Author Archives: foothillsmedia

In early December, 1982 the towns of Lutesville and Marble Hill were devastated when area flooding caused Crooked Creek to overflow its banks and entered local homes and businesses. The flooding was so severe it made the headlines of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch in its December 05, 1982 edition which reported: “Lutesville- Crooked Creek isContinue reading “Flood of 1982 Devastated Lutesville / Marble Hill, Missouri”

The March 14, 1929 Greenville Sun carried the obituary of Mrs. J. N. Birdwell (other papers reported her name as J.M. Birdwell), which stated, in part: “Mrs. J.N. Birdwell, aged Patterson citizen, passed away at her home there Tuesday after an illness of almost three weeks with pneumonia following an attack of the flu. Mrs.Continue reading “Patterson Woman Served Two Governors”

The May 23, 1972 issue of The Daily Standard (Sikeston, Missouri) reported the robbery of the Bollinger County Bank the previous day. According to the paper a masked gunman entered the bank with a revolver and demanded the teller empty her cash drawer. The teller stated that she thought it was a joke at firstContinue reading “Bank Robbery in Lutesville!”

Lately I’ve been finding a lot of information on the railroad that passed through Bollinger county. Originally built by the St. Louis Iron Mountain and Southern, the line eventually fell into the hands of the Missouri Pacific railroad and though few signs remain to remind the public the railroad existed, it was once an engineeringContinue reading “Burlison Opposed Abandonment of the Belmont Branch”

The May 26, 1871 Perryville Weekly Union documented a rivalry of sorts between it and the Bollinger county Standard. The cause of the rivalry was whether or not the Iron Mountain railroad would be built through Bollinger or Perry county. The Weekly Union quoted the Bollinger county Standard which had reported: “Perry county is anglingContinue reading “Bollinger, Perry Counties Competed for Railroad”

The Perryville Weekly Union archives have really turned out to be a treasure trove for Southeast Missouri history. The May 15, 1863 edition of the paper reports of Frank Valle capturing capturing local militia members stating: “Militia Captured – We are informed that on last Sunday evening, while Henry Farrar, Daniel Rhyne and Major Clifton,Continue reading “Frank Valle Captures Union Militia”

Most of us were probably taught that the American Civil War was fought over slavery. In reality, the reasons for the war were far more complicated. Abraham Lincoln issued the emancipation proclamation on January 1, 1863. This was done for political purposes. From the Digital History website: “In August 1862, Lincoln stated: “If I could save the unionContinue reading “Many Unionists Protected Slavery”

From the June 19, 1867 Daily Missouri Republican, a story of a horse thief from Bollinger county horse thief named “Brake” and a Madison county sheriff who planned to “break” him of his hobby. The writer of the article had fun with a little play on words. Quoting from the article: “Sheriff Cooper, of MadisonContinue reading “Breaking Brake”

I’ve been finding some historical gems in the archives of the Perryville Weekly Union as of late. Some are rare historical finds while some are are historical and humorous. This is of the humorous variety. The May 29, 1863 edition of the paper carried the story of a Mr. Herwig who was arrested by SheriffContinue reading “Hidden in a Hogshead”