Kansas City’s rich architectural heritage is celebrated in architectural historian Michael C. Kathrens’ new book, Kansas City Houses 1885-1938. As Kansas City transitioned from a rough-and-tumble boom town to a fashionable city, lumber barons, oilmen, and businessmen built mansions fit for their new-found fortunes. Forty superb residences, including some long gone and some still standing, are documented with archival photos and newly commissioned photographs, drawings, and floor plans. Most of the homes were done in revival and Beaux Arts styles. The book includes William Rockhill Nelson’s Oak Hall, which was built where the Nelson-Atkins Museum stands today; Corinthian Hall, the home of minerals magnate August Meyer, now the home of the Kansas City Museum; and several houses by Mary Rockwell Hook, one of the first women to study at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris. It’s a treat for architectural scholars and enthusiasts alike. The book can be pre-ordered at kansascityhouses.org.