Two Hundred Years of Notorious Crimes in the Show-Me State
Join us at the Jefferson County Library-Windsor Branch on Saturday, June 19, 2021 at 1pm for Two Hundred Years of Notorious Crimes in the Show-Me State. Historian and author James Erwin looks back over the past two hundred years of crimes in Missouri that excited the public’s interest in this virtual presentation. He describes, among others, an infamous duel on Bloody Island, the origin of the Western gunfight, the real-life story behind the folk songs “Stagger Lee” and “Frankie and Johnnie,” the (alleged) murder of the founder of Swope Park, mysterious unsolved murders in Mexico and St. Joseph, serial killers Bertha Gifford and Ray and Faye Copeland, and the “Missouri Miracle” of the kidnapping and recovery of Shawn Hornbeck.
Missouri History Through the Novelist’s Eyes
Join the Jefferson County Library at Fox Service Center in Arnold at 11:00 a.m. on June 16, 2021, for History Through the Novelist’s Eyes. Author and Missouri native, Steve Wiegenstein, presents his short stories and Missouri history to celebrate our state’s bicentennial. Book sales and signing will be available after the program. This is a free, ticketed event. Registration is required. Steve Wiegenstein is a generational Missourian with firsthand knowledge of our state’s history. He was recently nominated for the PEN/Faulkner Award and featured in the St. Louis Post/Dispatch.
Murder, Moonshine and King Cotton in the Bootheel: Part Two
Join us for part two of our virtual presentation: Murder, Moonshine and King Cotton in the Bootheel (June 9, 2021 at 6pm). The series continues to cover a murder in Pemiscot County that collided with the New Madrid County Sharecropper’s Strike of 1939. It explores the history of the Missouri Bootheel, the struggles of the Depression, the justice system, and the unintended consequences of the “New Deal.” Register here for this event.
Murder, Moonshine and King Cotton in the Bootheel: Part One
Join us for part one of our virtual presentation: Murder, Moonshine and King Cotton in the Bootheel (June 2, 2021 at 6pm). The series covers a murder in Pemiscot County that collided with the New Madrid County Sharecropper’s Strike of 1939. It explores the history of the Missouri Bootheel, the struggles of the Depression, the justice system, and the unintended consequences of the “New Deal.” Register here for this event.
Killing Quantrill: The Hunt for Missouri’s Most Notorious Civil War Guerrilla
Join us on May 22, 2021, at 1pm for Killing Quantrill: The Hunt for Missouri’s Most Notorious Civil War Guerrilla. This lecture — which is based on primary research, firsthand exploration of important sites, and interviews with descendants of involved parties — narrates Quantrill’s career as a guerrilla chieftain, his flight into Kentucky, and his eventual death. The Jefferson County Library is sponsoring this free virtual presentation by Matthew Hulbert, of Hampden-Sidney College.