In the 1950s and ‘60s, Kansas City was a heavily segregated town. African-Americans were limited even in which city facilities they could use. For instance, black citizens were permitted to have picnics at just one spot in the city’s parks system: at Shelter No. 5 in Swope Park, widely known as “Watermelon Hill.”
Local historian Joelouis Mattox discusses this era in the city’s racial past.