- Writing parking tickets with a friendly smile (4/23/24)1
- Mayor Ford, Kiwanis light up Capaha Park's diamond (4/16/24)1
- The rise and fall of Capaha Park's wooden grandstand (4/9/24)
- Death of Judge Pat Dyer, prosecutor of the famous peonage case here in 1906 (4/2/24)2
- A third steamer Cape Girardeau was christened 100 years ago (3/26/24)
- Cape Girardeau christens its namesake (3/19/24)
- The humanist philosophy of Lester Mondale (3/12/24)1
From the Morgue
The Southeast Missourian's resident historian Sharon K. Sanders blogs about interesting pieces of local history pulled from the newspaper's morgue -- the place where our old editions are kept.
Courthouse Park sundial honors William F.D. Batjer
Posted Thursday, January 31, 2013, at 12:00 AM
(William F.D. Batjer, circa 1929)
If you've ever walked through the Common Pleas Courthouse Park in downtown Cape Girardeau, you may have taken the time to read the various markers and memorials that line the park's paths. One of the most unique markers is a sundial located in front of the Courthouse Annex, formerly the Cape Girardeau Public Library.
The sundial is a memorial to a man named William F.D. Batjer. But have you ever taken the time to find out who Mr. Batjer was and why the town thought him worthy of honoring in such a public manner? If not, here are some articles that will answer those questions.
Shortly after his death, a movement was started to honor Batjer's memory. In June 1938, the sundial in Courthouse Park was dedicated.
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