`TREASURES' ATTRACT VISITORS TO OUR DOORSTEP

~Correction: District Fair was held at Capaha Park until 1929. There was then a lapse of 10 years, and in 1939 the fair was revived at Arena Park.

Long before there was a small community on the Mississippi River between St. Louis and the mouth of the Ohio River named "Cape Girardeau," the name was being used by river men to distinguish the place where a French ensign stationed at Fort Kaskaskia named "Girardot" traded in furs with the Indians. His trading post on the west side of the Mississippi was in a cape enclosure, part of a huge bluff that extended into the river.

What remains today of this ancient trading post is known as "Cape Rock," a park-like setting high on the remains of the once larger rock formation that extended into the river, but was cut when the Frisco tracks were laid prior to 1904 to enable the train to take Southeast Missourian residents to the St. Louis World's Fair.

Southeast Missouri has always appealed to tourists as an interesting place to visit. They came south on steamboats before there was railroad service, and then trains increased visitors' interests, as later did motorcar travel. Cape Girardeau was mentioned in old history books, as were the stories about Louis Lorimier the original and only commandant of the river city.

Long before the counties of eastern Missouri were designated by name, trappers were drawn to the area because of the furs that could be obtained from the wild animals that lived in the forests. The fame of Missouri furs spread to Europe and Canada where furs were in demand for coats, hats and trimmings.

The steamboat era was one of the picturesque periods in the city's life. Today something of that era is relived every time the Delta Queen and the Mississippi Queen dock at the port at Themis Street. But some of the past is missing, especially the welcoming voices of the black employees from the hotels who met the boats and offered to carry visitors' luggage to the St. Charles, or the Riverview Hotel.

Jake Cravens was one of those men, a large black man who owned a dray and would deliver luggage any place in the city a tourist wanted it sent. He could swing a trunk up onto his back so easy with no sign of it being anything but as light as a feather. A long flight of stairs did not bother him and he was never known to fuss, or forget to carry a smile on his face. When Jake died, the city of Cape Girardeau lost a faithful and cheerful resident and no one ever took his place. Like the old-time steamboats, he faded into the past but has not been forgotten.

During the steamboat years, there were buggies for hire to accommodate travelers and after train service came to the city, taxies operated in the Cape Girardeau area.

In the summer, streetcars had open sides and long walkways provided a means of easy boarding and were cooler than the enclosed cars used in cities.

Capaha Park had the first municipal swimming pool in the area. Before it was built, children and adults used swimming holes they discovered, one of them being the old quarry near the location of the first Blue Hole near the Marquette Cement Plant. It was deep and a swimmer had to be good to swim there, especially since the water was very cold. The water stimulated one's appetite and barbecue sandwiches tasted very good after a swim.

The District Fair was held in Capaha Park from 1904 until 1929, when it was moved to Arena Park where it remains and operates every September. (SEE CORRECTION) The move was made so more farmers could display their cattle and produce; and women had a better place to display their fancy work, crafts and kitchen art in good things to eat, as well as flowers, and garden produce.

In fact, tourists found much to see and explore in Cape Girardeau and still do. Each year, the number of visitors to the area grows larger.