James Pendergast: Difference between revisions
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==Career== |
==Career== |
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Pendergast |
Pendergast moved to the industrial [[West Bottoms]] neighborhood of Kansas city in 1876, living in boarding houses and working in meatpacking houses, then the Keystone Iron Works, A. J. Kelly Foundry and D. M. Jarboe Foundry.<ref name="death"/><ref name="jackson"/> According to family legend, in the early 1880s he purchased a saloon called "The Climax," named after the winning horse that provided him with the money to make the purchase. However, this business does not appear in records from the time.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Larsen |first=Lawrence H. |url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Pendergast/n-Qiu53FCOsC?hl=en&gbpv=1&pg=PR5&printsec=frontcover |title=Pendergast! |last2=Hulston |first2=Nancy J. |date=2013-07-05 |publisher=University of Missouri Press |isbn=978-0-8262-6099-4 |language=en}}</ref> In 1881, he is recorded as purchasing a two-story saloon, boarding house, and hotel in the West Bottoms called American House. He ran the boarding house for about 31 years.<ref name="death"/><ref name="kc">{{Cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/kchistoryofkansa0000brow/page/108/mode/2up |title=K.C.: A History of Kansas City, Missouri |last1=Brown |first1=A. Theodore |last2=Dorsett |first2=Lyle W. |year=1978 |page=108–112 |via=[[Archive.org]] |access-date=2024-09-06}}</ref> |
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In 1884, he was elected as a delegate to represent the sixth ward (later the first ward) in the Democratic City Convention.<ref name="kc"/> In 1887, he became the Democratic committeeman from the first ward.{{citation needed |date=October 2022}} He was elected [[alderman]] of the first ward in 1892. Known as "Alderman Jim" and "Big Jim", he achieved political power by doing favors. He remained in that role until 1910.<ref name="death"/><ref name="kc"/> |
In 1884, he was elected as a delegate to represent the sixth ward (later the first ward) in the Democratic City Convention.<ref name="kc"/> In 1887, he became the Democratic committeeman from the first ward.{{citation needed |date=October 2022}} He was elected [[alderman]] of the first ward in 1892. Known as "Alderman Jim" and "Big Jim", he achieved political power by doing favors. He remained in that role until 1910.<ref name="death"/><ref name="kc"/> |
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Revision as of 00:47, 28 October 2024
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (October 2022) |
James Pendergast | |
|---|---|
_(cropped).png) Pendergast in a 1902 publication | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | James Francis Pendergast January 27, 1856 Gallipolis, Ohio, U.S. |
| Died | November 10, 1911 (aged 55) Kansas City, Missouri, U.S. |
| Resting place | Mount Saint Mary's Cemetery Kansas City, Missouri, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse |
Mary Kline
(m. 1886; died 1905) |
| Relations | Thomas J. Pendergast (brother) |
| Occupation | Politician |
James Francis Pendergast (January 27, 1856 – November 10, 1911) was a Democratic politician and the first Big City Boss of Kansas City, Missouri. He was the elder brother of Thomas J. Pendergast and Michael J. Pendergast.
Early life
Pendergast was born on January 27, 1856, in Gallipolis, Ohio, to Michael and Mary Pendergast. His family moved to St. Joseph, Missouri in 1859. He was educated at the public schools there and at Christian Brothers College. Pendergast moved to Kansas City in 1876.[1][2]
Career
Pendergast moved to the industrial West Bottoms neighborhood of Kansas city in 1876, living in boarding houses and working in meatpacking houses, then the Keystone Iron Works, A. J. Kelly Foundry and D. M. Jarboe Foundry.[1][2] According to family legend, in the early 1880s he purchased a saloon called "The Climax," named after the winning horse that provided him with the money to make the purchase. However, this business does not appear in records from the time.[3] In 1881, he is recorded as purchasing a two-story saloon, boarding house, and hotel in the West Bottoms called American House. He ran the boarding house for about 31 years.[1][4]
In 1884, he was elected as a delegate to represent the sixth ward (later the first ward) in the Democratic City Convention.[4] In 1887, he became the Democratic committeeman from the first ward.[citation needed] He was elected alderman of the first ward in 1892. Known as "Alderman Jim" and "Big Jim", he achieved political power by doing favors. He remained in that role until 1910.[1][4]
His chief political rival was Joe Shannon. Pendergast's faction was called the "goats" because it wanted to climb out of the river bottoms, but Shannon's faction was the "rabbits" because its power base was in the river bottom.[citation needed]
Personal life
Pendergast married Mary Kline in 1886. She died in 1905.[1]
Pendergast died on November 10, 1911, at the home of his sister in Kansas City.[1] He was buried at Mount Saint Mary's Cemetery in Kansas City.[5]
Legacy
After Pendergast's death, a statue of him was placed in Mulkey Square overlooking the West Bottoms. It is now in Case Park on Quality Hill.[citation needed]
References
- ^ a b c d e f "James Pendergast is Dead". Kansas City Times. November 11, 1911. p. 1. Retrieved October 13, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b Political History of Jackson County. Marshall & Morrison. 1902. p. 183. Retrieved September 6, 2024 – via Archive.org.
- ^ Larsen, Lawrence H.; Hulston, Nancy J. (July 5, 2013). Pendergast!. University of Missouri Press. ISBN 978-0-8262-6099-4.
- ^ a b c Brown, A. Theodore; Dorsett, Lyle W. (1978). K.C.: A History of Kansas City, Missouri. p. 108–112. Retrieved September 6, 2024 – via Archive.org.
- ^ "The Pendergast Pallbearers". The Kansas City Star. November 12, 1911. p. 14A. Retrieved October 13, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
External links
- James Pendergast at Find a Grave
- James Pendergast in the News (Kansas City Journal)
- the Climax saloon, and rise to power
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