It seems like almost yesterday that 15 students from Southeast Missouri State University set out to dribble a basketball from Cape Girardeau, Missouri to Evansville, Indiana. The Southeast basketball team of 1960-61 had a great record and qualified to play in the NCAA college division national tournament. To call attention to the team’s success and to rally support for their participation in the tournament, Southeast students Rudy Gardner and Jim Piatchek organized a 15-man dribbling team that

It seems like almost yesterday that the most devastating tornado in American history passed through Southeast Missouri. The F-5 tornado first touched down in Reynolds County , west of Ellington and stayed on the ground for approximately 220 miles, for three and one-half hours, crossing southern Missouri and Illinois, finally dissipating in southern Indiana. The severe storm, called the tri-state tornado, killed 695 people, injured 2,027 more, and resulted in over a billion dollars in property

It seems like Almost Yesterday that the U. S. military planned the first transcontinental test of United States military aircraft. Under the direction of General Billy Mitchell, the proposal was for 74 planes to fly from New York to San Francisco and back - to document the performance of a variety of military aircraft. One of the young aviators scheduled to participate in this, the greatest moment in aviation to that time, was 32 year old Patrick Frissell of Cape Girardeau. Born in Oak Ridge,

It seems like Almost Yesterday that a group of young men in Cape Girardeau, Missouri decided to start a band. Under the leadership of Captain C. F. Schuchert, twelve young men who were musically inclined – and had instruments - came together and became a popular group, performing at parades, picnics and public events. In their first years they were identified as “Schuchert’s Cornet Band.” In 1910 Captain Schuchert’s son, Clarence, assumed leadership of the band and changed the name to “Schuchert

It seems like almost yesterday when a powerful tornado roared through the center of Cape Girardeau , Missouri. The deadly storm smashed into the city at approximately 7 p.m., Saturday, May 21, 1949. The twister came in from the southwest along Gordonville Road and moved east across Highway 61. It demolished the Airline Restaurant and Lounge, swept across to the intersection of Broadway and Clark, and moved north of Broadway. From there, the 350 yard-wide storm moved along Dunklin Street north of

It seems like Almost Yesterday that the legendary origin of the four rivers of St. Francois County was recorded by the writer and historian Allan Hinchey. The four rivers – the Whitewater, Castor, Saline, and Little St. Francois – emerge close together, northeast of Fredericktown, Missouri, near the junction of Perry, Bollinger, Ste. Genevieve, Madison, and St. Francois Counties. Although they emerge close together, the four rivers flow in different directions. The Native American explanation of

It seems like almost yesterday that streetcars in Cape Girardeau stopped rolling through the city. On August 10, 1934, the last car was driven into the north Main Street barns at 9:30 p.m., signaling the end of a community service that had been available for 29 years. The era of the streetcar began on December 27, 1905, when the service began on a line that ran from Good Hope Street on the south side of town to the shoe factory on the north and the college on the west. Occasionally, workers at

It seems like Almost Yesterday that Union troops under General William Tecumseh Sherman were moving south against Atlanta. General Kirby Smith, Commander of the Confederate Trans-Mississippi Department, saw Missouri as a place to strike a blow at the Union by making a direct threat upon St. Louis. This, he believed, would force the transfer of Union troops from Atlanta, thus saving that vital supply center. General Sterling Price, a former governor of Missouri, was selected to lead the

It seems like Almost Yesterday that the Ohio and lower Mississippi Rivers experienced a severe flood. And, this 1937 flood occurred in January and February in the midst of cold, snow and ice. From Pittsburgh to Cincinnati, Louisville, Paducah and Cairo the rivers reached record levels. Desperate calls went out for volunteers to help sand bag. One young man who volunteered was Robert “R. E.” Tompkins of Campbell, Missouri. A young man of 18, R.E. traveled to New Madrid where he joined others on a

It seems like Almost Yesterday that Ms. Christine Brewer appeared on the stage of Shryock Auditorium in Carbondale as a featured artist in the Southern Illinois Music Festival of 2008. For Ms. Brewer this was very much a homecoming. Born and raised in Grand Tower, Illinois, Ms. Brewer graduated from Shawnee Community High School near Wolf Lake, Illinois and graduated from McKendree College in Lebanon, Illinois. Following her college graduation she taught school in Marissa, Illinois and continues