Kansas City Black History Tour launches Saturday

Kansas City Black History Tour launches Saturday By JOYCE SMITH The Kansas City Star The Underground Railroad exhibit in the West Bottoms. The Quindaro Ruins in Kansas City, Kan. The Mutual Musicians Foundation and the American Jazz Museum in the 18th and Vine district. These sites and others are not just places on a map but a lesson in perseverance and character development, said local historian Erik Stafford. Stafford has teamed up with the Kansas City Transportation Group and Gates Bar-B-Q to develop The Kansas City Black History Tour. The operators did a trial run during Black History month in February and during several conventions, including one for the NAACP, in order to get feedback. Now the tour will run from 1 to 3 p.m. Saturdays, starting this Saturday. A luxury mini-bus will travel to several sites to explore key times in African-American history. Stafford will discuss how African-Americans played a part in Kansas City being called the “Paris of the Plains.” He’ll also cover the story of Jackie Robinson and the Kansas City Monarchs, and why 18th & Vine became an international draw. The cost is $25.95 per person. Kansas City Transportation Group conducts several other tours including holiday light tours, wine tours to Hermann, Mo., a gangster tour, and a barbecue and jazz tour. “The Black History Tour is more of an educational tour than an entertainment tour. We have such a rich history when you look at it,” said Bill George, chief executive officer of Kansas City Transportation Group, one of the metro’s largest transportation companies. “It’s a good addition to Kansas City and all the cultural attractions.” The tour starts and ends at Gates Pointe at 1221 Brooklyn. “Just the historic significance of the tour and the historic significance of Gates, over 60 years in business,” said George Gates, chief operations officer for Gates Bar-B-Q. “There’s a kinship, deep roots for Gates barbecue, where we started and a lot of historical values on this tour.”