My Story | Your Story
Our Stories:  Don’t Forget to Tell Them

Our histories define us. Our stories unite us.

HUB projects (Historical Urban Base) is an initiative that offers a collection of diverse personal and neighborhood stories of Kansas Citians. Produced in collaboration with local organizations and individuals, these life stories will be recorded through a variety of formats including oral histories, video interviews and conversations, film, radio, podcasts, and spoken word. The digital content will be shared online and in exhibitions and experiences at the Kansas City Museum.

HUB projects is intended to document, interpret, and preserve our collective memory and history, to inspire engagement and civic unity, and to foster positive, sustainable community development, cohesion, and social change. HUB projects supports the Kansas City Museum’s educational and civic mission by creating content for programs and exhibitions while building the Museum’s collection.

From left to right, project team members: Deb Campbell, Executive Director of Arts & AGEing KC; Damron Armstrong, Executive Director of The Black Repertory Theatre; Kurtis Spenser, Board Member One Kansas City Radio; and Glenn North, Executive Director of the Bruce R. Watkins Cultural Heritage Center & Museum.
Photo by Jeff Evrard Photography

The future Kansas City Museum and other partnering organizations will showcase these media projects in exhibitions and programs to ensure that they are broadly accessible to the public and used for research purposes.

The Kansas City Public Library and the Kansas City Museum Foundation will serve as the lead partners for HUB projects to finalize the scope and scale of the initiative for the collecting of oral histories, to prioritize projects and produce content, and to secure funding opportunities to build the initiative’s capacity. They also will determine how best to archive the digital media that is created and make it broadly accessible, beyond the walls of the Kansas City Museum and the Kansas City Public Library, to educators, students, researchers, and the public.

As part of HUB projects, 100.1FM One Kansas City Radio is broadcasting live from the Kansas City Museum and is collaborating with the Museum to develop radio programs focused on history, cultural, and identity. Radio programming will be a part of the visitor experience of the restored and renovated Corinthian Hall with a focus on engaging youth in developing content and producing programs that amplify their voices and perspectives.

HUB projects Video
Produced for a Community Open House on June 2, 2016
On June 2 2016, the Kansas City Museum was invited to conduct video interviews at a community open house at East Patrol police station organized by Mosaic Partners and DRAW Architecture + Urban Design. The open house provided an update on the implementation strategy designed to galvanize and coordinate public interests around the urban redevelopment and community building of the UNI area: 18th Street to 52nd Street, Troost to Prospect Avenue, Kansas City, Missouri. This strategy is part of the Kansas City Catalytic Urban Redevelopment (KC-CUR) initiative launched by Greater Kansas City LISC in partnership with the City of Kansas City, Missouri Urban Neighborhood Initiative (UNI), Mid-America Regional Council (MARC), and the Kansas City District Council of the Urban Land Institute (ULI).  KC-CUR’s implementation strategy for the UNI area was led by Mosaic Urban Partners, DRAW Architecture + Urban Design, Parson + Associates, and artist/educator Michael Toombs.

At this open house, Kansas City Museum and Brainroot Light and Sound set up a video station and interviewed 10 people who were asked the following essential questions aimed to learn more about the residents and stakeholders of the UNI area.

  • Do you have any memories or stories of living in your neighborhood? Tell me one of them.
  • Do you know your neighbors? Tell me about one of your neighbors.
  • What about your neighborhood are you most proud of?
  • Over the time that you’ve lived in your neighborhood, how has changed?
  • How has your neighborhood shaped you?
  • What is your dream for your neighborhood?
  • What do you want Kansas Citians to know about your neighborhood?

Watch an excerpt of the stories that were shared in this video, which was produced by the Kansas City Museum in collaboration with Brainroot Light and Sound.

HUB projects logo designed by SPYN studio.