The 18th & Vine historic district was the center for black culture and life in Kansas City from the late 1800s-1960s.It is against this backdrop that the NLBM was conceived as a museum to tell the complete story of Negro Leagues Baseball, from the average players to the superstars.  It has welcomed several thousand visitors and dignitaries since 1990, including Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, General (Ret.) Colin Powell, Jesse Jackson,  Walter Cronkite, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Barry Bonds,  and many, many others..