Latest News & Announcements

The State Historical Society of Missouri is among four community partners in mid Missouri selected for Show Me Series, a community film series sponsored by Ragtag film Society at Ragtag Cinema in Columbia. Each screening is followed by a community conversation and is free to the public. SHSMO will kick off the series September 25 – stay tuned to hear which film is chosen and co-curated between SHSMO and our friends at Ragtag Cinema.

The State Historical Society of Missouri invites the public to attend the free opening reception and book launch event for its new exhibition Mail Carrier with a Camera: Photographs of Burford Royston, Saturday, July 12, 10-noon, at the SHSMO Center for Missouri Studies, 605 Elm St., Columbia. Seventy-five photographs were selected from over 800 slides, mostly taken in the 1950s by Burford Royston, a longtime mail carrier in Howard County who photographed the people and places along his route.

Please join us for the opening reception Through the Lens: Photographs of Raymond Corey exhibition July 10 from 4 - 6 p.m. at the Kansas City Research Center, 800 East 51st Street, Miller Nichols Library (Room 306), University of Missouri-Kansas City. Corey worked as a news photographer for the Coffeyville (KS) Journal, the Kansas City Kansan, and the Kansas City Star.

Congratulations to our National History Day students in Missouri who competed at the national contest at the University of Maryland this week! Missouri students did fantastic, and we are very proud of their hard work. This year’s theme was Rights & Responsibilities in History. 

Outstanding Entry Awards: 
Jaycee Arnold and Roan Galloway, Richland High School, Richland, Mo. (Junior Group Documentary): “The Threshold of Freedom: The 1939 Sharecroppers’ Strike” 

The State Historical Society of Missouri Center for Missouri Studies won a 2025 AIA/ALA Library Building Award, one of the nation's highest honors for library design. Presented by the American Institute of Architects and the American Library Association, the award recognizes projects that demonstrate architectural excellence and a strong understanding of how libraries can evolve to better serve their communities. 

Don't miss the one-day stop of a travelling art installation that welcomes anyone to trade a personal object at the Barter Boat. Trading hours are Tuesday, June 3, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the lobby at the Center for Missouri Studies. Come by with something to barter which has personal, philosophical, or historical significance. The Barter Boat focuses on objects as a way to tell stories and to examine our cultural. Perhaps, it's a handwritten note, original drawing, or other small object that has meaning to you. All ages are welcome to be part of the exchange.

The State Historical Society of Missouri is seeking proposals for two Center for Missouri Studies fellowships to begin January 1, 2026. Each fellowship carries a stipend of $5,000 for a project that results in the completion of a 6,000 to 8,000-word scholarly essay on one of the two topics listed below. The deadline for submitting proposals is Sept. 2, 2025, and the competition is open to both academic and independent scholars.

Topics for 2026 Center for Missouri Studies Fellowships:

Just under 500 middle and high school students from across the state competed in the National History Day state contest April 26 on the University of Missouri campus in Columbia. The annual program is sponsored and organized by the State Historical Society of Missouri. First and second place winners will compete in the national contest June 8-12 at the University of Maryland, College Park. Students receiving third place in each category will be alternates. Special prizes were also awarded by the contest’s sponsors in various categories.

Join us for a free music series at the State Historical Society of Missouri on the 2nd Fridays of May, June, and July from noon to 1 p.m. Enjoy live music on Hirsch Plaza, the north entrance of our headquarters at 605 Elm St., Columbia. We have a variety of musicians that will play songs as we welcome warmer weather and more sunshine. Bring a lawn chair and enjoy music over the noon hour. In case of rain, we’ll move inside our building lobby.

Here's the lineup:

The State Historical Society of Missouri opened its latest exhibition this month at the newly renamed William Guitar Little Missouri Gallery of Art in the Center for Missouri Studies. Formerly the SHSMO Art Gallery, the space is renamed to honor Columbia resident Bill Little, whose generous gifts will help fund new art acquisitions.