Kansas City Workhouse

We were on our way to find some BBQ in Kansas City, Missouri, when we caught sight of what appeared to be a castle at 21st and Vine. We veered off to have a look.
As luck would have it, it was a beautiful specimen, and was for sale! I just know my husband is working on acquiring the building for his queen. Or, more likely, so that he can host haunted houses there.
The building was built as a workhouse, or prison, in the late 1800s. Prisoners built the building using stone from a nearby quarry.
From about 1918-1970 the impressive stone structure was used as city office space, after which it was abandoned.
It looks like vandals have had their way with it in recent years, but the structure still looks good.

Kansas City Workhouse (Brant’s Castle)
2001 Vine Street
Kansas City, MO 64108

Dwight, Illinois

Dwight, Illinois hosts an original stretch of Route 66, and several unique historic finds.

The Dwight railroad depot, a beautiful structure built by the Chicago and Alton Railroad in 1891 in the Romanesque style to a design by architect Henry Ives Cobb. The station has been on the National Register of Historic Places since December 1982.
This station had all of the style and grace of some of the train stations we visited in Germany in 2006.
The depot still serves Amtrak passenger traffic between Chicago and St. Louis via the Lincoln Service trains. Travel time to downtown Chicago is about 1 1/2 hours.

Also in Dwight is one of only three banks designed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright, one of my favorite architects.
This bank, called the Frank L. Smith Bank, also known as the First National Bank of Dwight, was constructed in 1905 and opened in 1906. The design of the bank building is quite simple, unlike the classical influences that were commonly used at the time.
From the outside, the bank did not scream Frank Lloyd Wright to me, but it was closed and we were unable to check out the inside on this visit. I would like to have a look at the Roman brick fireplace.

We'll be back to Dwight to check out some more of the Route 66 sites in town, including some of the historic gas stations.

Dwight Railroad Depot
119 W. Main Street
Dwight, IL 60420

First National Bank of Dwight
122 W. Main Street
Dwight, IL 60420