Iowa state bystander. [volume] (Des Moines, Iowa) 1894-1916, 1912-12-20
A SURVEY OF THE
KANSAS CITY NEGRO!
Mr.. A. E. Martin Presents Some In
teresting Facts and History
in The Kansas City Star.

in The Kansas City Star.
A. E. Martin, teacher OF history
and civics at the Westpart High
School, spent three months, work.
ing from six to eight hours a day,
collecting data regarding the Ne
groes of Kansas City, and after he
had collected the data he spent one
month, working eight hours day,
in writing it, and the result is thirty
thousand words and more facts
about the Negro in Kansas City
than ever were gathered together
before. In collecting his data Mr..
Martin visited hundreds of Negro
homes and talked with thousands OF
Negroes. After he had written
what he had found out, he used the
article for thesis for a masters de-
gree at William Jewell College at
Liberty Mo-, and he received the
degree. The material for the study
was collected in January, February
and March of this year.
Mr.. Martin found that the white
population of Kansas City is "a
$50, and the Negro population %,
566, and that OF forty thousand pro-
perty owners, eight hundred are
Negroes. He found that real prop
srty owned by whites was assessed
in 1911 ct $123,037,7S0, and that
property owned by Negroes was as
sessed at 81 100000. Personal prop
erty owned by whites was assessed
at $7,942,s94, and personal prop
erty owned by Negroes at one-halt
million dollars. The white per capt.
ia realty wealth is $543.69, and the
Negro $59.4O. Fifty Negroes own
property valued at above $4,000,
one hundred between $4,000 and
$4,000; two hundred between 81, 900
and $4,000 and $50 between
$4,000 and 1900. The compara-
tive figures show that the Kansas
City Negro is worth $2S.O1 more
than the average United State Ne
gro.
Only 1000 Paid Taxes.
Mr.. Martin found that about half
of the Negro property of Kansas
City is in the possession Of fifty
persons, that of this half, one
fourth is in the possession of eight
persons land further, that Of this
S237,5OO more than one-half, or
$4,000, is owned by one man, thus
shrowing that the wealth of the Ne
gro, as we'll as that Of the white
man, is concentrated in the hands OF
a few men. Mr.. Martin found that
only about two thousand of the sew
en- thousand Negro men over "a
years of age in Kansas City paid
taxes, either personal or real, dur
ing 1911, so that not more than
one Negro man out of every three
pays any form of taxes.
Mr.. Martin says:
The city takes little interest in
any of the Negro districts except to
have them we'll patrolled by police
men. The streets and walks are
poorly Kept, and no provisions what
ever is made for parks, Fairgrounds
or public baths. Nevertheless the
Negro takes great interest in his
yard and house.
Mr.. Martin made house to
house canvass among one hundred
and ninety-seven Negro property
owners and obtained the following
facts:
The incomes given in the table
represent the incomes of both hus'
band and wife.
The figures show that seventy out
of 1877 wives work. The majority are
laundresses.
Mr.. Martin deduces that lack OF
religion is conducive to Negro pow
erty. He found that ninety per cent
of the property owners were church
members, and that the Negro
churches of the city own about
100000 worth of property, OF
which the debt does not exceed
more Than $4,000.
What the Negro Does.
Of the 1856 Negroes in the en-
tire city about 1000 live north O.
Eighth street; 5000 on the "Bow
ery," the Negro district between
Troost and Woodland and Sixteenth
and Twentieth streets, and abou
1000 in the West Bottoms. Les
than one per cent of these 10000 per
sons own real estate.
The 1856 Negroes of Kansa!
City he found classified as follows:
Negro children, IA and UNDER. $500
Men. ID to 60. ..-... 8,15(
Women. ID to 60. ... 5000
Negroes, male and female,
over 60 Observation-Disclosures. l,zot
A careful investigation Of the
employment of the more than 5000
Negroes in Kansas city between the
ages of ID and 60 resulted in the
following classifcations:
BARRIERS Observation-Disclosures. Eau
Dentists Observation-Disclosures.
Doctors OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES. "a
Janitors Observation-Disclosures. 55O
Laborers Observation-Disclosures"
Lawyers OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES q