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There is no doubt that the world is far different now from what it was in the 1880s. The west was still wild with the “shootout at the OK Corral” and the misadventures and death of Billy the Kid in New Mexico in the early part of the decade. But in 1880, things were good with a period of prosperity called “The Gilded Age.” America had emerged from the Civil War and was taking its place in the world as a major industrial power.

You can read a quick summary of the history of the age in history books, yet what was it really like in Kansas City? I got a good snapshot when my friend Ray Bailey came up with a Sept. 18, 1880, copy of the Kansas City Evening Star. This was the first edition of the four-page publication, which cost two cents, and the style of writing was much different than today. The newspaper published a lengthy listing of its goals and objectives, and the owners were William Nelson and S. E. Morss.

Maybe I’m just getting older, but it seems that the type was smaller and, of course, there were no photographs. The linotype was just being invented, so all of the news stories were put together by handset type. Each individual letter had to be placed to form words, sentences and paragraphs. It was a slow process, and newspapers had literally dozens of typesetters to produce a single edition. I would have liked to check The Chieftain for the same week, but alas, it or The Sentinel weren’t in existence.

Probably one of the first differences I noticed was reference to race. People were always indentified by race, for example, “Elijah Smith, colored” or “Juan Gonzalez, Mexican.” Yes, racism was alive and active in Kansas City a century-a-half-ago.

Nationally, the big news was the presidential election, with early predictions favoring James Garfield, who won. Sadly, a year later he was assassinated and Chester A. Arthur became president. There was prosperity and the wounds from the Civil War were slowly healing, so life was good in the U.S. In Kansas City, one candidate highlighted the changes in the area. He said a new subdivision was built at the sight of a “bloody battle” 15 years earlier.

Much of the news we would count as pretty trivial. There was a story about a man who was going down steps at the railroad station when he dropped his suitcase and it fell to the ground a floor below. The man rushed down the stairs and opened his suitcase to find that his clothes were saturated with the contents of a “bottle of spiritual consolation” that he had stashed in his suitcase. A woman was fined $10 for operating a “disorderly house.”

Another article that wouldn’t have made it in a modern newspaper follows: “A boot black was the recipient of a sound thrashing by his associates on East Fifth Street this morning. His offense was cutting rates to five cents per boot.”

There were serious crimes reported, too. In the news briefs it was reported that a blacksmith in Burden, Kan., had been arrested and charged with counterfeiting. A man was hanged in Ohio for murdering his mistress. The city was shocked by a brutal robbery in downtown Kansas City, when a man was dragged into an alley, beaten and robbed. Several persons were seriously injured in a wagon accident, and one man was not expected to live. There was a yellow fever outbreak in the south causing concerns to travelers.

A seven-room house was advertised for rent at $20 per month. You could buy a seven-room house on Cherry St. with “hot and cold” running water for $4,700.

I enjoyed reading the old newspaper because it gives you a great look at what life was really like in the “good old days.” Although I have to wonder what people will think when they read this copy of the newspaper in 2124?

Kansas City was preparing for a major celebration, “A Grand Barbecue” to celebrate railroad expansion. Kansas City’s leaders realized that its location in the heart of America and as a railroad hub gave it tremendous growth potential. A major part of the event was two full days of horse racing, with odds on entries. Obviously, gambling was a major hobby in those long ago days.

There were concerns about the increase in crime during the celebration. The newspaper stated: “thieves, pickpockets, confidence men, burglars, blackmailers and sneak thieves” were expected to swarm into town during the event, but the police were taking extra precautions to protect the public.

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