The National WW1 Museum in Kansas City

Kansas City (aka KC) is the largest city in the state of... Missouri. Don't argue, just accept it. It's an interesting city with lots of art, music and food, etc, but sadly the only thing I've had the time to study is the National World War One Museum. I spent appx 90 mins there today. The admission price is a respectable $14, but it does give you admission for two days and if you're an ignorant Yank, you might need two days to digest the enormous collections of this place.

The museum holds thousands upon thousands of artifacts and you can see several movies and clips about (and from) the war. They go into maddening detail about everything from the world situation leading up to the War, via how and when and where it was fought to the aftermath. About half of the exibit is dedicated to the war prior to US entry, and the other half is devoted to the US participation and the effects it had on domestic affairs in America. Mucho interesting stuff here.

All pics here.

The Liberty Monument on top of the museum is one of KC's most famous landmarks.


KC skyline.


The info material describes this sphinx as "gigantic". I don't think that word means what they think it means.


Oh, to live in a time where people were ostracized for not supporting their country in a time of war.


Makes loud kaboom. The Krauts didn't think there was much danger in the US joining the war, as US war material production was already "near capacity". Ah, ye of little faith. Once the unfuckinbelievably huge US economy turned its focus to the war, they soon outproduced the Krauts on every front.


To the upper left you can see "The Red Baron" - Manfred von Richthofen, who downed 80 allied airplanes and suffered the ignominy of having not one, not two, but FIVE hit songs about himself and the fictitious dog Snoopy performed by British band The Royal Guardsmen. Interestingly, the guy to the top right is Hermann Göhring - minus about 100kg from what he looked like in his Nazi days.


This is a part of what was once the world's largest painting, made by some Frenchies. It shows about 5,000 actual people from the War, some political and some military leaders and lots of regular soldiers too. It was bought by some American businessmen who turned the saintly French masterpiece into good old American entertainment before forgetting all about it for years. It was finally rediscovered, partitioned and the better part given to the museum.