Leawood () is a city in Johnson County, Kansas, United States,
History
19th century
After the 1803 Louisiana Purchase, the area east of present-day Leawood opened for settlement. The Santa Fe Trail which ran through the area also contributed to the development of the area. The Border Ruffian War (1855–1857), part of a larger conflict known as Bleeding Kansas, damaged the local economy as pro-slavery activists from the slave state of Missouri attacked settlers, traders, and those traveling along the Santa Fe Trail. Conditions improved with the founding of Oxford, Kansas, the predecessor of Leawood. The township was destroyed by the American Civil War, and there was little left by 1865.
Leawood was named for Oscar G. Lee, the original land owner of the town site.
20th century
Modern Leawood was established in the 1920s, after Oscar G. Lee, a retired police chief from Oklahoma, moved to Johnson County. He supervised the construction of Lee Boulevard for public use.
In 1948, a housing development by the Kroh Brothers led to the incorporation as a city. On November 30, 1948, Leawood became a city of the third class with a population of less than 2,000. By 1959, it had become a city of the second class. , it is a city of the first class with approximately 32,800 residents.
Covenants
The developers of Leawood, the Kroh Brothers (Clifford E. Kroh Jr., and brother John A. Kroh Sr.) and their father Clifford E. Kroh Sr., emulated Kansas City urban planner and real estate developer J. C. Nichols, if not competed and attempted to eclipse him. Nichols developed neighborhoods defined by "large lots, curvilinear streets, uniform architecture, extensive deed restrictions, and homes associations," according to "Race, Real Estate, And Uneven Development; The Kansas City Experience, 1900–2000" by Kevin Fox Gotham.
The Kroh Brothers for years used restrictive covenants for homeowners similar to those developed by J. C. Nichols, which have come under increasing scrutiny since the George Floyd Protests of 2020.
For example, on April 4, 1945, John A. Kroh Sr., filed the following language for a subdivision called Leawood Estates: "None of said lots or portions of lots shall ever be sold, conveyed, transferred, devised, leased or rented to or used, owned or occupied by any person of Negro blood or by any person who is more than one-fourth of the Semitic race, blood, origin, or extraction, including without limitation in said designation, Armenians, Jews, Hebrews, Turks, Persians, Syrians, and Arabians, excluding, however, from the application of this paragraph partial occupancy by bona fide domestic servants employed thereon."
The Kroh Brothers diversified into shopping malls and office buildings, and developed the original Ward Parkway Shopping Center. Their properties stretched across the country, with more than 100 developments in 13 states. The firm failed in a high-profile bankruptcy in 1987. Clifford Kroh's grandsons, John A. Kroh Jr. and George P. Kroh, both served time in prison for bank fraud and conspiracy.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water.
The city is over north to south and about east to west. Its eastern border is with Kansas City, Missouri on the Kansas-Missouri state line, which includes eight different Kansas City neighborhoods. On its north and northwest, Leawood is bordered by Prairie Village, which is a similarly small suburb community. Its remaining western and southern boundaries is shared with Overland Park.
The city is split into four wards. and most of the city's neighborhoods have HOAs. The city's land area is approximately 75% developed and growth is expected to continue in the future.