Springfield
Gerald Brooks: Lincoln Band Director
Gerald Brooks was born on January 6, 1913 in Quincy, Illinois. After his mother passed away at a young age, he moved to Hannibal, Missouri and attended Douglas High School. While at Douglas, he was greatly influenced by his own band teacher, Martin A. Lewis. Gerald Brooks graduated from Lincoln University in Jefferson City in…
Read More70th Anniversary of the Great Cobra Scare
2023 is already shaping up to be a big year for Springfield! This year also happens to be the 70th anniversary of the Great Cobra Scare of 1953. If you haven’t heard the details yet, be prepared to learn your new favorite story from Springfield’s history. In August of 1953, Rio Mowrer owned a…
Read MoreBonnie and Clyde in Springfield: Kidnapping, Robbery, and Tangible History
The Depression Era of the early nineteen-thirties is home to many enduring American stories. One of the most famous is that of Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow, the infamous criminal couple who robbed, kidnapped, and murdered their way across the central United States for several consecutive years before their eventual death at the hands of…
Read MoreBob Barker: Springfield Citizen, Television Legend
Bob Barker was born in Darrington, Washington on December 12th, 1923. He spent most of his childhood on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in Mission, South Dakota, where he was listed as an enrolled member of the Sioux tribe. His family moved to Springfield, where Barker graduated Central High School and attended Drury University on a…
Read MoreSpringfield, Missouri: The Birthplace of Route 66
If you’ve spent even a few hours in Springfield, you’re bound to see a sign declaring it “The Birthplace of Route 66”. This may sound like a bold claim, considering that the route begins and ends in Chicago and Los Angeles. While our city is not the start of the physical highway, it is where…
Read MoreOn the Diamond: African American Baseball in Springfield
Baseball in Springfield was segregated either by law or by custom until the 1950s. Information about the early African American teams is largely unavailable. The Hyde Park All Stars, sometimes known as the “Stars” took on all comers. They were an African American, semi-professional, barnstorming baseball team. They traveled to other cities and played teams…
Read MoreNotable Women in Agriculture
Around 12,000 years ago our hunter-gatherer ancestors began farming, providing themselves with a larger and more easily accessible food source. The first tenders to these crops would have been men and women, working together to ensure the availability of their food. Since then, we have learned about famous and influential male farmers such as George…
Read MoreThe Sarah Gorham Graham Case
Springfield, Missouri has a history of sensational true crime cases, but one of the oldest is the tale of Sarah Gorham Graham. Sarah was born in December of 1851, and little is known about her until her marriage to George Graham in Fort Wayne, Indiana in 1871. George spent most of the first years of…
Read MoreNew Springfield, Missouri Flag
March 1st, 2022, at 2 pm, the new Springfield flag will be raised on the flagpole on the Square for the first time. While the new city flag has been a hot topic of conversation in the last few months, the new design was actually first proposed back in 2017. After multiple presentations before City…
Read MoreAndy Payne, Winner of the Transcontinental Footrace
The Transcontinental Footrace of 1928 was a daring event, putting hundreds of men to the test of endurance, speed, and determination. This race was organized by the nation’s first sports agent, Charles C. Pyle. It was set to begin on March 4th, 1928 in Los Angeles and finish some time in May in New York…
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