Missouri Times The State Historical Society of Missouri & Western Historical Manuscript Collection MAY 2007 VOL . 3, NO. 1 Proposals Invited for 2008 Missouri History Speakers’ Bureau The State Historical Society is accepting applications through July 31 for speakers in the 2008 Missouri History Speakers’ Bureau. This program provides speakers on Missouri history top- ics to historical and genealogical societies and other not-for-profit groups throughout the state without cost to the host institution. The Society seeks proposals for talks on state and local his- tory topics from academic and independent scholars. Applications should be no longer than five hundred words and should indicate the title, a summary of the presentation, the general nature of the sources used to create the presentation, and the applicant’s expe- rience in speaking to public audiences. A one-page curriculum vita or résumé must be appended to the application. First-person impersonations will not be considered. To be considered for the 2008 program, members of the 2007 Speakers’ Bureau will need to submit a statement of intent to con- tinue or proposals for new topics. State Historical Society volunteers received awards for their hours of service at the annual volunteer appreciation dinner on April 23. Speakers’ Bureau members will be chosen on the basis of the originality and attractiveness of their proposed topic; the variety and richness of the sources used to develop the talk; and the ability Society Recognizes Volunteers of the presenter to engage a variety of adult audiences. Scholars chosen to be included in the Speakers’ Bureau must be willing to: The State Historical Society celebrated National Volunteer 1) make at least two 20-50 minute presentations during the cal- Appreciation Week by honoring its volunteers with a buffet din- endar year 2008; 2) travel no more than one hundred miles from ner and recognition ceremony on April 23. Eleven adult volun- their home; and 3) provide information to audiences about the teers and two junior volunteers are currently active in the program. State Historical Society and the Western Historical Manuscript They assist by staffing the Art Gallery, mending newspapers, refil- Collection. Speakers selected for the program will be expected to ing newspaper microfilm, updating vertical files, processing pho- become annual members of the State Historical Society. tograph collections, and undertaking numerous other tasks. Since Applicants chosen to be included in the Speakers’ Bureau will the program began in 2004, volunteers have completed 3,893.5 receive a $200 honorarium for each presentation delivered, plus hours of service. Persons interested in joining the Society’s volun- travel reimbursement up to $100. Missouri History Speakers’ teer program can contact Ara Kaye at (573) 882-9364. Bureau applications must be submitted to Dr. Gary R. Kremer, Executive Director, The State Historical Society of Missouri, 1020 Current Volunteers: Lowry Street, Columbia, MO 65201-7298. Applications may also be sent by e-mail to [email protected]. The deadline for Kathleen Conway (Nov. 2004)* Linda Ridgeway (Oct. 2004) proposals is July 31, and applicants will be notified about the status of their applications by October 15. Rachel Dollens (Oct. 2004) Marsha Sergent (Aug. 2005) Obituary Research Assistance Available Jean Ferguson (Nov. 2004) Ron Sergent (Feb. 2005) Online Dottie Golson (Mar. 2005) Scarlett Taylor (Dec. 2004) The State Historical Society has a new secure link on its Web page where patrons who wish to receive assistance in finding an Ann O’Dell (Jun. 2005) Zachary Taylor (Dec. 2004) obituary can make a request and pay with a credit card. The secure link is only for requesting copies of obituaries found in Missouri Heinrich Leonhard (Sept. 2005) Rita Terry (Mar. 2005) newspapers held in the Society’s newspaper collection. To make a request, go to www.umsystem.edu/shs and click on Alice Reese (Aug. 2005) “Research Requests” and then on “Obituaries.” The full name of the deceased, the exact date of death, and the residence at the time of death is required. The cost per request is $5.00 for Society *Date in parentheses indicates when volunteer service began. members and $10.00 for nonmembers. The fee includes one pho- tocopy of researched material and mailing costs. Mill at Paydown, 1952, by Daniel Fitzpatrick Upcoming Exhibits • Daniel Fitzpatrick: Artist/ Cartoonist will be on display in the North-South Corridor Gallery from June 2 through October 19, 2007. Renowned St. Louis Post-Dispatch cartoonist Daniel Fitzpatrick (1891-1969) began his artistic career studying anatomy 1993-A Summer to Remember by Lawrence Rugolo and life drawings at the Art Institute of Chicago. This exhibit will feature fine News Notes art drawings from Fitzpatrick’s sketch- Sara Przybylski joined the Society’s staff as a library clerk in the Photograph Collection books along with selected examples of on March 1. Przybylski holds a bachelor’s degree in mass communications from Truman the artist’s original editorial cartoons. State University in Kirksville. She replaced Jamie Mittermeyer, who began a master’s These juxtapositions demonstrate how program at Columbia College. the cartoons and drawings relate to each other. Noble Cunningham Jr., who had served as a Society vice president since 1978, died in Columbia on March 30, 2007. Cunningham was a highly regarded scholar of the Early • Lawrence Rugolo: Forty Years of Republic and a curators’ professor emeritus in the University of Missouri-Columbia Printmaking will open July 14, 2007, in Department of History. the Main Gallery with a public reception from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. Nationally rec- The 2007 Missouri Conference on History met in St. Louis on April 19-20. Benjamin ognized printmaker Lawrence Rugolo Moore, Fontbonne University, St. Louis, won the award for best article for “Who Was has lived and worked in Missouri for John Gergen? Unraveling the Identity of an Early Twentieth-Century Immigrant,” which over forty years. In this exhibit, a ret- appeared in the spring 2006 issue of Gateway. Bonnie Stepenoff, Southeast Missouri rospective sampling of Rugolo’s seri- State University, won the award for best book for From French Community to Missouri graphs showcases his inventive use of Town: Ste. Genevieve in the Nineteenth Century, which was published by the University the silk-screen technique. Drawn from of Missouri Press. Stephen McIntyre, Missouri State University, and Louis Gerteis, the permanent holdings of the Society, University of Missouri-St. Louis, were reelected to the Missouri Conference on History as well as the personal collection of the steering committee. Newly elected steering committee members include Kim Schreck, artist, the often vibrantly colored images University of Missouri-St. Louis, and Joel Rhodes, Southeast Missouri State University. in the exhibition range in subject matter from naturalistic landscapes to surreal- istic visions and geometric abstractions. Exploration, Interpretation, ings, including Captured by Indians, The The exhibit will be on display through and the Works of George Dull Story, and Major Dean in Jail. The September 15, 2007. Society is lending four artworks to this ex- Caleb Bingham hibition, including Bingham’s celebrated 1876 Portrait of Vinnie Ream. The State Historical Society is coordi- After viewing the exhibition, visitors Society to Continue Tuesday nating with the University of Missouri’s are encouraged to continue their explora- Evening Hours Museum of Art and Archaeology to support tion of Bingham’s artwork across cam- the exhibition Exploration, Interpretation, pus at the State Historical Society’s Art After evaluating patron usage, the and the Works of George Caleb Bingham. Gallery. In conjunction with the Museum Society has decided to continue keeping the The exhibit, on display from June 9 to exhibit, the Society is displaying ten paint- Newspaper Library and Reference Library August 19 in the Museum’s second-floor ings by Bingham, including the artist’s open on Tuesday evenings until 9:00 p.m. galleries in Pickard Hall (with entrances on masterpieces Order No. 11 and Watching on a permanent basis. The Society will be Francis Quadrangle and Ninth Street), cel- the Cargo. For the duration of the show, open every Tuesday evening except for ebrates the 100th anniversary of the found- the Society is also exhibiting a rarely seen holidays. ing of MU’s College of Arts and Science. portrait of the University of Missouri’s first It provides visitors with the opportunity to president, John Hiram Lathrop. view several rarely seen Bingham paint- historical research,” she said. Amy has de- Miniconference on Mining signed displays on Pearl Harbor, the circus in Missouri, and Mark Twain. and Railroads in Missouri Amy hopes that someday the Society’s Reference Library and Newspaper Library On June 9, the Society will sponsor a will combine into one library. “I would miniconference titled “Depots & Deposits: love to see the Society have one large re- Gleaning Information from Missouri search room,” she said. “I think having all Mining Industry and Railroad Records.” of the reference and newspaper materials Tom Miller, manuscript specialist with the together would be much more convenient Western Historical Manuscript Collection- for patrons.” Columbia, will discuss “Digging for Yore: Born and reared in Ozawkie, Kansas, How to Find Genealogical Nuggets in Amy attended Emporia State University in Mining Records” at 10:15 a.m. Sharol Emporia, Kansas, where she earned bache- Higgins Neely, local history associate with lor’s and master’s degrees in history. She the Springfield-Greene County Library, has been an avid genealogist for nearly fif- will present “The Frisco: A Look Back at Staff Profile: Amy Waters teen years. “After my brother came home the St. Louis-San Francisco Railroad” at from school with a family tree worksheet 1:30 p.m. Working at the Society combines Amy that went back four generations and my Pre-registration is required, and space is Waters’s two passions—history and gene- parents could not fill it all out, I became limited.