All photos are courtesy of Kansas City Museum

Kansas City’s Historic Garment District Museum (801 Broadway Blvd) opened its doors for the very last time at 11 a.m., Aug. 30. 

Following a recent ‘for sale’ notice from the Garment District Museum’s building owner, the Museum — along with additional building tenants — were advised to vacate storefronts by the end of this year, according to Lisa Shockley — Kansas City Museum curator of collections. 

“We’re not closing because we want to,” Shockley said in an interview, Friday. “It was nice having any space within the Garment District; It’s sad to be losing that.” 

A city-center, which saw the beginning of fashion design and clothing creation in the wake of World War I America, obtained the title of “Garment District.” 

While many cities around the U.S. began to flourish in needlework around the turn of the 20th Century — including Los Angeles, Chicago and Philadelphia, among others — Kansas City, Mo. was no exception. Spanning from Sixth to 11th streets — with the inclusion of Washington and Wyandotte — Kansas City possessed one of the largest Garment Districts in the country, falling second only to New York City. 

All photos are courtesy of Kansas City Museum

These garment districts remained fashion hubs within respective cities for decades. However, as clothing trends began to shift into the modern age and storefronts saw an influx of overseas companies, the demand for pattern makers, tailors and seamstresses dwindled. 

After 60 years, a once fashion-production heavy downtown saw its end in the early 1980s.

However, in efforts to preserve the history and memorabilia from this distinctive period, in 2002 two former Garment District artisans created “The Historic Garment District Museum.” 

Ann Brownfield and Harvey Fried owned and operated their collection of over 320 items — ranging from clothing to sewing machines and company records — for a little over a decade, prior to their retirement and sale of The Historic Garment District Museum to the Kansas City Museum in 2015, Shockley said. 

All photos are courtesy of Kansas City Museum

The Kansas City Museum remained dedicated to not only preserving the legacy of the Garment District but also that of Ann and Harvey. 

“I can’t say how much we appreciate the history they did,” Shockley said. In fact, she mentioned the museum plans to change the Garment District — and its collection’s — name to include Ann and Harvey’s names in commemoration of their continuous dedication toward historic fashion conservation.

While the Garment District Museum has closed in its former operating location, Shockley stated the museum collection in its entirety belongs to the Kansas City Museum and will remain in its possession. 

All photos are courtesy of Kansas City Museum

Additionally, the Kansas City Museum hopes to include a Garment District gallery display within the coming years to continue exhibiting this collection and the legacy of Ann and Harvey. 

In the meantime, Shockley — along with David Trowbridge of University of Missouri-Kansas City — has created a free, immersive, virtual tour of the Garment District Museum. 

Available at https://theclio.com/entry/156834, the public is invited to continue viewing the Garment District Museum through this virtual tour succeeding its physical closing.