Adjacent to Downtown Kansas City, Kansas, Strawberry Hill is set on the bluffs overlooking the confluence of the Kansas and Missouri rivers. The neighborhood originally was established by a variety of immigrants from Croatia, Germany, Ireland, Russia, Serbia, Slovenia, and Sweden. Strawberry Hill continues to be rich in culture and diversity today.
Strawberry Hill was previously known as Splitlog Hill, named after Mathias Splitlog, a wealthy Wyandotte Indian mill owner who purchased the area in 1870 with the aim to build a manor. He later sold parcels of the land to the Catholic parish and to nearby railroad companies. After the land was subdivided in the late 1800s, the neighborhood began to fill out, first with Irish and German immigrants, and then by Croatian and Slovene immigrants from the Primorje-Gorski Kotar and Karlovac areas. Most Strawberry Hill residents at the turn of the 20th Century worked in the meatpacking industry, whose factories and lots were in close proximity to the neighborhood in Kansas City, Kansas’s West Bottoms. Bed Bug Exterminator Kansas City
Between 1900 and 1913, Strawberry Hill saw significant growth with a new wave of Slavs emigrating from Croatia, Slovenia, Serbia, and Russia. During this time, many new churches were founded. St. John the Baptist Catholic Parish was founded in 1900, Holy Family Catholic Parish was founded in 1908 independent from the diocese, and Holy Trinity Russian Orthodox Church was founded on the southern portion of Strawberry Hill, known as Russian Hill. St. George Serbian Orthodox Church was also founded by Serbian immigrants in Strawberry Hill, but the church itself was not located in the neighborhood.
Strawberry Hill has seen increased interest in recent years, due to its proximity to downtown Kansas City, Missouri, and because of its relatively inexpensive housing stock. In 2019, the University of Kansas Health System opened a health care center at the northern end of the neighborhood, adopting “Strawberry Hill” as the name of its campus. Development along Central Ave. and proposed redevelopments along the Kaw River are also pressing more interest toward the neighborhood for both investors and owner-occupants.
Nearby Attractions
- Strawberry Hill Museum & Center is located at 720 N 4th St, Kansas City, KS
- Memorial Hall is located at 600 N 7th St Trfy, Kansas City, KS
- Fairfax Diamond Railroad Crossing is located in Kansas City, KS 66101, United States
Nearby Restaurants and Pubs
- John’s Java and Jazz is located at 2003 N 5th St, Kansas City, KS
- Caribe Blue Restaurant KC is located at 402 N 5th St, Kansas City, KS
- Sammy’s Tavern is located at 222 N 6th St, Kansas City, KS
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