Why do people think that others are supposed to be perfect and then condemn them when they fail? Humans as a species have always put others on pedestals and then tear them down when they make a mistake. We put our trust in people and then get hurt…

On a blistering summer day, taking a dip in the pool is like paradise. Some are fortunate enough to own a private pool, but those who are not flock towards a community pool. The issue with this is that not every city has a public pool, and not…

Many in the area, like me, have wondered about the history of the three-story building at DuBois and Hwy 79 that was demolished this past week. Depending on who you talk to there have been many names for that building over the years, but since 1991…

About 9:00 a.m., the Ottumwa Belle, a steamboat excursion from Keokuk, Quincy, and Hannibal, which was carrying a group of about 300 African Americans, arrived at the wharf in Clarksville, MO. As church bells were ringing, beckoning late-arriving…

In 1914, war erupted in Europe; dividing the European nations into allied factions. Great Britain and Germany would play a major role in leading rival allies against each other. War was expanding, the death toll was increasing, and food rations were…

My Great Great Uncle Wade Lovelace, and his wife Iza Trail, were among the many who only knew their child for brief moments. My Great Great Uncle Leonard Worsham and his wife Sarah’s infant met the same fate. Sadly, many other parents endured the…

When researching the Donley family, and also through the stories my family has told, it has become apparent that the Donley/Royster family kept in close contact with their former African-American slaves long after the end of the Civil War. In the…

My great-great-grandfather, John Thomas Uptegrove, was a barber in Elsberry for over fifty years.* According to his obituary, he learned the barber trade from Will Foster. John Uptegrove started in the barber trade on February 1, 1901. Shortly…

In 1845, the Irish Potato Famine, also known as the Great Hunger, struck Ireland. Over the next few years, the famine would kill a devastating amount of nearly 1 million people, which does not include the less fortunate passengers that passed away…

August H. Wehmeyer and Caroline Rothert decided to emigrate from Germany to the United States in 1871. They traveled by steamship to Baltimore, Maryland and, in that same year, moved to Cincinnati, Ohio (Baltimore Passenger and Immigration Lists). …