As part of its mission to generate interest and appreciation for the rich cultural heritage of the state and its people, the Society hosts a wide range of engaging and educational events for scholars and community members of all ages.
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This year marks the 150th anniversary of one of Mark Twain’s most beloved novels, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. Although it was not Twain’s best-selling work during his lifetime, the novel has never gone out of print. It has been translated into more than 70 languages and continues to offer readers a vivid glimpse into frontier Missouri life and small-town childhood.
With the construction of Route 66, automobile tourism increased across the United States. Novelty shops along the route offered regional, one-of-a-kind gifts for newcomers. In the Ozarks, a region known for its traditional handicraft production, residents began making crafts not just for the practical needs of everyday life, but for the influx of tourists exploring their hills and hollers.
Join us September 11 for the premiere of Magnificent Missouri and Once Films new documentary film, TheTrail State, hosted by the State Historical Society of Missouri. A free, public reception begins at 5 p.m. with the screening at 6 p.m. A conversation with the filmmakers follows the 56-minute film.
Over 350 country, gospel, and rock performers and groups recorded at Kennett Sound Studios (KSS) in the southeast Missouri town of Kennett between 1968 to 1997. Owned and operated by musician and songwriter Joe Keene, KSS hosted a couple of well-known performers. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member and Mizzou alum Sheryl Crow is a Kennett native. Top ten country music singer Narvel Felts still lives up the road in Malden, Missouri. Most of the musicians who recorded at KSS, however, were known mainly in their home areas, largely southeast Missouri and northeast Arkansas.
Join Angie Allison, White House Decision Center facilitator and curriculum specialist, on September 22 at 4 p.m. for a free online National History Day workshop. Drawing on more than a decade of experience taking students to NHD—including 11 state finalists and 8 national qualifiers—Angie will share practical strategies to make National History Day workable at every level, from first-time participants to returning competitors.
Art historian Matthew Knox Averett examines the vital center of Black life in St. Louis at the turn of the 20th century and how Black migration, real estate, housing, poverty, and policing shaped the neighborhood of Chestnut Valley. The vibrant Black neighborhood in downtown St. Louis centered around Market, Targee, and Chestnut Streets and became a place of community, survival, and culture creation with ties to ragtime, the Blues, and the famous ballad "Frankie and Johnny."
Do you love a good ghost story? Join SHSMO archivist Hali Allen as we take a spooky ride along Missouri’s Haunted Route 66, exploring haunted mansions, castles, roads, theatres, and other paranormal activities. For more than a cetury, the area surrounding the Mother Road has produced tales of ghosts, zombies, spook lights and other unexplained phenomenon. Allen will share stories about the spirits at St. Louis's Lemp Mansion, the infamous Zombie Road, the Goat Man in Rolla, and the Ozark Spook Light outside of Joplin. Register and attend this webinar…if you dare.
Often overshadowed by battles in the East, the Revolutionary War in the West played a pivotal role in shaping the future United States. Orders were issued from the highest levels in Great Britain to sweep the Americans and Spanish from both sides of the Mississippi River. While coordinating several separate attacks, the centerpiece of this grand plan was the descent from the North by a huge British-led contingent of 1,000 men against St. Louis (the administrative center for Spanish Upper Louisiana) and American-held Cahokia, which suffered simultaneous attacks on May 26, 1780.
Join us for the 2026 Annual Meeting of the State Historical Society of Missouri, featuring a talk by Dr. Linda Godwin, former NASA astronaut and professor emeritus, University of Missouri Department of Physics and Astronomy. Learn about Dr. Godwin's career and how the state of Missouri influenced her life.
The business meeting and annual report begins at 10:30 a.m., including a presentation of the Book and Article Awards. The meeting is open to the public.
Join us for an afternoon of music so good it’s scary! This Halloween, SHSMO will close out the 2026 Music on Elm concert series with performances by hometown heroes The Onions and Adventure Hat. The event and the music are family-friendly and we encourage you to get into the holiday spirit with your finest costume! Crafts and candy provided for all the ghouls and goblins.
Norman Akers, Osage artist and educator from Oklahoma will speak on Osage artists and the art that moves our culture forward. Osage Artists Today will examine a selection of contemporary Osage artists and how their work serves as a bridge between our history and cultural practices and the present. The Osage people experienced forced removal from Missouri and Arkansas in the early 1820s and subsequently settled on the Osage Reservation in Oklahoma in 1872. This displacement has led some to assert that there was a loss of culture and traditional practices.
As we end a full year of activities for the commemoration of Route 66 in Missouri, we reflect on the centennial and share video travelogues and conversation of a week-long epic road trip from St. Louis to Joplin with SHSMO staff Kathleen Seale, Beth Pike and Stacia Schaefer. What did the centennial mean to people in Missouri and around the globe and where does this journey take the next travelers who will experience the open roadways in the U.S. and meet the people, visit places, and hear unique stories along the way.
Author Greg Olson of Columbia's newest book in 2026 tells the story of Jeffrey Deroine (de-rō-NAY), an enslaved trader, prairie diplomat and Missouri settler. Born into slavery in St. Louis in 1806, Deroine worked and lived in the heart of a rapidly changing nation. Forced to work in the fur trade on the Missouri River, he gained his freedom and became an interpreter for the Ioway nation. Later, he participated in the founding of the frontier city of St. Joseph, Missouri.
As Spencer and Route 66 both mark their centennial year, a once forgotten stretch of America’s Mother Road is experiencing a remarkable revival. Located 24 miles west of Springfield, Mo. in Miller, travelers from across the globe stop at Spencer Station to visit this historical gem that is making a comeback.
SHSMO has a selection of on demand programs that are freely available to worldwide audiences.
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In 2026, the State Historical Society of Missouri embarked on a five-day roadtrip from St. Louis to the state line, just west of Joplin, to meet the people and places along America's beloved Main Street - Route 66. SHSMO's crew of history adventurers arrived in Springfield, Mo., on April 30, 2026, just in time for the kickoff of the National Route 66 Centennial. Come along on our five-day adventure!
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, St. Louis renowned photographer and author Quinta Scott (1941-2024) traveled extensively along Route 66 capturing this iconic road and the people and places associated with it. AJ Medlock, regional director of the State Historical Society of Missouri St. Louis Research Center, recounts Scott's groundbreaking research on Route 66 as was one of the first historians to chronicle Route 66’s history. Her books "Route 66" (1988) and "Along Route 66" (2000) provided the foundations for the study and preservation of the Mother Road.
Alberta Northcutt Ellis was a Springfield, Missouri, entrepreneur who owned and operated several businesses along Route 66 including Alberta’s Hotel. Her businesses were noted locations listed in the Green Book. Open to locals and travelers, the hospitality and community sanctuary found at Alberta’s has become an enduring legacy for future generations.
The State Historical Society of Missouri Executive Director Joel Rhodes interviewed Colonel John W. Clark (USAF. Ret.), chronicling the Columbia, Missouri, native and University of Missouri graduate’s inspirational journey as a Prisoner of War in the infamous Hanoi Hilton during the Vietnam War. Colonel Clark’s Phantom II jet was shot down during a reconnaissance flight on March 12, 1967. For the next six years – 2,176 days – the North Vietnamese held him in captivity under squalid and horrific conditions.
Route 66 caught international attention in 1928 with its first major promotional event. Famously known as the Bunion Derby, this foot race across the United States drew athletes from around the world and captivated newspaper and radio audiences for months. Racers endured harsh weather, injuries, hardships, and fatigue in a bid to come out on top and make it home with some prize money. The Bunion Derby only occurred twice at the very beginning of the Mother Road, but it helped launch its notoriety across the nation and the world.
