Feature 269: 416 West Maple Avenue (in 2011)

Classification: Contributing.
Historic Name: Soldiers' and Sailors' Memorial Building; World War I Memorial. Building - Main Building.
Architectural Style: Classical Revival.
Construction Date: 1925.
Period 3 of Harry S Truman's Life: Developing Political Skills and Associations, 1920-1933.
Tax Identification: 26-230-09-12.
Legal Description: Old Town, west 50 feet of lot 35 and all of lots 36 and 37.
Description: Contributing two-story brick (set in Flemish bond on facade) civic building; cross-shape plan; flat steel truss roof with high parapet; brick exterior with brick pilasters and Indiana limestone decorative details; flat cement stringcourse forms a pediment that is centered on the south and west walls; multi-pane double-hung sash windows, seven bays wide on south facade, with brick voussoirs and Indiana limestone keystones above; ocular and shield-shaped details as well as swags of draperies, decorate the pediments; stairs with wrought iron balustrade lead to three double-leaf doors surmounted by broken pediments on the south facade and flat entablatures on the west wall; brick foundation with a raised basement. Located on the northeast corner of West Maple Avenue and North Pleasant Street on a high terraced parcel, with sidewalks along the west and south property lines; Methodist Church to the east on same block; Palmer Junior High School to the west across Pleasant Street; Presbyterian Church to the southwest, diagonally across the street.
• Alterations: In 2001-2002, the rear north wall (devoid of architectural detail) was removed and an addition was built to enlarge the performance stage, the exterior was repaired and aluminum windows matching the historic ones were installed, all utility systems were updated, a new entrance lobby and elevator were added to the northwest corner, new floor constructed in gym, new seats resembling the historic ones were installed in the auditorium, and the kitchen was upgraded.
• Noncontributing Veterans Memorial wall [Feature 270] was installed in recent years at the east side of the south wall that faces Maple Avenue. The wall is made of polished granite and is inscribed with the names of local individuals who lost their lives in the course of their military service.
History/Significance: On July 4, 1926, Harry S Truman, a World War I veteran, [former] county judge for eastern Jackson County, and chairman of the dedication committee, oversaw the dedication of the Soldiers' and Sailors' Memorial Building. The building served as Harry and Bess Truman's polling place for more than thirty years, and notably in the 1948 presidential election, which Truman won. The Memorial Hall was also the only place that Truman ever held a press conference (on July 27, 1945) in Independence. Truman initiated a war bond sale at the building during World War II, and he dedicated a liberty bell, given by a French city, there, which was later moved to the Truman Presidential Museum and Library. A large quantity of Truman's presidential papers was stored in the Memorial Building between 1954, after Truman returned to civilian life, and 1957, when the Truman Presidential Museum and Library was completed.
The building, intended to be a center of civic life in the community, was to be used for public meetings of all kinds and athletic events. It would also serve as the headquarters for the American Legion, of which Truman was a member, the Independence Chamber of Commerce, and other civic organizations. The Daughters of the American Revolution, the United Daughters of the Confederacy, and other city clubs contributed special features to the building. City government leaders selected Independence architect Alonzo H. Gentry to design the building. Interior spaces included a gymnasium-theatre, meeting and projection rooms, room for the heating system, and even a "janitor's suite," according to the May 28, 1925, issue of the "Independence Examiner." On June 25, 1925, M.T. Colgan was awarded the contract to construct the building for around $105,000. Grading began ten days later, under the supervision of H.R. Foley. On August 16th, the cornerstone was laid. The Randall family, long-time Independence masonry contractors (William R. and Adrian), reportedly completed the brickwork on the building.
Over the years, the building served as a gathering place for hundreds of community events, including fraternal and charitable club meetings, concerts and sports events, political and cultural gatherings, and funeral services for notable Independence civic leaders. In the late twentieth century, the building fell into disrepair. In 2001-2002, the Independence Parks and Recreation Department, the property owner, restored, enlarged, and updated the building.