I do not think this has been posted before, but it is one of my favorite capsule histories of industrial development around Kansas City. It was presented by William S. Worley in 1993 as part of the "Midcontinent Perspectives" lecture series by the Midwest Research Institute. Transcripts for most of the talks are online. Below is the link to Mr. Worley's presentation. http://www.umkc.edu/WHMCKC/PUBLICATIONS/MCP/MCPPDF/Worley-1-28-93.pdf The whole series can be found at this link. These are fascinating reads beyond railroading, as some late 1970s and early 1980s lectures attempt to make some predictions for 2001 and beyond. There are a couple of lectures from Irvine Hockaday of the Kansas City Southern (KCS) Railroad. While these are not railroad specific, many of these lectures illustrate events and people that shaped and often lent their name to locations in the Kansas City area. There is a lecture on the 1951 Kaw River flood by Danial Serda. http://www.umkc.edu/whmckc/publications/MCP/MCPLecturer.htm Ted Ferkenhoff Flagstaff, AZ
Updated link to Mr. Worley's presentation. Please see https://shsmo.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/kansas-city/mcp/Worley-1-28-93.pdf Hope this helps. Thanks! Mark