The State Historical Society of Missouri
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Publi The State Historical Society of Missouri COLUMBIA, MISSOURI THE STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF MISSOURI The State Historical Society of Missouri, heretofore organized under the laws of this State, shall be the trustee of this State.—Laws of Missouri, 1899, R. S. of Mo., 1949, Chapter 183. OFFICERS 1950-1953 E. E. SWAIN, Kirksville, President GEORGE ROBB ELLISON, Maryville, First Vice-President RUSH H. LIMBAUGH, Cape Girardeau, Second Vice-President HENRY A. BUNDSCHU, Independence, Third Vice-President BARTLETT BODER, St. Joseph, Fourth Vice-President RAY V. DENSLOW, Trenton, Fifth Vice-President Louis J. SIECK, St. Louis, Sixth Vice-President R. B. PRICE, Columbia, Treasurer. FLOYD C. SHOEMAKER, Columbia, Secretary and Librarian TRUSTEES Permanent Trustees, Former Presidents of the Society ISIDOR LOEB, St. Louis WILLIAM SOUTHERN, JR., ALLEN MCREYNOLDS, Carthage Independence GEORGE A. ROZIER, Jefferson City G. L. ZWICK, St. Joseph Term Expires at Annual Meeting, 1951 RALPH P. BIEBER, St. Louis HENRY C. THOMPSON, Bonne Terre ARTHUR V. BURROWES, St. Joseph WILLIAM L. VANDEVANTER, LAURENCE J. KENNY, S. J., St. Louis Springfield JOSEPH H. MOORE, Charleston GEORGE H. WILLIAMS, California ISRAEL A. SMITH, Independence CHARLES L. WOODS, Rolla Term Expires at Annual Meeting, 1952 JESSE W. BARRETT, St. Louis GEORGE H. SCRUTON, Sedalia CHESTER A. BRADLEY, Kansas City JAMES TODD, Moberly GEORGE ROBB ELLISON, Maryville T. BALLARD WAITERS, Marshfield FRANK L. MOTT, Columbia L. M. WHITE, Mexico JOSEPH PULITZER, St. Louis Term Expires at Annual Meeting, 1953 FRANK P. BRIGGS, Macon ALBERT L. REEVES, Kansas City STEPHEN B. HUNTER, Cape Girardeau E. E. SWAIN, Kirksville WALDO P. JOHNSON, Clinton R. M. THOMSON, St. Charles E. LANSING RAY, St. Louis ROY D. WILLIAMS, Boonville EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE The thirty-one Trustees, the President and the Secretary of the Society, the Governor, Secretary of State, State Treasurer, and President of the University of Missouri constitute the Executive Committee, Missouri Historical Review Floyd C. Shoemaker, Editor Volume XLVI October 1951 Number One The Missouri Historical Review is published quarterly at 201 Madison Street, Jefferson City, Missouri. Communications pertaining to the publication should be addressed to 201 Madison Street, Jefferson City, Missouri, or to Floyd C. Shoemaker, The State Historical Society of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri. The Review is sent free to all members of the State Historical Society of Missouri. Membership dues in the Society are $1.00 a year. The Society assumes no responsibility for statements made by contributors to the magazine. Entered as second-class matter at the Post Office at Jefferson City, Missouri, under the act of August 24, 1912. OUTSTANDING COLLECTIONS OPEN FOR INSPECTION In addition to the largest depository of Missouri records in the ivorld and its well-known library and reference facilities on Missouriana, the State Historical Society of Missouri has four outstanding collections open for inspection in the Society's rooms in the University of Missouri library building in Columbia. All members of the Society and their friends and the general public are invited to see these collections when they are in Columbia: THE GEORGE CALEB BINGHAM ART COLLECTION The George Caleb Bingham Art Collection is headed by ''Order No. 11" or "Martial Law," Missouri's most famous historical painting. Other Bingham paintings in the collection include portraits of James Shannon, John "Woods Harris, and Vinnie Ream Hoxie, and two genre paintings called "Watching The Cargo" or "Lighter Relieving A Steamboat Aground" and "Scene on the Ohio." THE DANIEL R. FITZPATRICK COLLECTION The Daniel R. Fitzpatrick Collection of cartoon drawings for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch includes 1,332 original sketches by the internationally famous editorial cartoonist. The cartoons cover the period from 1917 to 1945. They are mainly in the field of Missouriana with a number relating to national and international affairs. The collection was given to the Society by Mr. Fitzpatrick. THE J. CHRISTIAN BAY COLLECTION The J. Christian Bay Collection, one of the rare selected libraries of Middle Western Americana in the United States, consists of more than 3,889 items of information fundamental in the history and literature in America's great. "Middle Border." Named in honor of its creator, J. Christian Bay, the Bay Col lection is housed in a special rare book room. THE THOMAS HART BENTON GALLERY The Thomas Hart Benton Gallery of historic art includes The Year of Peril series of paintings: eight historical canvasses of 1942, painted by the Missouri artist, Thomas Hart Benton. Another closely associated Benton painting, en titled "The Negro Soldier" and painted at the same time as The Year of Peril series, is also on display in the Benton Gallery. OTHER ART COLLECTIONS The Fred Geary Collection of woodcuts of Missouri, Louisiana, and New Mexico scenes; the Henry C. Thompson Collection of oil portraits of eminent Missourians; and the collection of Missouri primitive art on Missouri by Mrs. Walter Griffen, Augustus G. Beller, Cornelia A. Kuemmel, and others, are also on display by the Society and are unusual in interest to spectators and in value to the cultural historian. Contents Page MUSEUMS AND MUSEUM COLLECTIONS IN MISSOURI OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. Directed by Floyd C. Shoemaker. Compiled by Ruby Matson Robins . 1 "THIS WEEK IN MISSOURI HISTORY/' By Floyd C. Shoemaker 26 THE PIONEER'S FIRST CORN CROP. By Robert S. Withers 39 THE MISSOURI READER: AMERICANS IN THE VALLEY. PART V. By Ruby Matson Robins 46 HISTORICAL NOTES AND COMMENTS 64 A Personal Message from the Secretary 64 Members Active in Increasing Society's Membership 65 New Members of the Historical Society 67 Messages and Proclamations of the Governors of the State of Missouri 72 Society Awarded Second Place for Progress and Achievements ... 72 Ninetieth Anniversary of the Battle of Athens 73 Attention! Teachers! 74 Back Issues of the Review Wanted 74 Graduate Theses Relating to Missouri 75 Activities of County Historical Societies 78 Anniversaries 81 Monuments and Memorials 83 Notes 85 Historical Publications 97 Obituaries 102 MISSOURI HISTORY NOT FOUND IN TEXTBOOKS 106 Ci) Contents Illustrations Page PART OF JACKSON TOWN. Cover design sketched by Charles Alexander LeSueur during a trip to Missouri in 1826. This sketch was photo graphed in 1938 by Charles E. Peterson, regional architect with National Park Service. See "The Missouri Reader: Americans in the Valley," edited by Ruby Matson Robins 46 KIRK MEMORIAL, NORTHEAST MISSOURI STATE TEACHERS COLLEGE, KIRKS VILLE 3 MEXICO Ledger BUILDING, MEXICO 5 ROARING RIVER PARK MUSEUM, CASSVILLE 6 HARRY S. TRUMAN BIRTHPLACE, LAMAR 6 ST. JOSEPH MUSEUM, ST. JOSEPH 12 KENT LIBRARY, SOUTHEAST MISSOURI STATE COLLEGE, CAPE GIRARDEAU 13 BIG SPRING STATE PARK MUSEUM, VAN BUREN 14 JESSE JAMES BIRTHPLACE, NEAR KEARNEY 15 COLE COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY MUSEUM, JEFFERSON CITY 17 MISSOURI STATE CAPITOL, JEFFERSON CITY 18 MONTAUK MILL, MONTAUK STATE PARK, LEBANON 19 MERAMEC STATE PARK MUSEUM, SULLIVAN 20 O'CONNOR'S WILSON'S CREEK MUSEUM, REPUBLIC 21 PEARSONS HALL, DRURY COLLEGE, SPRINGFIELD 22 SPRINGFIELD CITY HALL, SPRINGFIELD 22 "THIS WEEK IN MISSOURI HISTORY" 27 THE "ATLANTIC" SAILED FROM ST. LOUIS FOR A WORLD'S DISTANCE RECORD IN 1859 27 THE CHAUTAUQUA TENT WAS A SUMMER CULTURAL CENTER 29 THE STUMP SPEAKER OF 1853 MOUNTED A PLATFORM TO APPEAL FOR VOTES WHEREVER HE COULD DRAW A CROWD 31 THE CIRCUS, A WOODCUT BY MISSOURI ARTIST FRED GEARY 33 MOONSHININ'S A MAN'S GAME. CAN'T JEST ANY PUNKIN-ROLLER STICK IT 35 "ANTI'S" RODE LONG DISTANCES ACROSS ROUGH COUNTRY TRACKING DOWN HORSE THIEVES AND STOLEN MOUNTS 37 A JUMPING SHOVEL PLOW. SKETCH BY ROBERT S. WITHERS 40 VIEW OF A PART OF CAPE GIRARDEAU FROM THE SIDE OF ELLIS' TAVERN .... 50 (H) MUSEUMS AND MUSEUM COLLECTIONS IN MISSOURI OPEN TO THE PUBLIC Directed by FLOYD C. SHOEMAKER1 Compiled by RUBY M. ROBINS2 Missouri is as distinctive in the museum field in 1951 as she was in 1818 when William Clark opened his Indian Museum in St. Louis, the first museum west of the Mississippi and the nine teenth in the United States, for data from a recent survey by the State Historical Society shows Missouri to have over a hundred museums and museum collections open to the public. This data shows that Missouri has nationally outstanding museums, some housed in beautiful and impressive buildings, as well as small collections of great value. It also shows that Missouri employs such modern practices in the museum field as the establishment of historic house museums (houses of interest because of associa tion with some person, event, or style of architecture, furnished in keeping with the period) ; the establishment of state park museums; the organization of exhibits or collections that can be manipulated or operated; and the offering of museum instructional service. Also typical of the up-to-date museum outlook is the fact that many of the museums and collections in the state are available to the public in the evening and on Sunday. This compiled list of public and private museums and collections open to the public is for reference and study. The information in cluded has been obtained from newspapers, magazines, books, museum publications, and letters. Over 900 letters were written in check ing each of Missouri's 114 counties and the City of St. Louis for all possible museums or collections open to the public and in ob taining needed data. The City of St. Louis and 48 counties re ported having museums or collections organized for public exhibi tion. Museums and collections are listed geographically. There is no attempt to evaluate the institution or exhibit listed, but the following information is given: name and location; province or ^LOYD c. SHOEMAKER has been secretary and librarian of the Society and editor of the Missouri Historical Review since 1915. 2For vita see page 46.