While James’s regiment was in Humboldt, Tennessee, they repeatedly received orders to go to Corinth, Mississippi, but the orders were later revoked. During this time, 160 members of the company got sick from eating bad fruit. Finally, on July 3, the regiment took the train to Corinth. While James and his company moved from Tennessee to Mississippi, they received news of the war from other parts of the country, especially regarding the activities of Major General George B. McClellan in Virginia. Read more »

St. Louis holds a unique and important place in Olympic history as the first American city to host the modern games. Earning the title, however, was not a victory easily won. Read more »

A large force of Union troops, including James’s 8th Kansas Infantry regiment, moved throughout Tennessee and Kentucky to fight Confederates led by General P. G. T. Beauregard. While proceeding from Union City, Tennessee, to Corinth, Mississippi, the 8th Kansas Infantry was ordered to Trenton, Tennessee, where the Union expected an enemy attack that never occurred.

Headquarters Eighth Regiment Kansas Volunteers
Trenton, Tennessee
June 23d 1862

My Dear Molly Read more »

The installation of Missouri History Museum's upcoming Underneath It All exhibition is well under way. Risers have been placed around the outer wall, providing the perfect height to view the "models" as they strut their stuff through the 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries of women's fashion. With the "runway" constructed, exhibition curator Shannon Meyer and exhibition registrar Amy Berra transport the artifacts/costumes from the Museum's storage facility to the exhibition gallery. Read more »

Waddell & Reed and Ivy Funds have created an ambitious and unconventional acknowledgement of the firm’s 75th anniversary: in partnership with the National World War I Museum, a custom 18-wheel “big rig” truck has been transformed into a traveling gallery that will visit 75 communities across the country, stopping at a variety of local museums and cultural institutions to raise funds and awareness. Read more »

The Missouri History Museum Library and Archives is a tremendous resource for those studying their family history. In this video, MHM associate archivist Dennis Northcott shares how he discovered a document relating to his great-great-grandfather. Interested in finding your own ancestors in the Museum's archives? Get started here. Read more »

Over the years, I have heard people speak of the Home Defender newspaper in a derogatory way. I had never looked at it myself until one day when a copy of it happened to turn up in front of me. It was the Dec. 11, 1915, edition, and I thought I would take a look. The Home Defender defended restrictive covenants in housing. A vote on the issue was coming up on Feb. 29, 1916, and the paper was encouraging people to vote for the restrictive covenants. Read more »

My husband's passion for the local food trucks that show up weekly at his place of work and on the second Friday of each summer month in Tower Grove Park made me wonder how long St. Louisans have been buying food out of the back or side of a vehicle. Through a quick search of our digitized photograph collection, it turns out the ritual has been going on for more than 100 years. Back in 1904 the Third Street Market consisted of a manic assortment of horse-drawn wagons and carts, all selling food. Read more »

East St. Louis jazz legend Miles Davis is the newest face of the U.S. Postal Service. Yesterday stamps were released featuring him playing the trumpet. In a collaboration with La Poste of France, stamps of French crooner Edith Piaf are also available.

Alvin Parks, mayor of East St. Louis, attended a celebration held at City Hall yesterday and called Davis, who died in 1991, “a true ambassador for the city.” Read more »

The men of Company K continued to march through Kentucky and Tennessee, toward places where Union and Confederate troops were fighting for control of the Mississippi River. While on the march, James and his men heard news of the fall of Fort Pillow and the city of Memphis. The Confederate Fort Pillow, on the Tennessee bank of the Mississippi River, was the last barrier to Memphis. The Union flotilla of ironclads and gunboats had been bombarding the fort during April. On May 10, the Confederate fleet of rams attacked the Union fleet. Read more »