Thomas Hart Benton Home & Studio State Historic Site
About the Thomas Hart Benton Home and Studio State Historic Site
Born in Neosho, Missouri in 1889, Thomas Hart Benton moved back to his home state in 1935 after spending the previous 2 decades in New York City. He had been hired as the head of the painting department at the Kansas City Art Institute, and commissioned to create a large mural for the Missouri State Capitol. In 1939, the Benton family (Tom, wife Rita, 13-yr-old son T.P., dog Jake) purchased a 7800 sq. ft. home in the prestigious Roanoke neighborhood of midtown KC. Their daughter Jessie was born shortly thereafter. A carriage house on the property was soon converted into his art studio. Tom and Rita lived in this home until their deaths in 1975. The house was constructed in 1903, and is still completely filled with the Bentons’ original possessions, and now serves as the Thomas Hart Benton Home & Studio State Historic Site.
Visiting Information
3616 Belleview
Kansas City, MO 64111-3808
816-931-5722
https://www.mostateparks.com/park/thomas-hart-benton-home-and-studio-state-historic-site
Social Links
Hours
Monday: 10:00AM - 4:00PM
Tuesday: Closed
Wednesday: Closed
Thursday: 10:00AM - 4:00PM
Friday: 10:00AM - 4:00PM
Saturday: 11:00AM - 4:00PM
Sunday: Closed
Holidays
Closed on the following days:
New Year’s Day
Easter
Thanksgiving Day
Christmas Day
Resources & Information
Maecenas E Benton, Thomas Hart Benton’s father, wrote the family geneology which has been added to the Historic Site’s website: https://mostateparks.com/page/55154/benton-genealogy
Missouri Untold - Thomas Hart Benton & Walt Disney, Steve Sitton, the site administrator for the Thomas Hart Benton Home and Studio Historic Site, spoke with Missouri Untold about how Thomas Hart Benton and Walt Disney crossed paths: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pst9V-o86Zo
KCUR - For The Man Who Lives In Thomas Hart Benton's Kansas City Home, The Famous Artist Is Just 'Tom'
KCUR interviewed Steve Sitton about what it is like to live in Thomas Hart Benton’s Kansas City home: https://www.kcur.org/arts-life/2017-06-09/for-the-man-who-lives-in-thomas-hart-bentons-kansas-city-home-the-famous-artist-is-just-tom