James Francis Pendergast (January 27, 1856 – November 10, 1911) was a Democratic politician and the first Big City Boss of

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City (abbreviated KC or KCMO) is the largest city in Missouri by population and area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 508,090 in 2020, making it the 36th most-populous city in the United States. It is the central ...

. He was the elder brother of

Thomas J. Pendergast Thomas Joseph Pendergast (July 22, 1872 – January 26, 1945), also known as T. J. Pendergast, was an American political boss who controlled Kansas City and Jackson County, Missouri, from 1925 to 1939. Pendergast only briefly held elected ...

and Michael J. Pendergast.

Early life

Pendergast was born on January 27, 1856, in

Gallipolis, Ohio Gallipolis ( ) is a chartered village in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Gallia County. The municipality is located in Southeast Ohio along the Ohio River about 55 miles southeast of Chillicothe and 44 miles northwest of Charlesto ...

to Michael and Mary Pendergast. His family moved to

St. Joseph, Missouri St. Joseph is a city in and the county seat of Buchanan County, Missouri. Small parts of St. Joseph extend into Andrew County. Located on the Missouri River, it is the principal city of the St. Joseph Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includ ...

in 1859. He was educated at the public schools there. In 1876, Pendergast moved to Kansas City in 1876. Pendergast worked in packing houses and then worked at the Jarboe Foundry. After winning a horse race on a long shot, "Climax," he opened a saloon named after the horse in the

West Bottoms The West Bottoms is an industrial area immediately to the west of downtown Kansas City, Missouri. Located in Kansas City, Missouri and Kansas City, Kansas it sits at the confluence of the Missouri River and the Kansas River. The area is one ...

. In 1880, he opened a boarding house at 1320-1322 St. Louis Avenue in Kansas City called the old American House. He ran the boarding house for about 31 years.

Career

In 1884, he was elected as a delegate to represent the sixth ward in the Democratic City Convention. In 1887, he became the Democratic committeeman from the first ward. He was elected

alderman An alderman is a member of a Municipal government, municipal assembly or council in many Jurisdiction, jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council membe ...

in 1892. Known as "Alderman Jim" and "Big Jim," he achieved political power by doing favors. He remained in that role until 1910. His chief political rival was Joe Shannon. Pendergast's faction was called the "goats" because it wanted to climb out of the river bottoms, but Shannon's faction was the "rabbits" because its power base was in the river bottom.

Personal life

Pendergast married Mary Kline in 1886. She died in 1905. Pendergast died on November 10, 1911, at the home of his sister in Kansas City. He was buried at Mount Saint Mary's Cemetery in Kansas City.

Legacy

After Pendergast's death, a statue of him was placed in Mulkey Square overlooking the

. It is now in Case Park on Quality Hill.

References

James Francis Pendergast Biography at Kansas City Public Library

External links

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1856 births 1911 deaths People from Gallipolis, Ohio Missouri Democrats Missouri city council members 19th-century American politicians 20th-century American politicians {{Missouri-politician-stub