City works to save band ‘dome’

Since 1937, the J.J. Richards Band Shell has stood in Lincoln Park. A center of music and culture in Pittsburg, the “Band Dome” has hosted countless concerts and events over its nearly ninety-year lifespan. The Pittsburg City Commission and city staff are working to ensure it remains a place of gathering for years to come.
“The band shell has long been a gathering place filled with memories—whether it was a Fourth of July fair, Balkan Days Festival, or evenings spent listening to live music,” Pittsburg City Manager Daron Hall said. “Our City Commission and staff are committed to finding the best path to restore it.”
Over its lifespan, it had several minor repairs and updates. When given the opportunity to use $250,000 in America Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding, the Pittsburg City Commission approved the bid from Mid Central Contract Services of Pittsburg KS, in the amount of $243,700 for the J.J. Richards Band Shell Restoration Project in Oct. 2025.
Restoration efforts began, but extensive termite damage to the band shell’s arch, a structural support, was found concealed behind a wall. During a regular city commission meeting on Jan. 27, the City Commissioners approved continuing the project under a new scope, to use the remaining balance to complete the work listed in the suggested project scope. Staff will provide another update later to see how to move forward with the band shell’s architecture and funding. In the restoration project so far, a new roof and drainage system have been installed, and the electrical system has been disconnected.
More information to come as staff work with architects and secure additional funding.
About the J.J. Richards Band Shell
Born in Wales in 1878, John Joseph Richards, the band shell’s namesake, moved to Kansas at an early age. His family settled in Peterton, and his love of music became clear very quickly. Even as a child, Richards traveled with various theatre companies playing solo cornet during the summer. He joined the Ringling Brothers Circus in 1911 and remained as their bandmaster for seven years. Richards later directed several other companies and went on to publish more than 300 works as a composer.
Richards was no stranger to Pittsburg when he took on the project of the band shell. He had not only lived in Pittsburg for many years before its construction, but he had been a prominent face in the city’s music scene. He directed the Mirza Shrine Band, owned and operated a local music store, taught music to high schoolers, and directed the municipal band.
Before settling in Pittsburg, he had brought his sound to Frontenac as the director of the “Green Band of Frontenac.” He even performed with the band at the 1904 World’s Fair in St. Louis. He was also a Pittsburg State University Alumnus and a former President of the American Bandmasters Association of the Midwest. Richards was a well-known face in the music industry as a composer and arranger, but he didn’t seem to stray too far from the southeast corner of Kansas.
The band dome itself came at a time of revival for both Pittsburg and the United States as a whole. The post-Great Depression’s “New Deal” initiatives, which focused on creating both jobs and infrastructure through construction projects, helped create around 40 buildings in the Crawford County area alone, and the Pittsburg band “dome” was one of them.