the State Historical Society of Missouri
![Joseph Robidoux. [State Historical Society of Missouri Image Collections]](/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/2021-09/1-Joseph_Robidoux.jpg?itok=COV1tKu8 "Joseph Robidoux. [State Historical Society of Missouri Image Collections]")
Joseph Robidoux, III (1783–1868)
Joseph Robidoux III, the eldest son of a large family, was born in St. Louis on August 10, 1783, to Joseph and Catherine Rollette Robidoux.
Tanis C. Thorne
Tanis C. Thorne is retired from the Department of History at the University of California, Irvine.
William S. Worley
William S. Worley is a history instructor at Metropolitan Community College–Blue River.
Larry E. Wood
Larry E. Wood is the author of numerous books and articles on the history of Missouri and its region. A retired English teacher, he lives in Joplin, Missouri.
![Howard Nemerov. [Washington University Libraries, Special Collections, Howard Nemerov Papers]](/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/2021-09/1-Howard_Nemerov.jpg?itok=rBCh-sec "Howard Nemerov. [Washington University Libraries, Special Collections, Howard Nemerov Papers]")
Howard Nemerov (1920–1991)
Howard Nemerov was born on February 29, 1920, in New York City, and died on July 5, 1991, at his home in St. Louis.
Donna L. Potts
Donna L. Potts is professor and chair of the Department of English at Washington State University.
![Susan Shelby Magoffin. [Missouri Historical Society, St. Louis, Photographs and Prints Collection, N12846]](/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/2021-09/1-Susan_Shelby_Magoffin.jpg?itok=_tzjZ-qM "Susan Shelby Magoffin. [Missouri Historical Society, St. Louis, Photographs and Prints Collection, N12846]")
Susan Shelby Magoffin (1827-1855)
Susan Shelby Magoffin was born on July 30, 1827, at Arcasia, her father’s estate near Danville, Kentucky.
![Jeffrey Deroine (second from right) with Ioways. [State Historical Society of Missouri, Robert Wright Photograph Collection, P0011]](/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/2021-09/1-Jeffrey_Deroine.jpg?itok=lEdB8cKo "Jeffrey Deroine (second from right) with Ioways. [State Historical Society of Missouri, Robert Wright Photograph Collection, P0011]")
Jeffrey Deroine (1806–1859)
Jeffrey Deroine (pronounced Der-oh-NAY) defied many of the limitations placed on enslaved people in early nineteenth-century Missouri
![J. Christian Bay. [State Historical Society of Missouri, Jens Christian Bay Portraits, P0206-027598]](/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/2021-09/1-J_Christian_Bay.jpg?itok=nldBRJET "J. Christian Bay. [State Historical Society of Missouri, Jens Christian Bay Portraits, P0206-027598]")
J. Christian Bay (1871–1962)
J. Christian Bay was born to Lars and Doris Christiansen Bay on October 12, 1871, in Rudkohing, Denmark.
![Mary Elizabeth Mahnkey. [State Historical Society of Missouri, Mary Kathy Dains Photograph Collection, P0300]](/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/2021-09/1-Mary_Elizabeth_Mahnkey.jpg?itok=YfHCYWEv "Mary Elizabeth Mahnkey. [State Historical Society of Missouri, Mary Kathy Dains Photograph Collection, P0300]")
Mary Elizabeth Mahnkey (1877–1948)
Mary Elizabeth Mahnkey was a lifelong newspaper and magazine journalist, and a regional poet. Born in Boone County, Arkansas, on August 16, 1877, but reared in Taney County, Missouri, she began writing for the public at age fourteen.