A visit to Garrison School in Liberty, a Kansas City area jewel | Opinion

One of the things I’ve always loved about Kansas City is discovering its treasures when you least expect to, and sometimes even when you know they’re there, but you just haven’t taken the time to go hunting for area jewels, like the Historic Garrison School.

Well, this past weekend I made the time, and on Saturday afternoon, I drove about 20 miles from my home in Independence, north to Liberty to visit the Historic Garrison School.

My plan was to chat there with Cecelia Robinson, a local historian, about another project I’m working on: the lynching of Black people in Missouri. She suggested I meet her there, and since I’d only been there very briefly once before, it seemed like a perfect time to explore this place I’d heard so much about.

Located on Water Street, the old school was first established in 1877 for African American residents. It stood until 1910 when that schoolhouse burned down. In 1911, the existing building was built on a hill in Liberty. The school only took students up to the 10th Grade.

To further their education, Black students from Liberty had to travel to Kansas City to attend Lincoln High School, the closest all-Black high school in the area. After the Brown v. Board of Education desegregation decision, Liberty began desegregating its schools, and Black children were permitted to attend what had been all-white schools.

Garrison School now serves as a community center and museum full of items that document the history of Black Americans in this part of Clay County. It’s managed by the Clay County African American Legacy, which provides visitors with a self-guided tour that you can access on your phone.

The experience actually starts in the parking lot because the first thing you see there is a giant black and white mural on the building’s brick wall. Its theme is “Stony the Road We Have Trod.” depicting the struggle of Black people for equal education during segregation. On the Main Street side of the building is another mural and sculptures.

The day I visited, I saw only two other visitors, a mother with her child in a stroller, who toured the exhibit rooms, first the veterans room, where historical photos of Black men in uniforms from the Civil War to the Vietnam War hang on the walls. In another room are beautiful quilts and other elements of Black life over the years.

In a room on the lower level, the first exhibit you see is a large jar filled with dirt dug from a site in town where a Black man had been lynched. Henry Darley was hanged on the courthouse steps in May, 1900.

I stood at that exhibit the longest of all.

While on that Saturday, it was pretty quiet inside the museum, meaning not a lot of foot traffic, Robinson told me that many days during the school year, a visitor could run into groups of school children from all around the metro who stop in at the old schoolhouse.

This quaint piece of metro area history was definitely worth the visit. Like I said, a real gem. I learned so much about Clay County and the Black residents who lived there. Let me add, it doesn’t have to be February to celebrate Black history, because it is American history.

Off The Vine

Below are stories about culture and identity from communities in the Kansas City metropolitan area. Go here to find more from Star reporter J.M. Banks.

Black cosplayers joined thousands of fans who filled the halls at Kansas City’s Planet Comic Con event last week. Banks writes about how people of color are impacting the vibe at these large-scale comic book conventions.

Members of the Kansas City area trans community united to celebrate their presence in society, make connections and get access to resources during the Trans Day of Visibility organized by the Trans Women of Color Collective, Banks was there to help tell their story.

Around The Vine

A major national traveling exhibit, ”Through Darkness to Light: Photographs Along the Underground Railroad,” is coming to the Watkins Museum of History, 1047 Massachusetts St. in Lawrence, April 7 through May 23. The exhibit is sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts, Exhibits USA and Mid-America Arts Alliance. After shock: A Community Film Night Honoring Fathers & Families, presented by the Uzazi Village as part of a recognition of Black Maternal Health Week from 6 to 8 p.m. on Saturday, April 11, at 4232 Troost Ave. in Kansas City

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• The University of Missouri cut funding for five minority-serving student groups after the Trump Administration threatened to cut the school’s federal funding if it didn’t. I wrote a column about what students have to say about the Black, Asian, Latino and LGBTQ student groups being defunded at MU.
• The Kansas City area has wrapped up its spring local elections, deciding on dozens of important municipal, school and tax issues. Star reporters Chandler Boese and Eleanor Nash have a roundup on those results.
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• There’s a new ice cream shop in town, and it’s the only one like it in the metro. This spot sources its fruit and other ingredients from India. Reporter Jenna Thompson wrote all about where this yummy place is, and its many flavors.
• Swifties, brace yourselves, popular Taylor Swift dancer, Kameron Saunders, brother to former KC Chiefs player, Khalen Saunders, is coming to speak in Kansas City. Checkout this Rashad Alexander piece and find out when and where.

Your voice matters to us. What local issues do you want to hear discussed in On The Vine? Let me, Mará Rose Williams, The Star’s senior opinion columnist, know directly at mdwilliams@kcstar.com. Thank you for reading.