The Pure Missouri Post: 1/16/22
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Let’s start with some Show and Tell
For my wife’s January birthday, I finally painted the abandoned Perry County farmhouse that sits on a hill across Highway 61 from the family farm where she grew up. Thought y’all might enjoy seeing it.
I also want to take a moment to wish everyone a good week, beginning with Martin Luther King Jr. Day tomorrow. While the tradition of performing a day of service is noble and appreciated, remember also that what Dr. King sought was equity, equality, and justice.
And now, on to The Post….
ALMANAC 📆
On this date in 1861, the Missouri General Assembly passed a bill allowing the citizens of Missouri to elect delegates to a State Convention from each senatorial district to determine Missouri’s status in the Union. The convention would be held, according to the bill, on February 28, 1861. Not a single advocate of secession was elected. —Timeline of Historic Missouri: 1861-1869, Missouri State Archives
Also on today’s date in 1919, Congress passed the Prohibition amendment, thus stopping the legal flow of alcohol across the country. In Missouri, as elsewhere, there were varying degrees of compliancy. In St. Louis, gangs of petty thieves and a few individuals fought for the opportunity to slake the thirst of the city through illegal brewing and distilling. As the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported more than 100 years later, “Enforcement never stopped the flow.” In Kansas City, local police and political authorities were under the influence (pun intended) of political boss Tom Pendergast, and the city remained virtually wide open for alcohol consumption—much of it supplied by frequent visitor Al Capone. One of the reasons Kansas City became known as such a major jazz town is because musicians shut out of bars and clubs in other parts of the country knew they could find gigs—and plenty of drinks—in KC. In 2019, the Missouri Division of Tourism published a great summary of Prohibition in Missouri.
SHOW ME LINKS 🔗
It’s somewhat old news, but it’s such a cool place that I wanted to share with my readers that Bar K St. Louis, the playground for dogs and humans alike, opened in The Grove neighborhood in November. We’ve been fans of Bar K Kansas City, located on KC’s riverfront, since it opened in 2018. Our dog, Kota, isn’t a fan of big crowds of dogs, so we’ve only taken him once, but if you don’t have a dog with you, it’s free to enter Bar K and make all kinds of new dog (and human) friends. We go for burgers and beers a lot, and then we find a spot to sit and watch all the hounds play. I can’t vouch (yet) for the St. Louis location, but the food at Bar K Kansas City is surprisingly good. Here’s a story about Bar K St. Louis from KSDK:
🔗 This Dog Park Has Food and Drinks for Pups and Their People
A couple of weeks ago, someone decided to post the St. Francois County seal on social media, and the … um … “busy” design went viral on Reddit and Twitter. Some people suggested it was the county’s new design, but it was actually designed in a rush (can you believe that?) by a former presiding commissioner in 2018. If you search for “St. Francois County seal” on Twitter or Reddit, you can find plenty of hilarious (and many rude) comments. In the meantime, the county has formed an anonymous panel to run a contest for a new design, and will be offering a $100 Visa gift card (donated, not coming from public funds) for the winner. The Riverfront Times in St. Louis has more:
🔗 Contest Opens to Replace Viral St. Francois County Seal
The University of Missouri has named a choral hall after alumnus Sheryl Crow, who helped raise funds for the facility. See the story link from Billboard magazine below, but first a Sheryl Crow story I love…
A friend of mine, Shea, who used to work for a major PR firm in Kansas City, grew up in the same hometown as Sheryl Crow: Kennett, Missouri. Shea was a few years younger and didn’t really know Sheryl well, but she did know the Crow family. A time came when there was a business reason for Shea to try to connect with the now-famous Sheryl, so she called the Crow family phone number in Kennett to see if she could connect.
And Sheryl answered the phone.
A bit surprised, Shea asked Sheryl what she was doing at her parents’ house, and the Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter who once sang back-up for Michael Jackson explained that she had bought some antiques in New Orleans and had rented a truck to haul them up to Kennett.
She had driven the truck from Louisiana to Missouri herself.
I guess fame doesn’t change everyone, eh?
🔗 University of Missouri Names Choral Hall After Graduate Sheryl Crow
TIME MACHINE 🕰
QUOTABLE ❞
“Now it’s true as I just said, speaking figuratively, that old man segregation is on his deathbed. But history has proven that social systems have a great last-minute breathing power and the guardians of the status quo are always on hand with their oxygen tents to keep the old order alive. So my friends, segregation is still a fact. But we know this evening as we assemble here that if democracy is to live segregation must die.”
—Martin Luther King Jr., April 10, 1957, in St. Louis
Thanks for reading and sharing this Pure Missouri Post. Don’t forget to check out The KC Downtown Loop, too. In the meantime be well, stay in touch, and have a Happy New Year.
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