Mississippi River Archives

January 31, 2012

$2 Million Shawnee Park Center

June 17, 1959, The Missourian reported that citizens and churches were trying to raise $5,500 in operating expenses for the Smelterville Civic Center to be opened in the renovated Hartle building..

Fifty-two years later, a March 16, 2011, story by Scott Moyers said that the $2 million Shawnee Park Center was going to open March 28. Quite a contrast. (Click on any photo to make it larger.)

For years, residents in the central area had the Arena Building for activities; the Osage Center and the water park was built later for the northern part of the city. South Cape, always the municipal step child, was pretty much neglected until the Shawnee Park Center was built at 835 S. West End Blvd, next to the Shawnee Sports Complex..

14,541 square feet

The 14,541 square-foot facility includes:

6,500-square-foot gym.
870-square-foot fitness room.
720-square-foot activity room.
1,540-square-foot meeting room that can be divided into two rooms.
A full-service kitchen.

Stories about old Civic Center

June 17, 1959 – A special committee composed of 70 Cape Girardeau groups planned to raise $5,500 for operating funds for a Smelterville Civic Center. The funds would come from three sources: many churches agreed to contribute 10 cents per communicant to provide start-up money; donations from civic clubs and industrial firms would be solicited, and a giant variety show using local talent would be held.
May 9, 1960 – Report of accomplishments: attendance increased from 15 to 20 children on a Saturday to over 100; demand grew so much that arrangements were made to use the May Greene School gym for Saturday athletic programs; a state-sponsored program taught many women in Smelterville the use of sewing machines; a quilting program had been started; the county medical society gave assistance and an eye clinic was held.
May 11, 1960 – Stephen Limbaugh, Miss Bertie Cleino and Rev. Owen Whitfield were elected to the Civic Center board of directors. Henry Ochs reviewed the center’s accomplishments and said that plans were being made to add washing machines and bathing facilities to the building. Gary Rust talked about expansion plans. Fred Thomas reported on Saturday activities. C.C. McClue announced a fundraising drive for June.
May 10, 1961 – Mississippi River was expected to crest at 39 feet, the fourth highest point since the modern record of 42.4 feet on May 27, 1943. [That compares with 48.49 ft on August 8, 1993.] Some Smelterville families move into the Civic Center when their homes flooded. The rise was unexpected. The river came up 6.9 feet in 48 hours.
Dec. 23, 1966 – SEMO students insured that Christmas presents were available to children at the Civic Center.

Links to old Civic Center photos

I’ve done two stories with photos of old Civic Center activities:

July 1, 1967 Sock Hop
February 22, 1967 Dance practice

January 3, 2012

Consolidated Grain and Barge

When I was stumbling around trying to find out how to get to the old M.E. Leming Lumber Company, I took a chance on going down LaCruz Street in what used to be Smelterville. I sort of didn’t see a sign that said don’t go here and popped out next to Consolidated Grain and Barge, now labeled CGB. I didn’t realize CGB was such a big deal until I checked out their webpage.

The barge in the photo is idling until a southbound tow gets past. The low water has had things a little tight of late. In order to be able to steer, a boat has to be able to go faster than the current, so the southbound traffic has the right of way.

Aerial of LaCruz Street area

CGB is at the end of LaCruz Street, the street that runs from Sprigg, at the bottom, to the river. Look for the two storage bins to the right side of the light-colored lot. The facility just to the left of where the barge is passing is Cape’s Sewage Treatment Plant. Cape LaCroix Creek empties into the Mississippi at the right.

Photo gallery of CGB

Click on any photo to make it larger, then click on the left or right side of the image to move through the gallery.

December 29, 2011March 16, 2016

Thebes Courthouse High on the Hill

Thebes, like Cairo, has been a place I always swing by on my way to or back from Cape. Like Cairo, there’s less and less there every time I visit. The floods have taken their toll over the years.

The one constant, though, is the Thebes Courthouse, sitting high on a hill overlooking what used to be a thriving river community. There’s plenty of historical information out there, so I’m not going to rehash it. Here’s a link to the official Thebes Courthouse website.

I’m just going to show you photographs of the courthouse taken between 1966 and 2011 (the black and white shots are from 1966). Some of the photos will look similar, but on closer examination, you’ll find they were shot in different seasons and different years.

Thebes Courthouse photo gallery

Click on any photo to make it larger, then click on the left or right side to move through the gallery.

December 6, 2011

Calendar Sneak Peek

Here’s a sneak peek of a project that I’m way overdue finishing. I’m hoping to get to the printers this week to have a 2012 calendar available before it’s 2013. I’ve got folks proofreading and swatting technical flies, so these two pages may change. The cover shows Tower Rock in the autumn. I’ve tried to pick photos that you won’t mind looking at for a month at a time. (Click on the photos to make them larger.)

World’s longest suspension pipeline bridge

March is a pastoral look at what is said to be the world’s longest suspension pipeline bridge. The other months will have photographs taken in Altenburg, Wittenberg and Frohna. Every once in awhile I slip up and let some real facts show up in a caption, but I try to keep the same breezy style you find here.

The calendar, like my book, Tower Rock: “A Demon That Devours Travelers,” will be available at the Altenburg Lutheran Heritage Center & Museum. Don’t worry, I’ll be sure to tell you when it’s available. Carla Jordan and the folks at the museum have been great to let me dabble in publishing before I try to do some bigger projects I have on the list.