1950s All-Electric House

In 1954, roughly 60,000 people showed up to tour the suburban home of the future. Now a centerpiece of the Johnson County Museum’s “Becoming Johnson County” exhibit, the 1950s All-Electric House was built by Kansas City Power & Light in 1953 to promote what electricity could do for the modern family.

Fully equipped with cutting-edge conveniences, the home featured a remote control-operated lighting system and living room curtains to a painting that slid to the side, revealing the tucked-away television set. An electric heat pump to heat and cool the house, would have been a stand-out of the era.

Signature colors and artifacts of the era appear throughout the house, from the salmon-pink countertops and a General Electric refrigerator with the robin-egg blue interior, to metal nursery toys and nesting Pyrex bowls. Curators change the interior decor to coincide with each season.