Maplewood History: Famous Maplewoodians – Paul Christman, a Football Legend

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A subject that deserves its own book would be the sports of Maplewood particularly football. Bob Broeg in his book, “Ol’ Mizzou, A Century of Tiger Football”, refers to a time in the 1930’s when “Maplewood and Cleveland High School in St. Louis supplied more talent to MU than any other prep schools”. The 1936 and the 1939 teams were the two best teams ever to come out of Maplewood High according to George Smith who was there. There have been a multitude of fine players from the Maplewood program but the team of 1936 was a standout.

Maplewood History: The Al-Bro Manufacturing Company

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Maplewood has been a good location for many businesses.  Many have come and gone and left no trace.  Al-Bro Manufacturing Company might have been one of those except they left a building and a brochure. Due to my less than meticulous record keeping I no longer remember where the brochure came from.  It might have been in the large stack of stuff I was given when the American Legion Hall closed  their doors.  Or maybe I found it at the library? It doesn’t matter.  I copied it from somewhere and here it is.  

William Lyman Thomas – Found Amongst his Personal Effects – Part Three

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Once again I’m sifting through this mountain of Sutton/Thomas artifacts that I have been mining for over a year. If you’ve been paying attention, you’ll have to admit many of these items are fascinating in their own right. They are even more so collectively for the intimate view they provide us into the lives of a couple of prominent Maplewood families of the 19th and early 20th centuries. And I haven’t even gotten to the love letters yet. Just in case you missed Part Two here’s a link: Found Amongst his Personal Effects – Part Two

Included in this treasure trove are all of the letters William Lyman Thomas wrote to the woman who would become his life partner, Kate Sutton, from the time he met her in 1867 until they were married 2 ½ years later in 1869.  These are fascinating to read.

Maplewood History: Famous Maplewoodians – John Stillwell Stark

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In 1878 Mr. William Lyman Thomas became a member of the Missouri Press Association.  In 1880, he was elected treasurer and held that position for twenty four consecutive years. At the end of his service he was made a life member.  The only other life member, since the death of Samuel L. Clemens (Mark Twain, d. 1910), was J. West Goodwin of the Sedalia Bazoo newspaper, whose slogan was, “Whoso tooteth not his own Bazoo, the same it shall not be tooted”. John Stillwell Stark knew J.West Goodwin and definitely learned to toot his own Bazoo along with the Bazoos of many other folks as well.

William Lyman Thomas – Found Amongst his Personal Effects – Part Two

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Just in case you missed Part One here’s a link. Found Amongst his Personal Effects

You might notice that there is no “Part One” in the title.  That’s because I’m never sure how many parts there will wind up being.  As I write these words, I have no idea how many images I’ll be able to turn up to attach below.  Those of you that follow this space know that this is the twenty somethingth post I have done from this mother lode of Sutton/Thomas memorabilia that we have been lucky enough to witness firsthand.

Maplewood History: Famous Maplewoodians – Willard McGregor

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Any lineup of famous Maplewoodians would have to include Willard McGregor.  I have to include him even though I posted every single piece of information that I have about him last year on March the 19th.  Even so he truly is worth taking another look at. Like Ray and Tom Kennedy, he became known in his spheres of interest, painting and music, in a far wider community than our small one here.  All three hobnobbed with other artists who were also widely known. Is that part of the definition of being famous?

Maplewood History: Famous Maplewoodians – Ray and Tom Kennedy

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In 1934, Ray and Tom Kennedy opened the Kennedy Conservatory of Music in downtown Maplewood.  They sold musical instruments and taught students how to play them. They and their instructors gave singing and dancing lessons.  They also taught dramatics. Tom Kennedy took an interest in photography and opened his own studio.

Maplewood History: Our Most Famous Maplewoodians

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Who are our most famous Maplewoodians? Who are the folks that have resided in our lovely village and then gone out and done well for themselves in the wider world?  I have a few names in mind but I am going to keep them to myself until the readers of this space have had a chance to respond. Let there be no misunderstanding, George Clooney made a movie here but that doesn’t count. He never lived here.

Maplewood History: William Lyman Thomas – Found Amongst his Personal Effects

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Among the many items in this fabulous trove of Maplewoodiana that once belonged to William Lyman Thomas are these images that I have put into a file called “People” because I don’t know anything about most of them.  Hopefully someone out there will see someone familiar and enlighten the rest of us. There is much to be learned from the comments on Maplewood History, as the readers of this space have seen time and time again. If you are just tuning in, we all have been given the gift of being allowed to closely scrutinize a large and very important collection of Maplewoodiana that once belonged to the very active and  mentally nimble William Lyman Thomas. Since there is no sense in writing just to be writing, I’ll stop now.

Maplewood History: The Last Bunch of Images from WLT’s History of St. Louis County

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Those of you who follow this space understand what that headline means. But if you’re just tuning in, I’ll explain.  Maplewoodian William Lyman Thomas created his terrific two volume set titled, “History of St. Louis County – Missouri” in 1911.  In order to do so it was necessary for him to solicit photographic images of many different things and from many different parts of the county.

Even More Images from William Lyman Thomas’ 1911 History of St. Louis County

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This is the fifth post displaying images that William Lyman Thomas collected around 1911 for his landmark two volume set.  For those who may not have been following this blog, these images are from the collection of a direct descendant of WLT and his wife, Kate Compton Sutton Thomas.  Many of these images have never been shown in public before. As has been my habit, I’ll include scans of the backs of most of the photos as well.  Thomas’ notations and instructions to the printer allow us a look at part of his construction process that we’d otherwise never see.

The Troubling Legacy of our Pioneer Families

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James Compton Sutton (later Sr.) and his wife Ann Wells Sutton might have been the earliest settlers of European ancestry of the area known today as Maplewood, Missouri. At least I don’t know of anyone here earlier.  Ann West Evans McElderry didn’t buy her 320 acres (west of Big Bend, north of Manchester, sold to Charles Rannells in 1848) until 1839. Henry Bartold didn’t build his stone roadhouse (at Hanley and Manchester) until 1840.  John Baptiste Bruno, whose farm was just north of Sutton’s, got here early but I don’t know how early.

Still More Yet – Images from William Lyman Thomas’ 1911 History of St. Louis County, Missouri

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This is the fourth post of original images that William Lyman Thomas collected and used in his magnificent “History of St. Louis County, Missouri”.  We have a rare opportunity to examine these images that he assembled into his final two volume set in 1911. I am again including images made of the backs of these photographs.  I think it is especially interesting to see his notations and instructions to the printer.

History

Maplewood History: Pale Blue Porch Ceilings

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“The boys sat in a circle on the porch of Doug and Tom’s house. The pale blue painted ceiling mirrored the blue of the October sky.” So begins Chapter Fifteen of Ray Bradbury’s “Farewell Summer”. I don’t know when I first became aware of blue porch ceilings. There were no porch ceilings on the house where I was raised. I built the porch ceilings on the house I have lived in for the last 43 years.

Maplewood History: The Heaviest Piece of Maplewoodiana Returns

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What must be the heaviest piece of Maplewoodiana in existence is being exhibited at an area museum.  Would you have any idea what that might be? It might help if you knew that the museum is the very popular and fascinating National Museum of Transportation on Barrett Station Road.  Recently I got an email from Mary Kennedy who works there asking me for permission to use some of our historic photos on their social media. They have had an item in their collection since 1961 that was probably seen by many people who were in Maplewood between 1925 and 1961.

Maplewood History: The Thrill Is Not Gone

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Sometime in early 2002 I attended a meeting of people interested in creating an historical society.  The call had been put out by our now Mayor Barry Greenberg. Back then he was, correct me if I’m wrong, Mayor, the Chairman of our Historic Preservation Commission. The meeting was held in a building owned by the Sunnen Corp. where the Chamber of Commerce/Maplewood Community Betterment Foundation met in those days.

Still More Images from William Lyman Thomas’ 1911 History of St. Louis County, Missouri

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This is the third post of original images that William Lyman Thomas collected and used in his magnificent “History of St. Louis County, Missouri”.  We have a rare opportunity to examine these pieces that he assembled into his final two volume set in 1911. I am again including images made of the backs of some of these photographs and documents.  I think it is especially interesting to see his notations and instructions to the printer.

William Lyman Thomas and his 1911 History of St. Louis County, Missouri (continued)

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With my last post I began presenting some of the photographs and material that survives from William Lyman Thomas’ construction process of his well known “History of St. Louis County”. I’ll begin this post with what remains among his artifacts about a man named John Baxter and his family.  I think it’s interesting because it seems to be one of only a few complete submissions that we still have. John Baxter’s son, Hartley Sappington Baxter, lived in Maplewood when he passed away in 1909, two years before the publication of Thomas’ set.

William Lyman Thomas and his 1911 History of St. Louis County, Missouri

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One of the great privileges I have had in my role as historian of our small town is that of having been allowed to closely examine many of the documents and artifacts preserved by the descendants of past members of our community.  The families of our very earliest settlers, the Suttons and the Rannells, have trusted me with many of their rarest items. I am humbled by that. I take the responsibility very seriously. Followers of my blog know that recently I have been reconstructing a very small part of the lives of some members of the Sutton family.  One man in particular is a standout.

Maplewood History: Memoirists Are Made of This – More Bill Jones

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Forget stopping, he’s not even slowing down. Just in time for what is left of Valentine’s Day, here is not one but two new historic sketches from the life of Maplewood’s premier memoirist, Bill Jones. A doubleheader!  And keep in mind…they’re typed by Barb. WASHINGTON’S BIRTHDAY – 4th Grade,

Lyndover Grade School – Maplewood

Our 4th grade was invited to write a tribute to George Washington for his birthday at a program on February 22nd.  KFUO was our Lutheran radio station and the manager’s little daughter, my classmate.