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Faith in the Future Fueled Growth in WPHA Area
In a recent newsletter, we noted that the years 1905-07 had seen a major increase in real estate development in Jackson County. Nineteen hundred and eight and 1909 were even more hectic, and that in spite of a major economic slump nationwide.
But most Missourians in the early 1900s were much more hopeful about the future, even in hard times, than people are today. One reason was that they believed that their economic future rested in their own hands, and not in Washington DC. The federal government was very small, and was not the pervasive, depressing influence it is today.
One of these enterprising Missourians was an ambitious young attorney named David M. Proctor. Like many Kansas Citians, he saw that the city was going to grow, especially south of Brush Creek. The farms in that area would be ideal for new residential developments. And land prices were a bargain. (More on David Proctor in a near-future column).
The map on this page shows the landowners in the WPHA area in 1907, when Proctor began acquiring land, beginning with the 40-acre farm owned by Elizabeth Jackson. He also bought the lower half of Albert Heslip’s farm, except for Heslip’s homestead near 74th and Jarboe, and a portion of Charles Wornall’s land to the east of Heslip. From the Wornall land, Proctor created the third subdivision in the SPHA area, called “Waldo Ridge,” in October 1909. Waldo Ridge includes all but three of the homes which face 74th Street between Summit and Washington, and eight of the homes in the 7400 block of Pennsylvania.
Other developers were also interested in the Wornall land, and today it includes parts of five separate subdivision between Summit to Washington.
Ward Parkway State Line East lane Summit Wornall
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