 The street name derives from the family of pioneer Seth E. Ward who owned property on both sides of the parkway and whose house at 1032 West 55th St. is on the National Register of Historic Places.Ward Parkway was created as part of developer J.C. Nichols's overall plans for the Country Club District.Desiring a boulevard that would exceed the aesthetic value of all other streets in Kansas City, Nichols hired landscape architect George Kessler, who had designed several other boulevards throughout Kansas City, Missouri.