Roadside Stagecoach Spotting in Kansas and Missouri

If you're driving through Kansas or Missouri, you will start to notice a similar roadside attraction - stagecoaches. Before highways or even railroads, the only way to really travel across the country was by stagecoach. The earliest stagecoach line to travel through Missouri and Kansas was the Santa Fe Trail, which in 1849 ran a monthly line of stagecoaches from St. Louis to Santa Fe, New Mexico, although the trail was first blazed in 1821. It later moved to Independence, Missouri and those crossing the wide open spaces of the country would travel the 1,200 miles of the Santa Fe Trail for $250 with only 40 pounds of baggage.

The trail was fraught with danger. Even as travelers struggled to survive the arid plains, deserts, and mountains there were more challenges to overcome. Stagecoaches were sometimes attacked by Native Americans. Rattlesnakes, lightening storms, and more all posed deadly threats to lives of those brave souls trying to cross the wild, vast space of the country. This brief history is, of course, only cursory, but if you want to learn more about the Santa Fe Trail, including its economic significance to trade as well as its military history, I encourage you to read more on the Legends of America website.

Many of the sites along the Santa Fe Trail are marked and commemorated as national historic landmarks. But also along the road are stagecoaches that mark intersections and businesses throughout Kansas and Missouri.

In the Westport neighborhood of Kansas City, Missouri there is a large stagecoach at a major intersection. I've tried to find out when it was built or why, but can't seem to find an answer. It's simply there. I ran into the same problem when trying to find out about a stagecoach at an intersection in Overland Park, Kansas. As much as stagecoaches and stagecoach trails are commemorated as a significant part of Kansas and Missouri history, it seems these roadside stagecoaches has simply become part of the scenery - erected and forgotten as though it has always been there and always will be there. I now wonder if anyone else notices the stagecoaches, or if they simply drive on by.

Rio Theater – Overland Park, KS

I love the historic downtown of Overland Park. I love the architecture, I love the shops, I love the Farmers Market and I love the Rio Theater.

The old Rio Theater is a sanctuary for a film fanatic like myself, because it is a theater like theaters should be. This is not a modern multiplex with an over-priced concession stand and crappy movies on all of the thirty screens. This art-deco theater has an elegant lobby with plush velvety seats, and selective screenings. The theater doesn’t just show whatever crap has been released. No, it chooses the best of films – independent, art, foreign, documentary, and anything else that is truly worthy of being on their enchanting silver screen.

The last time I went to the Rio Theater was with my father to see the Woody Allen film “Whatever It Takes.” My father taught me about great films from an early age. When other kids were watching Disney, I was watching “The Philadelphia Story” and “Arsenic and Old Lace.” That doesn't mean I haven't seen "The Lion King," of course I watched the classic kid movies. But I also knew that "You've Got Mail" ripped off Jimmy Stewart's "Shop Around the Corner." Now in my twenties, I'm still a film nerd and I still like the old ones the best. For example, Humphrey Bogart will always be the greatest on screen detective in my opinion, whether it is in "The Maltese Falcon" or the film noir classic "Dead Reckoning."

My love of old movies makes my love of the old Rio movie theater quite natural. Going to the movies used to be a classic evening out. Men wore hats and women wore their nicest dresses to see the latest film. Now, tickets are over-priced, concession-stands make a candy bar cost more than a nice meal out, and there is always somebody texting or talking through the film. Going to the Rio Theater is going back in time and experiencing the cinema as it was, and still should be.

Total Time Traveled: 1.5 hours
Total Distance Traveled: 73 miles
Soundtrack: "Drunken Lullabies" Flogging Molly

Culinary Center of Kansas City - Overland Park, KS

Welcome back to The Yellow Brick Road Trip! I’m excited to say my first post is an exciting one. I have an incredible passion for cooking, but I am not a particularly skilled chef. Yet. Though I have been known to make some spectacular snacks for study groups (my baked asparagus in rosemary and white truffle oil wrapped with smoked salmon has earned some rave reviews), I am eager to learn. So for my birthday my parents have given me a three-day hands-on cooking class at the Culinary Center of Kansas City. For three days I learned knife skills, braising, sautéing, sauces, vegetables, and desserts.

The Culinary Center of Kansas City is a well-known institute throughout the Midwest that offers over 450 classes on the culinary arts throughout the year. The name is slightly a misnomer. While very close to Kansas City, the culinary center is actually in Overland Park.

This weekend I was lucky to be learning from Chef Gary, a certified executive chef and great teacher. The first day, we learned a number of important basics. We learned how to sharpen knives properly and how to make a variety of essential cuts, such as how to dice, mince, and julian vegetables. We also learned how to make good chicken and beef stock. We also learned how to make Chicken Chasseur with a rice pilaf and properly sauteed fall vegetables. The vegetables were actually a bit of revelation. For years, I thought I didn't like zucchini. Every time I had it before, it was mushy and full of seeds. But when Chef Gary made properly sauteed zucchini, I discovered I love it! I think that says a lot about the importance of proper cooking technique.

The second day was equally brilliant. We started off with a southwest smoked turkey corn chowder. I love soups, especially in winter, so I was thrilled for a new recipe. Soup is one of my favorite things to cook as well because you can freeze it. So often when I make really good food I'm stuck eating it for days. And around the third day I don't think its so good anymore. But with soup, you can freeze individual portions and so I can enjoy it for a long time without being forced to eat it day after day after day. With the soup, we also made salad dressings, asian salmon, and a stunning barley salad. The barley salad was so brilliant, I have to share the recipe! So check it out at the bottom of this post.

On the second day, we also confronted my biggest fear: baking. I am terrified to bake. For as much fun as I have cooking, I am a disaster every time I try to bake. It cruel and unusual punishment of chocolate chip cookies. But we were going to make an apple walnut pie and I was determined to finally bake sometime well. And I did. With my team of fellow culinarians, we made an amazing apple walnut pie and I did not destroy it.

Finally, on the third day we made eggs benedict to start the morning. I learned some great tricks to properly poaching eggs and how to make a really amazing hollandaise sauce. We then went into a high speed culinary race - we learned two beef dishes, a pork dish, shrimp scampi, risotto, and received recipes for a great pasta dish we ran out of time for.

I can't tell you how absolutely great this weekend was. Anyone who has any interest in cooking should definitely check out a class at the Culinary Center of Kansas City. You have the option of a weekend cooking basics class like mine, a nine week more intensive cooking basics course, or one of the many, many single evening courses that can bring a smile to any foodie's face.

Roasted Barley Salad

Ingredients:

1 cup pearl barley (do not buy the instant kind!)

3 cups vegetable stock

1 cup drained black beans

1 cup diced green bell peppers

1 cup sweet corn

1 cup diced seeded tomatoes

8 ounces of sliced mushrooms

6 green onions, diced

1/4 cup of jalapeno pepper slices

1/2 cup of fresh basil

6 cloves chopped, peeled garlic

Juice of a lemon

3 tablespoons olive oil

Salt and pepper

Toasted pumpkin seeds

Method:

Place barley in a sauce pan with olive oil over medium heat and toast it lightly. Be sure to stir it regularly to prevent burning. Add stock and bring it to a boil. Reduce heat and cover; simmer gently until liquid is absorbed (about 25 minutes). Allow to cool. Saute the mushrooms in olive oil and then add to the barley. Then add everything else to the cooked barley and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Distance Traveled: About 150 miles (back and forth)

Soundtrack: "Good Health" Pretty Girls Make Graves

Historic Downtown Overland Park, KS

Since I spend so much time on the road, I thought it might be nice to take a very short trip to a place nearby. I pass the historic downtown area of Overland Park every day but I never really stop to look at it.

A little geographical explanation - the Kansas City metro area spreads across the Kansas and Missouri state border and includes several small cities, towns and suburbs. Overland Park, or the OP as it is commonly referred to, is in the south part of the metro area.

It was late Sunday afternoon and the streets were empty except for the occasional car passing through. There was no one in the Farmer's Market or eating in the restaurants along the street. It gave me a chance to observe that all of the historical monuments - the clocktower plaza and the statue of Overland Park founder William B. Strang, Jr. - are all new contributions. The historic downtown seems to be more of a modern embracing of the past but there doesn't seem to be much left of the past that they're embracing. The restaurant and buildings look newer, the only particularly ancient-looking building is the very retro Rio Movie Theater.

The first place I stopped along the historic street was the clocktower plaza, a large covered sitting area with a giant clocktower next to the Farmer's Market. I found it somewhat confusing in its architectural design. The sloping roofs seem to be more Eastern-inspired than an appropriate homage to Overland Park's actual sister city of Bietingheim-Bissingen, Germany.

A few steps away from the clocktower plaza is a large statue of William B. Strang, Jr, Overland Park's founder. Like the clocktower, this seems to be a belated homage to the past. The statue was erected in May 2006. The city founder and railroad magnate looks out of the empty streets sternly but blankly, like he is passively observing everything. He seems to be judging us as he is frozen with one foot forward, like he is ready to take action, but his face does not betray his motivation.

My visit to the Historic Downtown of Overland Park was a quiet trip, but I don't think I really gained anything "historical" about Overland Park from my visit. I plan to go back next month when the Farmer's Market is open, maybe a few people will make my next visit more interesting.

Total Travel Distance: 18 miles
Total Travel Time: 40 minutes
Soundtrack: "Sexless Demons and Scars" - Jack Off Jill