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Thomas Joseph Pendergast (July 22, 1873 – January 26, 1945) controlled Kansas City as a political boss. "Boss Tom" Pendergast gave workers jobs and helped elect politicians during the Great Depression, becoming wealthy in the process. July 22 is the 203rd day (204th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 162 days remaining. ...
1873 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calaber). ...
January 26 is the 26th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ...
1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1945 calendar). ...
Nickname: City of Fountains or Heart of America Official website: http://www. ...
1869 tobacco label featuring Boss Tweed A boss, in political science, is a person who wields de facto power over a particular political region or constituency. ...
Dorothea Langes Migrant Mother depicts destitute pea pickers in California, centering on Florence Owens Thompson, a mother of seven children, age 32, in Nipomo, California, March 1936. ...
Early Years Thomas Joseph Pendergast was born in St. Joseph, Missouri, in 1873. He was raised Catholic and had nine brothers and sisters. In the 1890s he worked in his brother's saloon in the West Bottoms. Here, his older brother taught him about the city's political system and the advantages of controlling blocks of voters. Saint Joseph is the county seat and largest city in Buchanan County and the sixth largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri. ...
Official language(s) none, English most common Capital Largest city Jefferson City Kansas City Area - Total - Width - Length - % water - Latitude - Longitude Ranked 21st 69,709 sq mi 180,693 km² 240 miles 385 km 300 miles 480 km 1. ...
1873 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calaber). ...
The 1890s were sometimes referred to as the Mauve Decade, because William Henry Perkins aniline dye allowed the widespread use of that colour in fashion, and also as the Gay Nineties, under the then-current usage of the word gay which referred simply to merriment and frivolity, with no...
The West Bottoms is an industrial area immediately to the west of downtown Kansas City, Missouri at the confluence of the Missouri River and Kansas River. ...
After his brother's death, Pendergast began to control the region's Democratic Party. Under Pendergast, prohibition didn't keep the city from being filled with alcohol and gambling. Additionally many elections were fixed to keep political friends in power. In return, Pendergast's companies like Ready-Mixed Concrete were awarded government contracts. Under a $40 million bond program the city constructed many civic buildings during the Depression. Among these projects were the Jackson County courthouse in downtown Kansas City and the concrete "paving" of Brush Creek near the Country Club Plaza. Pendergast was able to place many of his associates to positions of authority through out Jackson County. His best friend, William Highley, a former Vaudeville clown with litttle education, consequently served as Head Master at the McCune School for Boys for over a decade. Pendergast handpicked Harry S. Truman, the 1934 candidate for U.S. Senate. The Democratic Party is one of the two major political parties in the United States, the other one being the Republican Party. ...
Prohibition was a period in the united states when alcohol became illegal. ...
In chemistry, an alcohol is any organic compound in which a hydroxyl group (-OH) is bound to a carbon atom of an alkyl or substituted alkyl group. ...
// Gambling has had many different meanings depending on the cultural and historical context in which it is used. ...
Brush Creek can refer to: Brush Creek Township, Minnesota Brush Creek, Oklahoma Brush Creek Township, Pennsylvania This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...
Kansas Citys Country Club Plaza The Country Club Plaza (often referred to as The Plaza) is an historic and highly upscale shopping district and neighborhood centered around 55 acres (223,000 m²) in Kansas City, Missouri, USA. It is located approximately six miles south of downtown, between 45th street...
Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884 – December 26, 1972) was the thirty-fourth Vice President (1945) and the thirty-third President of the United States (1945–1953), succeeding to the office upon the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt. ...
1934 (MCMXXXIV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ...
Seal of the Senate The United States Senate is one of the two chambers of the Congress of the United States, the other being the House of Representatives. ...
In Office Pendergast ruled from a simple, two-story yellow brick building at 1908 Main Street. Messages marked with his red scrawl were used to secure all manner of favors. Although he was unquestionably corrupt and there were regularly shootouts and beatings on election days during his watch, history has tended to be kind to his legacy since the permissive go-go days gave rise to the golden era of Kansas City jazz (now commemorated at the American Jazz Museum at 18th and Vine) as well as a golden era of Kansas City building. In addition he spotted the talent of Harry S. Truman (dubbed derisively at the time as "the Senator From Pendergast"). Pendergast was famed for his common touch and helped pay the poor's medical bills, provided jobs and had famous Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners for the poor. One way or another Kansas City voter turnout tended to be close to 100 percent in the Pendergast days. The Premiere Jazz Museum in the United States. ...
Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884 – December 26, 1972) was the thirty-fourth Vice President (1945) and the thirty-third President of the United States (1945–1953), succeeding to the office upon the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt. ...
Downfall and the Later Years Pendergast's downfall is widely believed to have occurred after a falling out with Lloyd C. Stark. Pendergast had endorsed Stark (famed for Stark Apples and is reputed to have had the largest apple orchard in the country) for governor in 1936. Pendergast was out of the country during the election and his followers were even more obvious and corrupt than usual in Stark's successful election. With investigations looming Stark turned against Pendergast prompting federal investigations and the pulling of federal funds from Pendergast's control. Lloyd Crow Stark (November 23, 1886 – September 17, 1972) was a Governor of the U.S. state of Missouri. ...
After Pendergast was convicted of income tax evasion, Stark sought to unseat Harry Truman in the 1940 U.S. Senate election. It was a very bitter battle that made both Missourians lifelong enemies as Truman successfully was elected after U.S. District Attorney Maurice Milligan who had prosecuted Pendergast also entered the race causing Milligan and Stark to split the anti-Pendergast vote.
Truman shocked many when as Vice President he attended the Pendergast funeral a few days after being sworn in and a few weeks before Truman succeeded Franklin D. Roosevelt as President. 1908 Main is listed on the Kansas City Register of Historic Places[1] although not on the National Register of Historic Places. FDR redirects here. ...
The National Register of Historic Places is the USAs official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects worthy of preservation. ...
In 1939 Pendergast was arraigned for failing to pay taxes on a bribe received to pay off gambling debts. After serving 15 months in prison at the nearby United States Penitentiary, Leavenworth, he lived quietly at his home, 5650 Ward Parkway, until his death in 1945. 1939 (MCMXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ...
The United States Penitentiary (USP), Leavenworth is located in Leavenworth, Kansas on 1,583 acres (6. ...
1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1945 calendar). ...
Opponents of the Pendergast Organization Various reform groups at different times attempted to challenge Pendergast's control of the city's politics. Notable leaders of these attempts included: Harold Luhnow (born 1895 in Chicago) was largely responsible for the libertarian direction taken by the influential William Volker Fund during the period between 1944 and 1964. ...
Loren Miller was a civic reformer and libertarian activist in the first half of the 20th century. ...
Maurice M. Milligan (1884-1959),a U.S. District Attorney for Western Missouri, is most famous for the successful 1939 prosecution of Kansas City boss Tom Pendergast. ...
Spencer Salisbury was a war buddy and business partner of Harry S. Truman. ...
External Links - Missouri's Most Important Politician (History Essay at Secretary of State Office) - Includes photos and cartoons[2]
- Truman Library FAQ on Truman-Pendergast[3]
- KC Police Memorial on Pendergast[4]
- Kansas City Public Library biography on Pendergast[5]
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