Almost Yesterday

It seems like Almost Yesterday that the Reverend J. C. Berryman , founder and Superintendent of Arcadia High School in Arcadia, Missouri, received a report from a committee of observers who had visited the school in order to submit an overall evaluation. The distinguished observers, J. M. Kelly; John Hadlee; James Relfe; and William Newberry, were so impressed with what they found that they wrote a letter to the Western Eagle newspaper in Cape Girardeau for wide distribution. Here the Arcadia

It seems like Almost Yesterday that Ken Sisler of Dexter, Mo., received our nation’s highest award for valor: the Congressional Medal of Honor. Lieutenant Sisler was born in Dexter Sept. 19, 1937, graduated from Dexter High School in 1955, attended Arkansas State University, spent five years in the Air Force, and then returned to Arkansas State where he graduated in 1964. In 1963, he won the National Collegiate Skydiving Championship while competing with his leg in a cast. In 1965, Sisler

It seems like Almost Yesterday that a “crank-in” was held in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. The motive that brought approximately eighty “Crankers” from across the United States and Canada together on the first weekend in April of 2011 was the unveiling of the Erlbacher - Gearhart hand-powered, knitting machine invented in the last half of the nineteenth century in Clearfield, Pennsylvania. The Gearhart knitting machine company was used primarily to knit socks, but the machine was capable of

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.

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 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 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

It seems like Almost Yesterday that Dr. Lee Turley was delivering babies and providing medical care to the residents of St. Francois County Missouri. For over 45 years, from 1890 to 1935, Dr. Turley became one of those legendary family doctors who became both physician and friend to three generations – and hundreds of families. Dr. Turley was born in 1862 and raised on a farm north and west of Bonne Terre. His grandfather, Aaron Turley, was one of the early settlers of St. Francois County, and