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New book explores history of Kansas City's obscure landmarks

giant iron in KCK.JPG
Posted at 3:00 AM, Dec 04, 2020
and last updated 2020-12-04 09:45:28-05

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — There’s more to Kansas City, Missouri, than meets the eye. A new book helps people explore the off-the-beaten path points of interest around the city and attempts to give the historical background on each attraction.

From the pink tree in Swope Park to the giant clothes iron in Kansas City, Kansas, Anne Kniggendorf’s new book Secret Kansas City: A guide to the Weird, Wonderful and Obscure, takes readers from one landmark to the next.

The longtime Kansas City resident, who works as a freelance journalist, spent more than a year researching and visiting the 80+ destinations in the book.

“The traveling from place to place was the most enjoyable [part of writing the book],” Kniggendorf said. “I did a lot of that with my mother and with one of my sons, so we made these little day trips.”

The author included points of interest up to about an hour and a half drive from Kansas City. She hopes the book inspires readers to explore their own neighborhoods with a fresh perspective.

“There is likely to be some sort of monument or maybe a strange, little graveyard or something [in your neighborhood],” she said.

The book is part of the “Secret” series, in which authors in different U.S. cities profile obscure locations in their area,

The book is available to purchase on Kniggendorf’s website and at bookstores around the Kansas City area. It costs $22.50.