The Archives
The Archives contain a wide variety of documentary source materials including photography, film, television news footage, manuscripts, business records, family papers, and many other ephemeral collections.
Clothing and Textiles Collection
The Museum has one of the largest and best represented collections of clothing materials in the Midwest. Additionally, the collection includes examples of many kinds of quilts and coverlets.
Garment District Collection
The Kansas City Museum is home to the Historic Garment District Museum’s collection of historic clothing and archives. Clothing examples made by local companies from the 1920s through the 1970s are included, with over 350 garments in the collection plus numerous objects such as equipment and marketing pieces.
Loula Long Combs Collection
A legendary figure of Kansas City, Mrs. Combs was the first lady of the show horse world and daughter of R.A. Long. Loula’s collection encompasses artifacts from both her personal and professional lives.
Medical Collection
The Donald Piper Memorial Medical Museum is a 15,000 plus strong collection of instruments, archives and ephemera related to the St. Joseph Hospital in particular, and Kansas City medical history overall.
Fire Fighting Collection
The partnership with the Kansas City Fire Historical Society brings with it a collection of firefighting equipment, memorabilia, and records.
Transportation Collection
The Transportation collection contains rail memorabilia, automobiles, a homemade motorcycle from the turn of the century, the Loula Long Combs carriage collection, and a rare Butler Blackhawk airplane.
Daniel and Ida Dyer Collection of Native American Culture
An Indian Agent in 1870s Indian territory, Dyer and his wife Ida amassed artifacts from every native culture in North America up until the time of his death in 1912. This collection is known for its many outstanding examples of tribal life with strong emphasis on Southern Plains tribes.
GLAMA Collection—Gay and Lesbian Archives of Mid-America
The GLAMA Collection was started as a collaboration between three history organizations led by UMKC’s LaBudde Special Collections, Kansas City Museum, and Jackson County Historical Society to collect, preserve and make available material that tells the stories of the LGBTQ communities of the Kansas City region.