Introducing Bernard Corrigan
Bernard Corrigan had a large family. Between two wives, he fathered 18 children!
The imposing limestone mansion at 55th Street and Ward Parkway is named for one of the leading citizens of his day: contractor, streetcar magnate, and real estate speculator, Bernard Corrigan.
Born in Québec in 1847, Corrigan and several of his brothers moved to Kansas City in 1858. They eventually purchased seven of the eight existing streetcars in Kansas City, establishing a monopoly – and sparking a very public battle with William Rockhill Nelson that played out in the pages of his recently founded newspaper, the Kansas City Star.
Besides the streetcars, Corrigan completed several construction projects, including a large viaduct in Dallas, Texas, and a hydroelectric dam near Austin. He became extremely wealthy from his varied business interests and even became an owner of the largest hotel in Kansas City at the time, the Hotel Baltimore, where the City Center Square office tower sits now.
The Bernard Corrigan House
Naturally, an impressive and wealthy man as Corrigan needed an equally impressive place to call home. The large corner lot he purchased is a short distance from the Country Club Plaza and the former golf course for the original Kansas City Country Club, now Loose Park.
The Bernard Corrigan House in Kansas City, MO
Corrigan hired architect Louis S. Curtiss to design his 20 room home. Curtiss was one of the most prominent local architects of the time, designing dozens of buildings, including the Boley Clothing Company Building, the Argyle Building, Mineral Hall (now part of the Kansas City Art Institute), and the Standard Theater, now known as the Folly. Many of his buildings are listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and Bernard Corrigan’s house was added in 1978.
Corrigan’s own construction company took on the project in 1912 and completed it in just one year. Sadly, Bernard Corrigan passed away just a few months before the completion of his new home in 1913, and his family never lived there. His widow sold the house to Patrick J. White in 1914 for $101,370.86—$3,267,234.02 in today’s money! Not long after, White sold it to Joseph J. Heim, owner of the Heim Brewery in the East Bottoms.
The home features three stories and a finished basement. The gray limestone on the façade was mined in Carthage, Missouri, and it was one of the first houses in the city to utilize reinforced concrete. Its striking Prairie School of design aesthetic is played out in wide eaves and horizontal lines, but a truly unique touch is the incorporation of Art Nouveau elements, primarily stunning stained glass windows and intricate stone detailing throughout the interior. The exterior is accented on all sides by several terraces and balconies.
Though Bernard Corrigan never got the chance to live in his stately home, the architectural legacy he established endures, reflecting the ambition of its original owner, the brilliance of its designer, and Kansas City’s rich past.
