Cape Girardeau History and Photos
News photos that have grown whiskers and have become history
Wife Lila is gradually making more room in the West Palm Beach house by shipping stuff up to me in Cape (where it originally came from). Today’s box contained the 1960 Trinity Lutheran School Yearbook.
I was a nerdy 7th grader in those days, a look I managed to carry with me throughout life.
I won’t spend a lot of time on descriptions. Stroll through the gallery by clicking any image to make it larger, then use your arrow keys to move around.
The country’s pandemic lockdown kept me out of Florida for almost two years. When I returned to Missouri, I carried a van loaded with old film, prints, clips and other journalistic detritus.
Along with my stuff, Wife Lila packed a box of Perry family photos for Sister Marty. A special selection of photos will go to Brother John for his “military trunk.”
This short newspaper brief tells about all I know right now about Lila’s Uncle Louis R. Perry, who served in the Navy during World War II and the Korean War. He was awarded the Bronze Star for meritorious service during the Korean campaign.
You can see Louis grow up from a somewhat skinny young man to a mature sailor. Click on any photo to make it larger, then use the arrow keys to move around.
On Sept. 13, 1950, The Rochester provided support for the troops landing on Inchon. On Sept. 17, two Korean aircraft that were mistakenly thought to be friendly, dropped four bombs on the ship. Three of them missed, and the fourth smashed the ship’s crane, but failed to detonate.
There were no American casualties, but the crew painted a Purple Heart on the crane.
The vessel was refitted several times during her life, but she was eventually scrapped in 1974.
I made this photo at a going-away party when Wyatt Perry, John and Dee’s son, was shipping out for the marines.
Left to right: Laurie Perry Everett, Drew Perry, Wyatt Perry, John F. Perry, Rocky Everett.
John Perry was Navy and served in Vietnam. Drew just finished up his enlistment in the Marines.
Laurie Perry Everett, joined the Army, where the diminutive blonde became a Military Police officer. She was stationed in Kitzingen, Germany, but she either visited or was deployed in France, Spain, Italy, the Czech Republic, Romania, Israel, Bosnia, Croatia, Greece and Switzerland, among others.
One of her jobs was processing new troops, explaining the local customs and making them aware of what they needed to know. One soldier, Rocky Everett, commented to his buddy, “I’m going to date that girl one day.”
With Mother’s Birthday Season coming up, it was appropriate that I was standing on a step ladder looking at the very back of a closet in the corner bedroom.
I didn’t find what I was looking for, but I ran across this box of recipes she had collected. Unlike her green metal file box with handwritten food ideas I started scanning a few years back (and got distracted before finishing it), most of these were stories clipped from magazines.
I mentioned once that I have a craving for Braunschweiger about twice a year. I pull out the Ritz crackers, some sour cream and, maybe, some cheese, and eat enough that I belch it for the rest of the week.
If you have a special occasion coming up, you should whip up some Braunschweiger Balls to impress all your friends. It will be a dish that will be talked about for a long, long time. Maybe not in your presence, though.
The Ellis Family Favorite Recipes
Back in the days before you could share your cooking concoctions electronically, families, clubs, churches and others would collect and publish cook books.
This one must have been printed in the early 1990s, because many of the illustrations are dated 1992.
It all started in the spring of 1865….
I probably wouldn’t have looked twice at the book if I hadn’t seen this list of family members. I recognize names I heard (or overheard) Mother talking about. Some of them were her closest friends.
Family members would come together at the old Flatwoods Church the first Sunday of each June. I don’t think I ever heard of the church, but I’d love to see if it’s still standing.
Just before pushing the Publish button, I did a little more checking. It looks like Flatwoods is near Glenallen in Bollinger County. As soon as the mosquitoes and ticks take their seasonal nap, I might poke around a bit.
I’d love to spend time looking for good things to cook, but if any Ellis family members would like the book, reach out to me and let’s see what we can work out.
Several years ago, I searched through my archives for what I thought were iconic images that I could turn into post cards. Most of them were taken in Southeast Missouri, but some Illinois and Ohio images managed to sneak in (even one from Washington, D.C.).
Every card has a description on the back. In the interest of full disclosure, a couple of them ended up with the WRONG description, but that’ll only make them more valuable to collectors, like the 1918 “Inverted Jenny” postage stamp that was printed with an airplane upside down.
The post cards are available at
Pastimes Antiques, 45 Main Street, Cape Girardeau, Mo., 63701; Phone 573-332-8882. They are two dollars each or three for $5 in person. They are able to take credit card phone orders and mail as many as will fit in an envelope for an additional $5 for shipping and handling.
If anyone is interested in larger prints of any of the photos, send me an email and we can work out the details.
Smelterville: ‘A Community of Love’
My Smelterville book is available from three local places.
Annie Laurie’s Antique Store, 536 Broadway Street, Cape Girardeau, Mo., 63701; Phone 573-339-1301, $25 in person.
Pastimes Antiques, 45 Main Street, Cape Girardeau, Mo., 63701; Phone 573-332-8882. $25 in person. They are able to take credit card phone orders and mail them for $35, which includes shipping and handling.Gallery of post cards
I can’t guarantee that all of them are still available, but scroll through the gallery to see what you might like. Clicking on an image will make it larger, then you can use the arrow keys to navigate.
For the record, all of the images are copyrighted and may not be reproduced without express written permission. You are encouraged to share a link to this post, but not individual photos.
