Because of its excellent transport, grain-elevator, and warehousing facilities and its location near the geographic centre of the 48 states of the United States that have common boundaries, Kansas City is one of the most important markets and distribution hubs in the nation. Principal industries include food processing, metal production, motor-vehicle assembly, and the production of greeting cards, transport equipment, industrial machinery, metal products, chemicals, and glass products. Among Kansas City's institutions of higher education are the University of Missouri in Kansas City (1929), Avila College (1916), Rockhurst College (1910), Calvary Bible College (1932), and the Kansas City Art Institute (1885). Noted museums in the city include the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, known for its collection of Oriental art, and the Black Archives of Mid-America. Sports and entertainment facilities include the H. R. Bartle Exposition Hall and the Kansas City Zoo and Starlight Theater. Royal Stadium (home of the Kansas City Royals professional baseball team) and the adjacent Arrowhead Stadium (home of the Kansas City Chiefs American football team) together form the Harry S. Truman Sports Complex. Kansas City is also the site of the annual American Royal Livestock, Horse Show and Rodeo.

The site of present-day Kansas City was permanently settled by whites in 1821 by a group of fur traders led by the French explorer Franзois Chouteau. This settlement, known as Westport Landing, grew as a river port and terminus of the Santa Fe Trail and Oregon Trail. It was chartered in 1850 as the Town of Kansas and was renamed Kansas City in 1889. The settlement prospered as an outfitting point for gold prospectors and homesteaders heading west. The first railway, connecting Kansas City with St Louis, reached here in 1865. After 1900 the city began to develop a diversified economic structure, attracting many people to the city. Between 1910 and 1960 the population increased from 248,381 to 475,539. A setback in the city's growth occurred when, in 1951, the Kansas River flooded, damaging parts of the manufacturing and stockyard districts. Population (1980) 448,159; (1990) 435,146.

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