Cape Girardeau History and Photos

March 30, 2011

Kent Library circa 1966

I’m publishing these two grossly underexposed, dust-spotted and scratched frames of Kent Library because they may be the only two shots I have of the inside of the place.

Don’t get me wrong. I love libraries. I spent hours in the Cape Library as a kid. Pat Sommers, my debate partner, worked there, so we could get in after closing time to do research.

I took an elderly next door neighbor to the West Palm Beach libraries every Saturday. We’d leave with armloads of books that we would trade off until our next run. Wife Lila even worked in a middle school library for years (except it was called a media center in modern-speak).

Kent Library never felt like home

For some reason, I never developed any kind of connection with Kent Library. It didn’t have the right feel for me.

On one of my trips to Cape last year, I strolled through the place. It’s a lot bigger and brighter than I remembered it.

I happened to pass by a room that mentioned something about special collections or something like that. I stuck my head in, introduced myself to someone, described the photos I have of the era and asked if there was a chance the University might be interested in them when I go to that final Big Darkroom.

The person I talked with took my business card and said someone would get back in touch with me. Nobody ever did.

I guess it’s no great loss. I didn’t hang around there when I was alive; whatever spirit of mine that clings to my old negs probably wouldn’t feel comfortable there after I’m gone.

March 30, 2011January 6, 2012

“Bye, Bye, Birdie” 1967

One of my photos illustrated a an April 7, 1967, Margaret Randol feature on “Bye, Bye, Birdie” on The Missourian’s Youth Page.

The caption read, Bruce Huebel, Gary Sides, Richard Harter and Charles Holt, who are playing Shriners in Central’s “Bye, Bye, Birdie,” look up in confusion at Rosie (Miss Barbara Nunnelly), who broke into their meeting room and started dancing on their table. Bruce is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Huebel, 1109 North Main; Gary is the son of Mr. and Mrs. W.E. Side, Jr., 221 East Cape Rock Drive; Richard is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Austin G. Harter, 2526 Jonquil; Charles is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Grant T. Holt, 1835 Lacey, and Miss Nunnelly is the daughter of Dr. and Mrs. Gordon M. Nunnelly, 1432 Themis.

How do you serve a “Birdie?”

Miss Randol posed that as a question. Her answer:

Like any other delicacy you would prepare, a successful and appealing “Birdie” begins with the fixin’s.

The recipe calls for these ingredients:

3 fresh young directors
1 prepared orchestra
2 cups of talent
1 cup of patience
70 assorted (interested) pupils

Blend these ingredients for three months and add the support of the whole school to make the spirits rise.

Place this combination in a large, well-filled auditorium and serve.

Most successful musical ever produced

The directors, Mrs. Judy Williams, Mrs. Madeline DeJournett, and Bill Ewing, along with 70 members of the “Birdie” cast, have sacrificed leisure and work time – plus hours of sleep – to make “Bye, Bye, Birdie” the must successful musical ever produced at Central High School.

Rehearsals far from uneventful

The rehearsals have been far from uneventful, testifies Miss June Siemers, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Wm. R. Siemers, 1635 Brookwood. She said she was supposed to run the length of the stage into the arms of her waiting partner.

The running went fine, she explained. The flying through the air part was all right…it was when she missed her waiting (??) partner’s arms and landed on the opposite end of the stage that presented the difficulty, Miss Siemers related.

Production threatened by measles

The entire production was threatened when one of the cast came down with a case of measles. (But not everyone saw red and things have apparently turned out all right.)

March 28, 2011April 5, 2015

Main Street, 1967

Here’s a semi-mystery. The negative sleeve just had a date – March 27, 1967 – written on the front of it. The setting is Main Street, but I don’t know why the two photos were taken. There’s a huge gap in the Google News Archive for the month of March 1967, so I couldn’t even search for them there.

Cherrydale Farms confections

These women were set up in front of what looks like a hardware or sporting goods store. When I flip the photo around so I can read the printing on the signs on the table, one reads, “YOU can help us meet our GOAL. Cherrydale Farms confections ON SALE HERE!”

I’d never heard of Cherrydale Farms, but they’re still around on the web selling fundraiser supplies.

The sign on the side of the table says “…Easter Eggs.” I hope they made their goal.

Main Street looking north

If the sign on Cape Federal is correct, the photo was taken at 4:08 in the afternoon on a day that was chilly, but not cold and windy enough to really bundle up.

I don’t see much of a news peg in this photo. There’s a plywood wall on the left side of the photo. That’s about where the St. Charles Hotel would have been before it was torn down. I may have taken this to burn up film before I processed the roll.

March 27, 2011

Weather’s Great, Snow Foolin’

OK, I played hooky this weekend. The weather was great and I needed to cover the 8th Annual Okeechobee Rotary Club Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail Ride-Run-Walk charity event for my bike blog. Plus Mother is in town, it was my birthday and Bro Mark is shoveling snow in St. Louis.

Gators and birds

Here’s what it looked like down here Saturday morning. Click on the photo to make it larger. The things that look like horizontal black specks are alligators.

This is the same place where an 18-year-old swimmer got an arm ripped off. At 2 a.m.. Alcohol, as you might suspect, was involved.