Family tours courthouse jail cell as part of reunion

Family reunions often include tales of infamous uncles and courageous matriarchs told over a meal of crispy fried chicken and homemade pie, but few are highlighted by a tour of a dungeon.

But for those attending the 46th annual reunion for descendants of Clyde Vandivort, walking through the bowels of the Common Pleas Courthouse Saturday morning in Cape Girardeau was a lesson in family history. There, they viewed the dungeon where their ancestor, Linus Sanford, a Harvard-educated attorney who later became a notable resident of Jackson, was held as a political prisoner during the Civil War.

Dr. Paul Vandivort of St. Louis told the tale he had been told as a boy by his uncle, Russell "Bucky" Vandivort, in the 1940s.

"It's changed a lot," he said. "I remember there were shackles on the walls, and a dirt and stone floor and steel bars. It used to be a lot bigger, they've incorporated some of it since for other means."

His family is fortunate to have continued the reunions for 46 years, he said. Most people come every year.

"We belong to a tradition, we're connected to the ground, the land and this part of the country," Vandivort said. "This is where we originate and have come from for generations."

The trip below to the dungeon was a brief respite from the day's heat outside, as many continued a tour of downtown Cape Girardeau to spot many buildings with ties to the Vandivort family, including the Sturdivant Bank Building on Main Street and the Christ Episcopal Church on North Fountain.

Many attending the reunion have come from far away, including both coasts. For Mary DeVaul, daughter of Bucky Vandivort, the trip back remains special each year. Though she has never lived in Cape Girardeau, she considers it her family home.

"I love it, because this reunion is arranged so I can learn more each time I come," she said. "It really makes a difference to me because I've lived in many places, but I know where I came from."

mwells@semissourian.com

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