*

Garret B. Kremer-Wright

Local History

Garret B. Kremer-Wright has worked as the archivist for The State Historical Society of Missouri since February 2018. He earned his BS in Historic Preservation from Southeast Missouri State University and MA in Public History from Wright State University.

Cape Girardeau's World War I bid for a U.S. Navy armor plant

Saturday, December 7, 2019

On Aug. 29, 1916, the United States Congress assigned a committee of three -- Adm. Frank F. Fletcher, Cmdr. Frank Clark and Naval Engineer R.E. Bakenhus -- to select a location for a new U.S. Navy armory plant to produce steel for their vessels. Several Missouri cities submitted bids for the location including Hannibal, Louisiana and Cape Girardeau. Numerous other cities in the surrounding states also submitted bids, including Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee.

To continue reading
For more than 115 years, the Southeast Missourian has written the first draft of local history. We have aspired to enrich, entertain, educate and inform. Our core values have remained firm: truth, service, quality, integrity and community. Support our mission.