Cultivating a Shared Sense of Place: Ethnic Mexicans and the Environment in Twentieth-Century Kansas City

Document Type

Article

Publication Title

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Abstract

This article explores the history, employment, and presence of ethnic Mexicans in the Kansas City metropolitan area beginning in the early twentieth century through economic, political, and natural changes, highlighting their creation of a shared sense of place. Includes analysis of the impact of railroad and commerce development, residential layout and urban planning, the major flood of 1951, and the construction of freeways after the 1950s. Local community is revealed through oral histories, population data, and specific efforts including construction of an innovative neighborhood park, maintenance and style of homes, and the revitalization of Kansas City's Westside after the 1970s.

Pages

35-49

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DOI

https://doi.org/10.1353/dlg.2018.0004

Volume

21

Issue

1

Publication Date

Spring 2018

Keywords

Mexican Americans, Latino Midwest history, Kansas City metro area, AT&SF Railroad, flood of 1951, Westside barrio, 1960s freeway system, Elpidio Rocha

Disciplines

History

Comments

Use the link above to view this item in the Foley Center Library catalog.

This item is included in the Center for Climate, Society, & the Environment's Faculty Publications Bibliography.

Find more Climate Studies works by Gonzaga University faculty at the bibliography's home here.

ISSN

1090-4972

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