Montgomery Historical Publications

06/10/2023

South Hannibal's public school is named after long-time principal A.D. Stowell. It has been more than one hundred years since he passed, but two of the prominent houses where he lived in Hannibal are still standing; one on Union Street, and the other on St. Mary's Avenue.

A portrait of A.D. Stowell hangs in the entryway to Stowell School, 500 Union, which opened in 2007. Photo contributed by Steve Chou. MARY LOU MONTGOMERY Albert David Stowell was a good-looking bachelor in his mid 30s when he arrived in Hannibal circa 1890. He already had a dozen years of experience...

06/03/2023

A tragedy suffered by Lora Slayton of Hannibal following an Emancipation Day gathering at Smith's Park on St. Mary's Avenue helps tell the story of Hannibal's early means of transportation: The streetcar.

Handwriting on this rare 1905-era photo is believed to be that of Sinclair Mainland, whose father, John S. Mainland, was a long-time manager of the Hannibal Electric and Railroad Company. Sinclair Mainland’s handwriting describes the movie theater and event venue, to the right, that served Hanniba...

05/20/2023

https://www.maryloumontgomery.com/single-post/early-construction-utilized-bricks-made-in-hannibal

Robert B. Elgin and Francis D. Richmond advertised their brick yard in the 1901 Hannibal city directory, accessed via the Hannibal Free Public Library’s website. MARY LOU MONTGOMERY A dozen years before the onset of the Civil War, 21-year-old Joseph F. Elgin was conducting business as a brickmason...

04/29/2023

I remember the Lucke Maytag Wash ’N ‘Dry on the southwest corner of Richmond and Broadway Extension. A building remodel under way shows a reminder of this former Hannibal business.

Remodeling is under way at the historic Hannibal building on the southwest corner of Broadway and Richmond Street. Work has unveiled a partial view of a former sign advertising the building which contained the Lucke Maytag Wash ’N ‘Dry beginning in the 1950s. Photo by Mary Lou Montgomery, 2023. ...

04/08/2023

Grace Hayward was a stage actress during the early years of the 20th Century. She toured the Midwest circuit, performing regularly in the Hannibal/Quincy area. She was married to Hannibal native, George Mahan Gatts, son of noted attorney Thomas F. Gatts (1853-1915).

1900 poster featuring actress/playwright Grace Hayward, who was married to Hannibal native George Mahan Gatts in 1906. Library of Congress. MARY LOU MONTGOMERY Multi-talented stage actress Grace Hayward was well known to theater-goers of Quincy, Ill., and beyond at the beginning of the 20th Century,...

04/01/2023

Today, a beauty shop is at the intersection of New London Gravel Road and Market Street in Oakwood, but for a number of years the location served as home to family-run grocery stores.

Samuel and Clara Magee. Newspaper clipping supplied by Doug Yonce, their great-grandson. MARY LOU MONTGOMERY The year was 1914. Motorized vehicles were sharing the roadways with horse-drawn wagons. Woodrow Wilson was president as the United States moved toward involvement in a world war. Oxydol laun...

03/18/2023

There's a house located at 2918 St. Mary's Avenue that I walked past many times during my childhood. Today, it serves as home to Back 2 Health Chiropractic clinic, Dr. Rob Robertson. But in the early years of the 20th Century, the house was home to J.C. Shaw, a steam railroad engineer. Follow along on this railroader's journey.

Enclosed in dark ink is the Hawkins Subdivision, originally platted in 1866. This image is based upon Integrity, Marion County, Mo., GIS services. The house, at 2819 St. Mary’s Avenue, is believed to be the same house occupied by James C. and Myra Shaw during the first decade of the 20th Century. ...

03/11/2023

From the description offered by his grandson, Constance Henneberger must have been quite a character. One of many who served as building blocks for Hannibal, as we know it today.

Rolla (Jack) Wallace of the Missouri Conservation Commission during the 1950s, took this photo of Con Henneberger baiting a line at the Saverton Lock and Dam. The photo was used on the cover of a conservation magazine, and was contributed by Warren Wilson. While living in Hannibal, Wallace and his w...

03/04/2023

Warren Wilson remembers when the carnival and circus folks would seek out his parents while in town, to make repairs on their canvas tents. Glen and Constance Wilson operated Wilson's Awnings on South Third Street in Hannibal.

In 1951, Wilson Canvas Product Co., was commissioned to provide new awnings for the Sonnenberg department store, 118-122 North Main Street. Glen Wilson is pictured next to his truck. Before starting out in the canvas awning business in the mid 1930s, he worked as a “floor walker” at this departm...

02/11/2023

Until I started working on this story, I thought that Jimmie Link's open air market in the early 1950s was located on Market Street. Wrong! The address was 3701 McMaster's Avenue. I had a lot of fun researching this area, much of which was later consumed by right-of-way for U.S. 36. Link went on to run the successful "Link's Superama" further north on McMaster's Avenue well into the 1960s.

https://www.maryloumontgomery.com/single-post/link-s-mcmaster-s-ave-presence-started-with-an-open-air-market

01/28/2023

In the late 1890s, Fred Stohr operated a a slaughter house and cold storage plant near the MK&T Outer Depot in Oakwood, nearby to George Cameron’s pastureland. A fire in 1898 completely wiped out this operation, putting more than a half dozen men out of work.

This photo of the building at the corner of Coontz and Market Streets (now numbered 1221 Market Street, Hannibal, Mo.) was taken in April 2022. The building has housed a number of businesses throughout its history, pre-1885, and today is home to White Oak Counseling. The building is owned by Mark an...

01/14/2023

Residents and former residents of 3700 James Road have fond memories of this historic house which once was home to the Pine family.

This undated photo shows the historic W.H. Pine house, which was long-time residence to Tipton Tyree Graves and his family. Photo contributed by Jeanne Atkins. MARY LOU MONTGOMERY George W. Pine, the third in succession of eight known children born to William H. and Maria P. Sanders Pine, spent a po...