When Lucile Bluford showed up to enroll at the University of Missouri's School of Journalism in 1939, she was turned away. School officials had accepted the talented journalist into their graduate degree program, but didn't realize she was African American until they saw her in person. Bluford did not accept these racist practices, and she… Continue reading Lucile Bluford
Category: African American
Rediscovering the women at Missouri’s First State Capitol
Research has shown that women in history are nonexistent to elementary age boys and represent just a glimmer in the minds of girls. So, it's an awesome thing when historic site interpreters and managers continue to evaluate and question the message they give to visitors about the people who inhabited their site. Because of their… Continue reading Rediscovering the women at Missouri’s First State Capitol
Bustable Women
The Hall of Famous Missourians has been in the news recently, igniting debate over who should be honored in our state capitol. Here at Missouri Women, we like to imagine a fantasy Hall of Famous Missourians. One that would include a few more women. Like these ladies: Virginia Minor Maya Angelou Edna Gellhorn Fannie Hurst… Continue reading Bustable Women
Hall of Famous Missourians
There are seven women (out of 38 inductees) in the the Hall of Famous Missourians in our State Capitol, Jefferson City. What do you think of the women deemed "Famous" and who would you select to be included? Josephine Baker Susan Blow Rose Duchesne Betty Grable Ginger Rogers Sacajawea Laura Ingalls Wilder
Celia
Celia was 14 the first time Robert Newsom raped her, on the way home from the slave auction where he purchased her for such duties. Five years later he would go missing, his bones found buried near Celia's cabin and a few of his buttons found in her fireplace. Celia was raped repeatedly by Newsom… Continue reading Celia
Mary Price Walls
From the Springfield News-Leader, June 28, 2010: First Black Applicant Gets Degree from MSU: Son's Curiosity Uncovers Walls' Place in MSU History and Prompts Honorary Degree by Didi Tang On July 30, Mary Price Walls, 78, will get an honorary degree from Missouri State University, 60 years after her hometown college refused to allow her… Continue reading Mary Price Walls
Josephine Baker
“. . . I improvised, crazed by the music. . . . Even my teeth and eyes burned with fever. Each time I leaped I seemed to touch the sky and when I regained earth it seemed to be mine alone.” Josephine Baker only spent the first 15 years of her life in Missouri but… Continue reading Josephine Baker
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