Pioneer Mothers Memorial

With a statute depicting a family moving west, this memorial highlights the important role of women on the frontier.  The Pioneer Mothers Memorial, located in Penn Valley Park, remembers the legacy of female pioneers and is a tribute to their bravery.  In 1927, thousands of Kansas City residents came to the park to watch the unveiling of the statue.  Howard Vanderslice, a Kansas City businessman, gave this memorial to the people of Kansas City and is represented in the statue as the baby being carried into the Kansas Territory.  The inscription reads, “To commemorate the Pioneer Mother who with unfaltering trust in God suffered the hardship of the unknown west to prepare for us a homeland of peace and plenty.”