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Discover Mid-America — January 2009

Grinter Place, an historic Kansas survivor

Old buildings are survivors — mute witnesses to decades of human drama. Some people may look at an old building and see an aging pile of bricks, but most of us marvel at the stories these bricks could tell.

Grinter Place, located near the curving north bank of the Kaw River in Kansas City, KS, could tell more stories than most. The oldest house in Wyandotte County was built in 1857, when the border war between slave-owners and free-staters was at its peak.

Moses Grinter, a native of Kentucky and one of the area’s earliest white settlers, arrived 1831. He contracted with the Army at Fort Leavenworth to set up a ferry, which he operated for several years, serving freighters, settlers and soldiers traveling between Fort Leavenworth and Fort Scott. Travelers on their way to and from Santa Fe also would use this important river crossing. Grinter also built a small log cabin on the site.

In 1836, Grinter married 16-year-old Annie Marshall, a Lenape (Delaware) whose mother’s family had been relocated to the Fort Leavenworth Indian Agency. Annie’s father was a white settler who traded with the Delaware.

It was a time of Indian removal, when the country was relocating more than one hundred thousand Native Americans from traditional hunting grounds to a vast Indian Territory that stretched from present-day Minnesota to Texas. At least 10,000 emigrant Indians from two-dozen tribes had been relocated to the Kansas Territory, including Annie’s people.

Because she had Delaware blood, Annie was allocated 160 acres of land that she and Moses used for farming and business enterprises.

In 1857, Grinter built the brick Colonial-style house that stands today. All the bricks, mortar and wood used in the construction were produced on the site.

Until 1860, the Grinters operated a trading post, providing the Delawares with clothing, tools, household items and occasional luxuries such as perfumes in exchange for cash and furs. They also raised livestock and poultry on their property, and planted an apple orchard.

Moses Grinter died in 1878. When Annie died in 1905, she was buried alongside her husband in a small cemetery on land that they had donated, about a quarter-mile from the house. They had raised ten children, with many descendents still living in the area.

One of the Grinters’ daughters, Martha, and her husband, the Rev. Henry Kirby, moved into the house, eventually passing it on to their daughter, who sold it in 1950. The new owner operated a popular chicken-dinner restaurant on the property into the mid-1960s.

In 1971, with the help of the Junior League of Kansas City and the Grinter House Friends, the State of Kansas acquired the property. Now the former Grinter residence is administered as a state historic site, one of 16 historic sites in Kansas. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Joe Brentano is a young man with a big challenge. A few weeks ago, he took over as site administrator for the Grinter Place State Historic Site. Although the global economic downturn will likely make chronic funding problems for historic preservation even worse, Brentano has plans for Grinter Place.

“I want to work with volunteer groups, such as school and scouting groups, etc., and put interpretive programs together that will teach visitors how their ancestors cooked over wood stoves, made candles, soap, and other things,” Brentano said.

He then pointed out a working woodstove in the Grinter kitchen, which was the center of mealtimes for generations of Grinter families. Other “lost arts” crafts, such as spinning, weaving, candle and soap making, etc., also might be demonstrated at the site, he added.

Grinter Place is still being renovated by the state. “The house was closed for two years,” said Brentano. “Wallpaper was stripped off and the interior walls were painted white, with the woodwork painted in colors that would have been chosen in 1857.”

Although the rooms are sparsely decorated, care has been taken to select period furnishings. At least five items are original to the Grinter family, including historic family Bibles, furniture pieces and a quilt, which was begun by Annie Grinter herself.

“Quilters with Friends of Grinter took quilt squares that Annie started,” Brentano, said, “and completed the quilt which is displayed in the main bedroom of the house.”

Brentano said the Kansas Historical Society is working to make much of the house a “hands on” learning experience. Although three rooms will continue to be “don’t touch” areas, the rest of the house will include items that can be picked up and handled.

Two events are important to Grinter Place, according to Brentano. A quilting group meets in the basement of the visitor center, located just north of the house. They hold a quilt raffle at the end of each year as a benefit for Friends of Grinter. Another important event is the Apple Festival, held the first weekend after Labor Day.

Grinter Place is located at 1420 South 78th Street in Kansas City, KS. Take the 78th Exit off I-70 and drive south. During the winter months, Grinter Place is open Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m. till 5 p.m. March through November, the house will be open Thursday through Saturday. Group tours can be reserved by calling 913-299-0373. Admission is $2 for adults, $1 for seniors and students. Members of the Kansas State Historical Society, current military, and children under 5 are admitted free.

For details visit www.kshs.org/places/grinter.

Ken Weyand can be reached at kweyand1@kc.rr.com

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