Cape Girardeau History and Photos

April 7, 2014April 7, 2014

Preservation Homework: Parks and Buildings

This is a continuation of the links I’m posting to help students in a SEMO Historical Preservation class. They’ve been given a list of Cape landmarks to research. It turns out I’ve written about most of them, so I’m going to give them a some background information about some of the parks and random buildings they’re looking for. I posted churches and cemeteries yesterday.

I’m doing a presentation to the class on April 8 where I will tell the students what I do and why I do it. After that, I’ll talk about how I do it. I hope I can get across there is no better way to find out things than to knock on doors and talk with people like I’m doing with The Last Generation project. I won’t swear that I get all the facts right, but you readers do a good job of setting me straight when I’ve miss the mark.

Cape Rock Overlook Park

Old Bridge Overlook Park

Cape Girardeau City Hall

Indian Park

Louis Lorimier and his Indian cohorts, battling the Americans, captured Daniel Boone.

Houck Field House

KFVS TV Studio/Tower on Broadway

This story has lots of links about KFVS

Fort D Park

Cape Girardeau Regional Airport

April 6, 2014May 1, 2014

Preservation Homework: Churches & Cemeteries

Dr. Katy Beebe invited me to speak to her historical preservation class at Southeast Missouri State University last year. Dr. Lily Santora asked if I would come back April 8 to meet with her class.

Dr. Beebe’s class was researching Main Street, so I put together a list of the stories I had done about downtown. Dr. Santora gave her class a wide variety of local landmarks. I’ll spend the next couple of days helping her students by posting links to stories I’ve done about their topics. I’m going to concentrate on churches and cemeteries today. (Maybe I can make up for all those assignments I didn’t turn in when I was a student.)

[Hint to students: don’t just read what I’ve written. The comments are generally more interesting than my copy. Feel free to post questions and comments of your own. My readers are a friendly group who love to share Cape’s history. Click on the photos to make them larger.]

First Presbyterian Church

St. Mary’s Cathedral

Main Street Improvements

After all the stories I did about the building at 101 North Main Street being condemned and looking like the front wall could come down at any minute, I never thought it would ever be fixed up and occupied again.

Here’s what it looked like on April 2, 2014. The downstairs is occupied by the “prom superstore.” (Click on the photo to make it large enough to pick out your prom dress.)

The building had an interesting history with all kinds of local ties.
Even the alley behind the building was worth a story.
It was showing signs of improvement last August.

The Hecht’s Building

There was some work going on in front of the old Hecht’s building, but I don’t think it’s going to bring back “the grand lady of fashion” it had been for 86 years, making it the second oldest business on Main Street when it closed in 2004.

Here is a story and photos from 2010, including the topless ladies in the ceiling of the lobby.
We even found out where “Poof” ended up.

April 4, 2014

915 Broadway

Mother and I did a quick loop around Cape on Wednesday. I was surprised at how many changes had occurred since I was here last fall. The economy must be picking up because there we spotted construction trucks parked all around town.

This small building at 915 Broadway, west of Pacific and next door to Burrito-Ville, was one being worked over. I thought the orange stripe around it might have indicated that it was a Gulf station at one time. Click on the photos to make them larger.

Brennecke’s 66 Service

A 2011 Fred Lynch blog shows the station when it was the Brennecke’s 66 Service. Like in this photo, the Medical Arts Building is shown in the background.

Building had many owners

The 915 address was mentioned is several business and crime reports over the years.

A 2004 review of 2003 business stories noted that the Mr. Tire opened at that address on September 29, 2003. It was next to the Dairy Queen and was owned by David McCormick.
In 1988, Orville and Jay Grim, a father-son team opened the Phillips 66 Service Station and Garage at 915 Broadway.
American Motors appeared frequently in The Missourian’s police report column: February 22, 2013, a theft from American Motors; October 12, 2012, currency was reported stolen; May 2, 2013, two suspects were charged with tampering with a vehicle and trespassing; January 4, 2006, and a license plate was reported stolen May 13, 2011.
Renaissance Auto reported a CD player stolen, a vehicle fender damaged and damaged vehicle doors on January 4, 2006.