Press Release: October 21, 2010

National Archives at Kansas City

National Archives to host panel discussion with the authors of Elmwood Cemetery: Stories of Kansas City

For More Information Contact:
Kimberlee Ried, 816-268-8072

Kansas City, (MO)…The National Archives at Kansas City will host an author panel discussion on Elmwood Cemetery: Stories of Kansas City on Thursday, November 4 at 6:30 p.m. Authors will include Anne Canfield, Edward Matheny, III., Ann McFerrin, Heather Paxton, Howard Sachs and Tom Taylor. The authors will be available to sign copies of the book after the discussion. A 6:00 p.m. reception will precede the event.

Authors of this new book will speak about their research and the unique facets of Elmwood Cemetery, including the fact that it was never a segregated cemetery. Listed on the National Register of Historic places Elmwood Cemetery opened in 1872. Its beautifully landscaped grounds were designed by renowned architect George Kessler, the creator of Kansas City’s famed parks and boulevard system. Elmwood is the final "home" to a variety of politicians, entertainers, lawyers, physicians, architects, engineers, the famous, the infamous, and once-forgotten souls remembered only by their long-lost families and friends.

Copies of Elmwood Cemetery: Stories of Kansas City will be available for purchase at The Kansas City Store at the National Archives. Following the program the authors will be available to sign copies of the book. For more information or to make a reservation for this free event call 816-268-8010 or register by e-mailing: kansascity.educate@nara.gov.

Additional information about the authors

Anne Sutton Canfield edited Elmwood Cemetery: Stories of Kansas City and wrote the chapter on "Academia." A lifelong resident of Kansas City, she is the descendant of several generations of Kansas Citians, including a great-grandfather and great-grandmother, William Joseph and Elizabeth Bussell Smith, who are buried at Elmwood Cemetery. She holds a bachelor's degree in English from Stanford University. In 1976, she wrote Kansas City, A Place in Time, for the Landmarks Commission of Kansas City. She was a reporter for The Kansas City Star and The Sun newspapers in Johnson County, Kansas, and later was senior vice president and partner of Fleishman-Hillard, an international public relations consulting form. Since 2002, she has been vice president of communications at the Kansas City Art Institute.

Edward T. Matheny, III spent 20 years as an attorney, working mostly in the state court system and now works in the local nonprofit arts community. He holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in English literature from Stanford University and Brown University, respectively, and a law degree from the University of Missouri-Kansas City.

Ann McFerrin is a Kansas City native. She graduated from Southwest High School and attended the University of Tulsa, earning a bachelor’s degree in history. She holds a master’s degree in film history from the University of Kansas. Her present position is archivist with Kansas City, Missouri Parks and Recreation, and she previously worked at several area historical facilities.

Heather N. Paxton is a native of Kansas City. She is a graduate of Columbia College in New York and the University of Missouri-Kansas City. She is the senior research editor with The Independent Magazine. She is the author of four books: The Kansas City Country Club Centennial Book; The American Royal: 1899-1999; The Jewel Ball; and Kansas City Board of Trade Celebrating 150 Years 1856-2006. She is the co-author, with Kevin Dunn, of Bishop Spencer Place: A Story of Passion and Faith. Her essay "An Appreciation of the 1933 Museum Building" appeared in The Sixth Surface: Steven Holl Lights The Nelson-Atkins Museum.

Howard F. Sachs, a United States District Judge since 1979, is a native Kansas Citian, as were his parents. He has written occasionally, since the 1960s, about the local Jewish community, and he assisted Frank J. Adler in his nationally-recognized centennial history of Congregation B’nai Jehudah.

Tom Taylor is a retired community relations director for Unity School of Christianity and author of pictorial history book, Images of America: Unity Village. He is a graduate of the University of Missouri School of Journalism, an avid collector of early 1900s postcards, and a member of Kansas City Postcard Club.

The National Archives at Kansas City is one of 13 facilities nationwide where the public has access to Federal archival records. It is home to more than 50,000 cubic feet of historical records dating from the 1820s to the 1990s created or received by nearly 100 Federal agencies. Serving the Central Plains Region, the archives holds records from the states of Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. The facility is located at 400 West Pershing Road, Kansas City, MO 64108. It is open to the public Tuesday - Saturday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. for research, with the exhibits open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information, call 816-268-8000 or visit us online.

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NREKA 11-06

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