the State Historical Society of Missouri
![Luella St. Clair Moss. [The College Widow, Christian College, 1918]](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header_image/public/2021-03/1-Luella-St.-Clair-Moss.jpg?h=c9bfe508&itok=3dlVYFIq "Luella St. Clair Moss. [The College Widow, Christian College, 1918]")
Luella St. Clair Moss, an educator and community activist, was born in Virden, Illinois, to…
![Friedrich Muench. [State Historical Society of Missouri, Warren County Photograph Collection (P1141), 014066]](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header_image/public/2021-03/1-Friedrich-Muench.jpg?h=edea59cd&itok=6vvFtQ7G "Friedrich Muench. [State Historical Society of Missouri, Warren County Photograph Collection (P1141), 014066]")
Friedrich Muench was born on June 25, 1799, the son of a Lutheran pastor in Niedergemuenden in the German…
![John Mullanphy. [William Hyde and Howard L. Conard, eds., Encyclopedia of the History of St. Louis, vol. 3 (1899)]](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header_image/public/2021-09/1-John_Mullanphy.jpg?h=5986835a&itok=Fo6mCsCS "John Mullanphy. [William Hyde and Howard L. Conard, eds., Encyclopedia of the History of St. Louis, vol. 3 (1899)]")
John Mullanphy, a merchant and philanthropist, was born in 1758 in northern Ireland near…
![Carry Nation. [Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, LC-DIG-ggbain-05640]](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header_image/public/2021-03/1-Carry-Nation.jpg?h=1ca7a6de&itok=1hVmh7KW "Carry Nation. [Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, LC-DIG-ggbain-05640]")
Carry Amelia Moore Nation, an internationally known temperance crusader, was born on…
![William Rockhill Nelson. [State Historical Society of Missouri, Missouri Press Portraits Collection, P1196-014545]](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header_image/public/2021-03/1-William-Rockhill-Nelson.jpg?h=8a606310&itok=rezhFlPS "William Rockhill Nelson. [State Historical Society of Missouri, Missouri Press Portraits Collection, P1196-014545]")
Of British, Quaker, and Huguenot heritage, William Rockhill Nelson was born five miles west…
![The Nelson Hotel, formerly known as Nelson Tavern, in Lebanon, Missouri. [State Historical Society of Missouri, John F. Bradbury Jr. Postcard Collection, R1551]](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header_image/public/2026-02/1.-nelsons-dream-village.jpg?itok=bNCVuc4O "The Nelson Hotel, formerly known as Nelson Tavern, in Lebanon, Missouri. [State Historical Society of Missouri, John F. Bradbury Jr. Postcard Collection, R1551]")
At the intersection of Route 66 and Highway 5 in Lebanon, Nelson’s Dream Village was one of the finest…
![Howard Nemerov. [Washington University Libraries, Special Collections, Howard Nemerov Papers]](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header_image/public/2021-09/1-Howard_Nemerov.jpg?h=17b87167&itok=5aRtdbee "Howard Nemerov. [Washington University Libraries, Special Collections, Howard Nemerov Papers]")
Howard Nemerov was born on February 29, 1920, in New York City, and died on July 5, 1991,…
During the early hours of December 16, 1811, a series of violent shakes roused inhabitants of the mid-Mississippi…
![This map shows the layout of the small village of Newtonia as it existed during the Civil War. [Courtesy of Larry Wood]](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header_image/public/2021-09/1-First-Battle-of-Newtonia.jpg?h=98386c46&itok=8rip4ZYY "This map shows the layout of the small village of Newtonia as it existed during the Civil War. [Courtesy of Larry Wood]")
During the early months of the Civil War, the Missouri State Guard and the Confederate Army combined to win…
![A map of the battlefield at Newtonia on October 28, 1864. [State Historical Society of Missouri Map Collection, 850 P9311]](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header_image/public/2024-05/1.-second-battle-of-newtonia.jpg?h=b8936874&itok=blJfH5Ye "A map of the battlefield at Newtonia on October 28, 1864. [State Historical Society of Missouri Map Collection, 850 P9311]")
From the time Confederate forces were driven out of Missouri in early 1862, General …
![Frank O’Hare as a young man. [Missouri Historical Society, St. Louis]](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header_image/public/2022-09/1.%20Francis%20Peter%20OHare.jpg?h=4f4df08b&itok=VCeFjcgi "Frank O’Hare as a young man. [Missouri Historical Society, St. Louis]")
Francis Peter “Frank” O’Hare was born in New Hampton, Iowa, on April 23, 1877, to Peter…
![Jack Oakie. [University of Washington Libraries, Special Collections, J. Willis Sayre Collection of Theatrical Photographs, JWS25751]](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header_image/public/2022-06/1.%20Jack%20Oakie_0.jpg?h=f008bb98&itok=7RltpLAI "Jack Oakie. [University of Washington Libraries, Special Collections, J. Willis Sayre Collection of Theatrical Photographs, JWS25751]")
Jack Oakie was long considered one of the screen’s most notorious scene-stealers. He had a…
![Oasis Night Club. [State Historical Society of Missouri, Newspaper Collection, Joplin News Herald, November 29, 1937]](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header_image/public/2026-06/1.-oasis_joplin_news_herald_1937_11_29_11.jpg?itok=hQ5jL3oG "Oasis Night Club. [State Historical Society of Missouri, Newspaper Collection, Joplin News Herald, November 29, 1937]")
The Oasis Night Club in Central City, Missouri, was one of the last businesses westbound travelers on Route…
![Mo-Hon-Go (Sacred Sun), an Osage woman, and her child. [State Historical Society of Missouri, Image Collection, 021180]](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header_image/public/2020-07/Osage-woman-and-child.jpg?h=238c05a8&itok=9oO6EF7v "Mo-Hon-Go (Sacred Sun), an Osage woman, and her child. [State Historical Society of Missouri, Image Collection, 021180]")
![Henry Clemens Overstolz. [William Hyde and Howard L. Conard, eds., Encyclopedia of the History of St. Louis (New York: Southern History Co., 1899)]](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header_image/public/2020-07/Henry-Clemens-Overstolz.jpg?h=e0a3fa4b&itok=G14kmhh1 "Henry Clemens Overstolz. [William Hyde and Howard L. Conard, eds., Encyclopedia of the History of St. Louis (New York: Southern History Co., 1899)]")
Henry Clemens Overstolz was a St. Louis businessman and politician. He was born on July 7,…
![Jim Owen promoting the Branson Silver Cornet Band, one of his many enterprises. [Courtesy of Trenton Thompson/Findagrave.com]](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header_image/public/2021-03/1-James-Owen.jpg?h=e01d5501&itok=gFy5vygh "Jim Owen promoting the Branson Silver Cornet Band, one of his many enterprises. [Courtesy of Trenton Thompson/Findagrave.com]")
James M. Owen, a young advertising and insurance professional in Jefferson City, left mid-…
![Luella Agnes Owen, circa 1880s. Colorized photograph by Uhlman Photographers, St. Joseph. [Courtesy of the St. Joseph Museums, Inc., object no. P2013.003.00020]](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header_image/public/2025-05/1.-luella-owen.jpg?h=e69abb05&itok=3VIUiavE "Luella Agnes Owen, circa 1880s. Colorized photograph by Uhlman Photographers, St. Joseph. [Courtesy of the St. Joseph Museums, Inc., object no. P2013.003.00020]")
Luella Agnes Owen was a female pioneer in the fields of speleology, geography, and geology. She viewed these…
![Benjamin O’Fallon. [Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery, NPG.81.33]](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header_image/public/2021-09/OFallon_Benjamin.jpg?h=096e177c&itok=8fFddcEx "Benjamin O’Fallon. [Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery, NPG.81.33]")
Prominent in Missouri as an Indian agent and advocate of the American fur-trade interests…
![John O’Fallon. [William Hyde and Howard L. Conard, eds., Encyclopedia of the History of St. Louis, vol. 3]](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header_image/public/2021-09/OFallon_John.jpg?h=4b482cab&itok=yHEjO0-m "John O’Fallon. [William Hyde and Howard L. Conard, eds., Encyclopedia of the History of St. Louis, vol. 3]")
John O’Fallon, a St. Louis merchant, banker, and philanthropist, was widely praised after…
![The O’Joe Club in Noel, Missouri. [Courtesy of Dorene Stiles and Noel Centennial, 1887–1987]](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header_image/public/2026-01/1.-ojoe-club.jpg?itok=-TEcfm4d "The O’Joe Club in Noel, Missouri. [Courtesy of Dorene Stiles and Noel Centennial, 1887–1987]")
The O’Joe Club in Noel, Missouri, was one of the first commercial resorts in the Ozarks. Although it was not…
![Geraldine Page and Rip Torn on stage in Strange Interlude. [New York Public Library Digital Collections, Billy Rose Theatre Division, Friedman-Abeles Photograph Collection, #5026079]](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header_image/public/2020-07/Geraldine-Page-and-Rip-Torn.jpg?h=58818689&itok=x7bZnVuc "Geraldine Page and Rip Torn on stage in Strange Interlude. [New York Public Library Digital Collections, Billy Rose Theatre Division, Friedman-Abeles Photograph Collection, #5026079]")
Geraldine Page was born in Kirksville, Missouri, on November 22, 1924, to Leon Elwin Page,…
![An early edition of the Missouri Intelligencer and Boon’s Lick Advertiser, August 20, 1819. [State Historical Society of Missouri, Newspaper Collection]](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header_image/public/2020-07/Nathaniel-Patten-Boon%27s-Lick-Advertiser.jpg?h=f7ec007d&itok=de0Iqt-i "An early edition of the Missouri Intelligencer and Boon’s Lick Advertiser, August 20, 1819. [State Historical Society of Missouri, Newspaper Collection]")
Nathaniel Patten Jr. could be characterized as Missouri’s quintessential pioneer country…
![John Mason Peck. [Album of Missouri Baptists (St. Louis: Central Baptist Pub. Co., 1904), p. 2]](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header_image/public/2020-07/John-Mason-Peck.jpg?h=ef195d8b&itok=yT860gN7 "John Mason Peck. [Album of Missouri Baptists (St. Louis: Central Baptist Pub. Co., 1904), p. 2]")
John Mason Peck, a pioneer, Baptist missionary, noted preacher, author, and journalist on…
![Manuel Pérez. [Missouri Historical Society, St. Louis, Objects Collection, X04268]](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header_image/public/2020-07/Manuel-Perez.jpg?h=a9b70126&itok=LZTYu_GW "Manuel Pérez. [Missouri Historical Society, St. Louis, Objects Collection, X04268]")
Manuel Pérez, Spanish lieutenant governor in St. Louis from 1787 to 1792, was born in…
![Marlin Perkins holding a bison calf. [Marlin Perkins Papers (S0516), State Historical Society of Missouri]](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header_image/public/2024-02/1.-marlin-perkins.jpg?h=340ad325&itok=fjnCeB_T "Marlin Perkins holding a bison calf. [Marlin Perkins Papers (S0516), State Historical Society of Missouri]")
Marlin Perkins served as director at three zoos during his career: the Zoological Gardens in Buffalo, New York; the…