The Bunting & McLucas Houses at 57th Street, 57th Street Terrace, & Ward Parkway.
At one point in his career, Walter McLucas took a job as president of a Detroit bank, but then returned to Kansas City to chair the board at Commerce Trust in the mid-1920s. Having sold the house at 57th Street Terrace on leaving, he wanted to live in the same neighborhood upon returning to the area. Thus, he bought the house directly across the street which is sited on a pie-shaped lot with its point toward the intersection of 57th Street, 57th Street Terrace and Ward Parkway. As can be seen, this is a narrow house with very little exposure to the Parkway, and somewhat separated physically from it.

The fact that McLucas bought very near his first house and very near to Ward Parkway, but not facing the thoroughfare in either case speaks to the changing role of the roadway as a site for houses. As early as the World War I era, it was important to have an address close to Ward Parkway, but preferable not to have an actual Ward Parkway address because of the growing public trafficway nature of the boulevard.

© WHMC-KC, University of Missouri