OLD ST. VINCENT'S SEMINARY WILL OFFER TOURS FOR RIVERFEST

A southern addition to Riverfest will offer celebrants a quiet, historical and scenic repose from the crowd and activity this year.

Old St. Vincent's Seminary and College, 201 Morgan Oak, will be conducting guided tours along with opening the 153-year-old structure and grounds to the public.

Diana Steele, vice chairman of the board of the Colonial Cape Girardeau Foundation, said visitors can stroll south past the Mississippi River bridge and walk up into history.

"If you decide you have partaken in way too much of the delicacies and the music has just about wiped out your acoustic nerve, this is the opportune time to wander south on Spanish Street. The main steps to the seminary are directly across on Morgan Oak," Steele said.

Members of the foundation will present slide shows depicting the history of the seminary, to be followed by guided tours at 6:30 p.m. Friday, and from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday. Steele said maps of the seminary also will be available for visitors who would like to take self-guided tours at any time during Riverfest.

St. Vincent's Seminary was constructed in 1843 and has been subjected to attacks by both nature and man, withstanding a tornado in 1850 and shelling during the Civil War.

The scars from these encounters, plus a huge explosion in 1849 of a ship moored below the seminary that was loaded with 1,500 barrels of gunpowder, add character to the shade and serenity of the area. The lasting impact of that explosion, which broke every window in the seminary, tore off all the plaster and raised the roof two inches, still can be seen in the awkward tilt of the staircase in Building A.

Other areas of interest at the seminary are the Initial Tree, which is the largest Beech tree in Missouri and carries the engraved initials of students from as far back as the first class at St. Vincent's; the bell tower, which commands an exciting view of Cape Girardeau; the boiler room, with its weeping sandstone and limestone foundation; the grotto, with its view of the river; the two-story red chapel, with its stained-glass windows with dedications back to 1880; and the theater, with its tiny projection room where students used to sneak off for cigarettes.

Steele said the grounds of the seminary would be ideal for those interested in taking a picnic break from the Riverfest's activities.

"When you bring your family down for Riverfest, please get that meal to go and come eat on our grounds," she said. "Bring the dog and the Frisbee."