1964 SEMO Homecoming Parade

This is a collection of photos from the 1964 Southeast Missouri State College Homecoming Parade. Bands from a lot of local schools, Including Central marched in it. Since it was a presidential election year, there are several political floats.

NOBODY could step out like Ruth Ann Seabaugh

Ruth Ann Seabaugh, Toni Grose and (I think) Nancy Swan strut past the Rialto Theater.

Gallery of Homecoming Parade Photos

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

I just discovered more film from this parade. I think I have all of the Central students in this selection, so I’ll save the rest of the the pictures for another day.

18 Replies to “1964 SEMO Homecoming Parade”

  1. I love these pics Ken! Our office (Old Town Cape) is in the background of the main photo and several of the others. Going to tweet this from @OldTownCape!

    1. Cool, Toni. I’ll have to start following you since I clog up your fan page so often.

      You’re in the Arnold Roth building, right?

      (I should know, since I visited you. And, I haven’t forgotten that I’m going to get around to posting the interviews with you and Marla. Let’s see, I’m up to 1964, so you should be a grandmother about the time it appears.)

      1. Yep! Didn’t know it was the Arnold Roth building, but I can barely make out that sign in the background of your photo. It’s right there on the corner!

  2. Also noticed that the parade route is going the opposite way that we go now! Know when they changed it? It would’ve been a better work out to walk up that hill I bet! haha

  3. Wow! Also noticed they are going the opposite way the parade route goes today. Bet that was a better work out getting up that hill! haha Know when they flipped the route?

    1. I think they always went east to west in those days. I guess that gave them lots of room to stage the start, then they’d end up at Houck Stadium.

      My guess is that pattern probably disrupted traffic less than the opposite direction but you’d be a better judge of that these days.

      When I was in Cape this fall, I was going north on Sprigg and was blocked by a cop stopping traffic for a parade – I think it might have been for the firefighters. It was moving east to west, too.

    1. If that’s the worst thing you do today, you’re in good shape.

      As a prominent politician said this week, “accidents happen.” At least you only killed a few electrons, not the Gulf states’ fishing industry.

  4. Great photos Ken. I remember marching with Central Band. I hated when we had to march up Broadway Hill and would have to play. I know it wasn’t that far, but it sure seemed like it. Thanks again for such a great job and for sharing great pictures with us.

  5. The majorette on the right of the pictures is Phyllis Metzger, and behind Linda, looks like Jane McKeown.

    1. Chuck,

      I haven’t been in the building, but you’d never know from looking at the front that it was a theater.

      I’ve shot some photos from the outside that I’ll get around to posting one of these days.

      There are rumors that both the Broadway and the Esquire will be fixed up, but I think they are just pipe dreams. I hope I’m proven wrong.

  6. Ken,

    This is Mary Seabaugh Francis. Ruth Ann was my kid sister……Words can not express my gratitude for being able to see this one picture in particular of Ruth Ann. I had forgotten that she was a drum majorette for Central. Leslie, her daughter went on a search for me and found your site.

    Before I get lost in this comment I want two of your Calendars but was not got sure about the site…….If I go to Amazon……which I did but still uncertain.

    We are from the Advance area, but my parents decided to rent a house in Cape on a street that that went right in to Central. I believe the house was about 3 houses up from Sprigg????? My brother and his wife lived in the house so my parents decided Ann and her older sister would live there as well and go to Central. My brother just out of the Navy was attending SEMO. Ann was a very out going little girl.

    She went to SEMO….got her BS and then to Maryville College in St. Louis where she earned her RN. All was going well with Ann …two beautiful little girls then TRAGIC hit. She was getting a physical for a school nurse position and as she was making a left turn on Highway 21 at the light…think it is Tesson Ferry Rd. Ann was T-Bone and her life changed forever. She was in a comma for over 6 months. She suffered in so many ways but remained the resourceful person she was. With a frozen elbow, crippled in other ways……

    Our main way of communication was via email.

    Then tragedy strikes her again……this time Brain Cancer……..malignant glioma.
    It was discover after suffering a seizure in September of of 2010. This cancer is very aggressive and dangerous. Ann was in the final stage when discovered. She was given only a few months to lived….but again she surprised everyone. Sadly, Ann passed away March of 2012.

    Ken. you didn’t ask for all this information but I have always been a person interested in lives of my classmates, students, and friends and assume everyone is.

    Thanks for reading…

    Please advise the best way to get the two calendars…..

    Mary Seabaugh Francis

    1. I was in the middle of typing a reply to Leslie when your message arrived. I’m sending her digital copies of all the photos of Ruth Ann that I could lay my hands on.

      She said she found this site while searching for a photo of your sister in a beauty contest in Advance. I ran across a clip of that Advance Advocate picture several months ago, but didn’t scan it. When I get back home to Florida, I’ll search for it and see you folks get a copy.

      If you are in the Cape area, you can pick up copies of the calendar with Ruth Ann’s marching in front of the old Rialto theater by going to Annie Laurie’s Antiques at Broadway and Frederick or to the Cape Convention Bureau in the H&H Building across from the Marquette Hotel. That’ll save you the postage and handling charges.

      If you’d rather have them mailed, drop me an email and I’ll tell you what to do.

      I’d love to do a followup story on your sister. Her name is one that frequently comes up in “I wonder what ever happened to….” conversations.

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