from Lynn onto Kansas or Walnut to get to Noland.

I have no memory of that bridge, although I was aware that it used to exist. Any idea when it was removed?

[WCHS'59]

Originally Posted by Mad Anthonie

I have no memory of that bridge, although I was aware that it used to exist. Any idea when it was removed?

SWAG: 1951.

I first learned of it in the Examiner and could not understand why it would not be replaced.

[Mad Anthonie]

Originally Posted by WCHS'59

SWAG: 1951.

I first learned of it in the Examiner and could not understand why it would not be replaced.

That explains why I don't remember it. Perhaps the cost of replacement couldn't be justified for the traffic count, especially with the Main Street bridge just 100 feet away. The RR may have been reluctant also, as I think they cost share on those projects.

[Mad Anthonie]

Originally Posted by WCHS'59

While roaming around, Delorme Maps shows alphabetical named streets in the southern portion of Independence. As does Google.

A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K. and L streets all appear to be legitimate paved streets. They run in both directions.

L Street ends at the south city limits in that small portion of town that dips south of 40 Highway.

The entire area appears to be made up entirely of mobile homes.

This reminds me of the adventures of addresses in Independence. The core of old Independence is numbered from the Square. That is surrounded by areas annexed later, which are numbered out of Kansas City. Unfortunately there are anomalies galore. In some areas the numbered street name out of KC has addresses based on the Independence system. Some streets have a mix of houses numbered on both systems, so that 700 south is south of 1700 south. A few streets have houses numbered out of sequence, but on the same system. There are even a few locations that have their own numbering scheme, such as Stone Arch and Sundown. It is enough to drive a deliveryman batty!

[WCHS'59]

Originally Posted by Mad Anthonie

That explains why I don't remember it. Perhaps the cost of replacement couldn't be justified for the traffic count, especially with the Main Street bridge just 100 feet away. The RR may have been reluctant also, as I think they cost share on those projects.

Probably right on all counts and I have never heard of any complaints. I am now wondering if were a one lane bridge left over from horse days. I cannot recall about that.

[WCHS'59]

Originally Posted by Mad Anthonie

This reminds me of the adventures of addresses in Independence. The core of old Independence is numbered from the Square. That is surrounded by areas annexed later, which are numbered out of Kansas City. Unfortunately there are anomalies galore. In some areas the numbered street name out of KC has addresses based on the Independence system. Some streets have a mix of houses numbered on both systems, so that 700 south is south of 1700 south. A few streets have houses numbered out of sequence, but on the same system. There are even a few locations that have their own numbering scheme, such as Stone Arch and Sundown. It is enough to drive a deliveryman batty!

There was an effort to go "all Independence" or "all Kansas City" in the sixties but there were too many complaints from people in both numbering systems, so it was dropped. The Independence post office was begging for standardization of some type. I was against the "all Kansas City" but the city and the metro area would probably be better off if it were.

I am wondering if Blue Springs or Lee's Summit has the same problem.

Out here everyone in the metro area north and south numbers off the Denver grid. I am in the 17000 block east and there are several town jurisdictions between here and Denver.

They have a strange address method (to me), though. A north address carries no N designator. For instance 5000 Buckley Street is used instead of 5000 N. Buckley. 5000 S. Buckley is just that. Both east and west addresses use the E. or W. designator.

What is really strange (to me, not the locals) is Salt Lake City. They have a totally different method of address designation that I cannot explain but it was adopted by the Mormons as I understand.

[Katzpur]

Originally Posted by WCHS'59

What is really strange (to me, not the locals) is Salt Lake City. They have a totally different method of address designation that I cannot explain but it was adopted by the Mormons as I understand.

It's merely a grid system, almost identical to that of longitude and latitude. You could think of Temple Square as the point at which the Greenwich Meridian intersects the Equator. All addresses are numbered from that point.

[WCHS'59]

Originally Posted by Katzpur

It's merely a grid system, almost identical to that of longitude and latitude. You could think of Temple Square as the point at which the Greenwich Meridian intersects the Equator. All addresses are numbered from that point.

I had not heard that aspect before.

I worked with a fellow of the Mormon faith for over twenty years and he always said that it was the easiest address system ever devised. Since easy is like water, which easily finds the quickest route, it left me wondering why everyone else had not adopted it.