In 1963, tragedy struck the town of Jackson, its high school, a teacher and a family. Richard Burton Partridge was born June 20, 1925, in Evanston, Illinois, and married Martha Weaver in 1954. Partridge received a master’s degree from the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music. He and his wife, along with their five children, moved to Jackson in 1960, when he become the director of music at the Jackson School District. He passed away Friday, June 9, 1989, just nine months after his wife, Martha.

This month's article is an introduction to one of the educational tubs for loan from the Red Clifton military collection at the Cape County History Center. More articles will follow later. The U.S. military has evolved since the founding of this country and each branch has a name for where troops eat. ...

The Cape Girardeau County Historical Society has come into possession of some military memorabilia thanks to a man who was an avid collector of all things military. Robert "Red" Clifton (1930-2020) was a person who dedicated his life to the service of others...

Approximately 100 years ago, before Cape Girardeau became known as the City of Roses, it had the nickname of The Marble City. Besides the limestone deposits in the area, Cape Girardeau was known for its marble. A marble that was dense and 99% pure, making it a great source in buildings because it didn't lose its bright white color...

Ninety years ago, the Cape County Anti-Horse Thief Association (CCAHTA) ceased its existence. While the Cape Girardeau County Historical Society's Research Annex has information on the organization, most of the material relates to the state and national organizations. Very little exists about the local organization and its attempt to assist authorities in curbing the theft of horses. The following information comes from some original documents and news articles...

The Cape Girardeau County Historical Society Research Annex has almost 100 years of small manuscripts on almost everything that has happened in Cape County, before Missouri became a state to the present day. The majority of the information we have is historical, but there are articles and stories that fall under the category of folklore. ...

In processing small manuscripts at the Cape County Historical Society Research Annex, I come across many collections about people I wish I had time to explore. Thanks to Alice Ireland of the Research Annex for helping pull together this information about one of Cape Girardeau's own daughters, who appears to have been a very independent woman...

Felix Eugene Snider was born in 1908 and married Juanita Smith May 25, 1932. They raised three children, Robert Allen, Mary Felicia and Richard Eugene. He came to Southeast Missouri Teachers College as a student worker at 16, shortly after graduating high school, and worked for Sadie Kent. Felix worked at the SEMO library for 40-plus years before he passed away, just before retiring...

In February 1857 the Illinois State Legislature incorporated the Cairo City Hotel Company with 14 incorporators. Work soon began on a hotel, but in June 1858 a flood caused one of the foundation walls to collapse. As soon as the water receded work began again, and the hotel was completed in January 1859, opening under the name St. ...

This story comes from an oral history regarding the first female officers on the Cape Girardeau police force. Alice Ireland, president of the Cape Girardeau County Historical Society, brought this story to me while doing some research for Judy Correll Sander of Texas, and it was confirmed by David Giles, a retired administrator for the Cape Girardeau School District...

I always think of May as the start of summer and a time for remembering our veterans and their sacrifice on Memorial Day. Mound City, Illinois, had a hospital during the Civil War that led to the creation of a National Cemetery. In 1860, the town had a population of 898, peaking in 1910 at 2,837. ...

Have you ever driven past something several times, paying little, if any attention, and all of a sudden it seems to jump right out at you? That was my experience a few weeks ago in Cairo, Illinois. Most of my trips to Cairo are for research. Then there's always Schemwell's Barbecue for a meal. My experience this last time was noticing "The Hewer" in Halliday Park. I had seen it before, but now I wanted to know its history...

I volunteer one day a week at the Research Annex for the Cape Girardeau County Historical Society in Jackson to help process their small manuscript collection, which is almost 100 years of files. It might sound boring to some, but for a historian, it's a great read of history on Cape Girardeau County. I get to meet people, most of whom have passed, who have contributed to the history of our county. About a month ago I came across a file named "David E. Hayes, Cape Poet."...

James R. Reid was born in Auburn, Missouri, Feb. 18, 1838, the fourth child of seven. He grew up in Lincoln County, Missouri, receiving his education at Prairieville Academy, founded by his father, James Reid Sr. After graduation in 1856, he began his teaching career in Pike County, Missouri, then taught a short time in Nebraska before returning to Missouri to open a high school with M.S. Goodman at Clarksville, where he taught mathematics...

Do you ever look at a street name or town name and wonder where the name came from or why it was used? Christmas time is considered a time of reflection, and I've been thinking about another town whose identity has faded away. A merger in 1980 with Scott City brought the town of Illmo to an end. ...

This article has been altered to correct information about the Sisters of the Holy Cross. The USS Red Rover, a side-wheel packet boat and the Navy's first hospital ship, has a history with Mound City, Illinois. It was repaired there and brought hundreds of wounded soldiers to the hospital during the Civil War. The boat's name may have originated from the children's game, Red Rover, or possibly James Fenimore Cooper's 1827 novel about an integrated group of friends chasing a pirate named the Red Rover...

Graysboro, Missouri, was a small town located at Grays Point on the Mississippi River in northeast Scott County. The town's short life left a lasting impact on the area. Its short life of eight to 10 years is a "boom to doom" story caused by rapid railroad growth. U.S. Postal records show a post office in existence there between 1898 and 1907...

My grandmother had a saying, "Sometimes big things come in small packages." I believe this applies to Mound City, Illinois, when it comes to its impact on helping the Union Army win the Civil War. To win the Civil War in the West, the Union had to capture and control the major waterways, such as the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. Cairo and Mound City, Illinois, played a major role because of their contribution, not a large decisive battle...

The land where the current Jackson High School stands on Missouri Street has been home to many different schools serving the Jackson and the surrounding area. The Jackson Military and Finishing School opened in 1899 in the former Carlisle Training School after it closed its doors. ...

This article about the contribution of Cairo, Illinois, to building the Eads bridge demonstrates that what may appear insignificant at one time can have profound effects another time. Cairo is located at the tip of Southern Illinois at the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. ...

Visiting a national cemetery can be a humbling experience, especially around holidays such as Memorial Day. You stand there looking at thousands of white marble headstones realizing what lies before you are the bodies of people who were prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice for their country, and many did make the sacrifice...

Part 1 of this article focused on three places for historical research in Cape Girardeau. This part is about three facilities in Jackson. The Cape Girardeau County Courthouse, which includes only public records of the county and no personal collections, was left off the list...

I thought I would change things up and do an article on historical research facilities and the people who make a researcher's life much easier. In a recent conversation with a friend, a question came up about how many historical research facilities are in Cape Girardeau County. ...

In late January 1902, crews of men showed up in the little town of Thebes, Illinois, 9 miles south of Cape Girardeau on the east bank of the Mississippi River to begin building a bridge that would have an enormous impact on the region. Thebes, first known as Sparhawk Landing, briefly served as the county seat for Alexander County and by the late 19th century, the Chicago and Eastern Illinois (C&EI) railroad had located a major terminal at Thebes. ...

Now that the winter solstice is behind us, I begin to think of days getting longer, if only by seconds, and look forward to spring and summer. The Cape Girardeau Municipal Band and its outside concerts come to mind. ...