Lawrence

Adamson Family Papers, 1848-1942 (C4238)
0.25 cubic feet (6 folders)

 Finding Aid

The papers of the Adamson family contain Edmund James Adamson's business correspondence and records, including taxes, deeds, promissory notes, and receipts, family correspondence, and some family genealogy. The Adamson family lived in Dade and Lawrence Counties.

Agriculture Stabilization and Conservation Service Aerial Photographs, 1938-1979 (P0335)
107.5 linear feet

 Digitized Materials

 Finding Aid

Missouri county aerial photographs produced by the Agriculture Stabilization and Conservation Service.

American Revolution Bicentennial, Missouri Committee for Agriculture Papers, 1974-1976 (C4276)
1.2 cubic feet (42 folders), 1 audio tape

 Finding Aid

The papers/records of the committee contain correspondence, newsletters, reports, updates, events, awards programs, lists of elected members, historical information on "centennial farms," and "Liberty Trees," meeting minutes, announcements, newspaper clippings, and audio-visual material for a slide presentation entitled "The Spirit of 76."

Amish Scrapbooks, 1989-1999 (SP0022)
1 cubic foot (56 folders)

 Finding Aid

The Amish Scrapbooks collection consists of the writings of Noah Gingerich about the lives of his family and friends. The bulk of his work was created for Budget newspaper, a paper specializing in reporting the experiences of Amish and Mennonite community members in Sugarcreek, Ohio, and across the nation.    

Armory Theatre Association Collection, 1908 (R1118)
0.01 cubic foot (1 folder)

 Finding Aid

This collection contains certificate number 20 dated October 22, 1908, for twenty shares of stock in the Armory Theatre Association at Aurora in Lawrence County, Missouri. The shares were sold to N. B. Pearman, who also signed as secretary of the coporation, along with N. V. H. Walker, president.

Atlantic and Pacific Railroad Company Records, 1876-1877 (R1288)
(1 oversize volume)

 Finding Aid

This Atlantic and Pacific Railroad volume is a register of warranty and quitclaim deeds by the for lands
sold by the company in Barry, Franklin, Gasconade, Greene, Lawrence, McDonald, Newton, Phelps,
Pulaski, Stone, and Webster Counties in Missouri.

Aurora Community Chamber of Commerce Collection, 1924 (R0813)
(1 folder)

 Finding Aid

This is "Aurora Missouri: Summit City of the Ozarks", a booklet published by the Aurora Community Chamber of Commerce to promote the economic development of Aurora in Lawrence County, Missouri.

Aurora Grocer Company Records, 1906-1962 (R0334)
0.1 cubic foot (2 folders)

 Finding Aid

The Aurora Grocer Company Records contains a minute book and miscellaneous papers of a wholesale grocery business located at Aurora, Lawrence County, Missouri. The records include minutes of meetings of stockholders and directors, certificates of incorporation and dissolution, proxy authorizations, real estate papers, and an agreement to sell the remaining inventory in 1961.

Aurora, Missouri Centennial Committee Collection, 1970 (R0887)
(1 folder)

 Finding Aid

This is a booklet published in celebration of the centennial of the founding of Aurora in Lawrence County, Missouri. Included are many historical photographs with accompanying identifications and historical narratives.

Bank of Miller (Mo.) Records, 1914-1928 (C0279)
1 roll of microfilm

 Finding Aid

Records of a bank in southwest Missouri. Folder contains papers concerning the election of bank officials in 1920 and 1921. The incomplete series of volumes covers the years from 1914 to 1928.

Baptist Association Annual Meeting Records, 1882-1933 (R0644)
(1 roll of microfilm)

 Finding Aid

The Baptist Association Annual Meeting Records contain microfilm copies of annual meeting minutes of Primitive Baptist associations in Missouri, Arkansas, Illinois, Kansas, Ohio, and Oklahoma. The most complete series are for the Center Creek and Ozark associations of Missouri. The minutes include the proceedings of the associations, lists of churches, officers, and representatives, the articles of faith and rules of decorum, and correspondence with other associations.

Alfred Edward Barnes Jr. Architectural Collection, 1888-1959 (K0004)
150 c.f.

 Finding Aid

Architectural drawings, renderings, photographs, specifications and correspondence of the architectural firm Hoit, Price and Barnes and its predecessors.

Beaver Family Papers, 1890-1986 (SP0028)
3 cubic feet (43 folders, 1 oversize, approximately 250 photographs)

 Finding Aid

The Beaver Family Papers consist of genealogical research, personal correspondence and photographs of the Beaver and Hudson families. 

"A Biography of Levi E. Clark", 1957 (C3506)
0.02 cubic feet (1 folder)

 Finding Aid

Biography of an early European-American settler in Lawrence County, Missouri, written by his grandson. Clark was born in Kentucky in 1836 and died in 1907.

Blue Hall School, Lawrence County, Missouri Collection, 1905 (R0899)
(1 folder)

 Finding Aid

This is a souvenir marking the end of the school year on March 31, 1905 at Blue Hall School in Mount Vernon Township in Lawrence County, Missouri. The souvenir was presented by the teacher, Lida McNatt, and includes the names of all the students and the members of the school board.

Boller Brothers Architectural Records, 1910-1982 (K0065)
9.31 c.f.

 Finding Aid

Architectural drawings and other supporting documents for the Boller Brothers firm who specialized in theater design

John F. Bradbury, Jr. Postcard Collection, 1889-2022 (R1551)
4 cubic feet (122 folders, 4,432 postcards)

 Finding Aid

The John F. Bradbury, Jr. Postcard Collection contains postcards collected by Bradbury, containing images from the Ozarks and Southern Missouri. The postcards consist of real photograph, commercially printed, and illustrated postcards. The images mainly feature Missouri towns, railroads, Route 66, resorts, and rivers.

Joy L. Brown Photograph Collection, 1897-1960 (P0728)
6 photographs

Copy photos of Pierce City and Lawrence County, MO, early 1900s.

Timothy M. Cole Papers, 1872-1991 (R1449)
(3 folders)

 Finding Aid

The papers of Timothy M. Cole contain letters, ledgers, names, and an animal disease guide by Timothy Cole. There are also minutes from the Barry County Baptist Association (digital), a class role book for the Newtown Baptist Church, and a hundredth anniversary history for the Northside Baptist Church.

Daughters of Rebekah, Fidelia Lodge No. 182, Mount Vernon, Missouri Records, 1896-1955 (R0690)
(2 rolls of microfilm)

 Finding Aid

These are the records of Daughters of Rebekah Fidelia Lodge in Mount Vernon, Lawrence County, Missouri. The records consist of minute books, a financial record book, membership account books, and roll of officers.

Daughters of Rebekah, Pierce City, Missouri Collection, 1910 (R1237)
(1 folder)

 Finding Aid

This is the program booklet for the second annual meeting of the fiftieth District of the Daughters of Rebekah, held at Peirce (now Pierce) City in Lawrence County, Missouri, on February 22, 1910. Mollie Clutter of Monett served as president.

Downing and Whinrey Families Papers, 1837-1929 (R0049)
0.25 cubic foot (11 folders)

 Finding Aid

The Downing and Whinrey Families Papers contain photocopies of receipts and correspondence of the Downing and Whinrey families of southwestern Missouri. Both families had members who went to California to mine gold in the 1850s, some of whom remained to settle in the West. Most of the collection consists of letters written to relatives in Missouri.

J. Pitts Elmore Photograph Collection, 1890-1976 (P0415)
11 photographs

Photos, bulk ca. 1976, and postcards of Monett, Monark Springs, Seneca Women's Social Club, and Fairview.

Farmers Bank (Mt. Vernon, Mo.) Papers, 1844-1931 (C0044)
5 cubic feet (280 folders, 19 volumes), 28 oversize volumes

 Finding Aid

Records of a bank organized in 1890 and liquidated in 1930. Also records of local businesses and schools.

Russell Ferguson Letters, 1855-1856 (C0316)
0.02 cubic feet (1 folder)

 Finding Aid

Transcripts of two letters to Russell Ferguson in California from his parents, James and Elizabeth Ferguson, Spring River, Lawrence County, MO, mentioning rumors of gold in the Wichita Mountains. One letter from Julia Sutton, also of Spring River. Originals in the possession of Mr. and Mrs. C. Kendall.

First Congregational Church, Aurora, Missouri Collection, 1914 (R1044)
(1 folder)

 Finding Aid

This is a bulletin for the services on Sunday, January 11, 1914, at the First Congregational Church at Aurora in Lawrence County, Missouri. The pastor was the Reverend John Allen Schmink. The bulletin includes an announcement of forthcoming services by the Reverend John B. Gonzales of St. Louis.

Harold Linden Forester Papers, 1925-2007 (S0265)
2.5 cubic feet

 Finding Aid

The Harold Linden Forester Papers contain identification and travel documents, maps, illustrations, pamphlets, newsletters, postcards, correspondence, scrapbooks, photographs, newspaper clippings, academic materials, and military records. The materials date from 1925-2008 and pertain to Forester’s military service during World War II, his undergraduate years at the University of Southern California, his numerous jobs, his world travels, and his lifelong medical problems stemming from a wartime injury. The papers also contain information about the Forester family and Lawrence County, Missouri. Materials of interest include wartime letters from Forester to family members and friends, firsthand recollections of the Battle of Peleliu, and a scrapbook featuring photographs of the Forester family in Lawrence County, Missouri.

Gay and Skinner Records, 1879-1885 (R0345)
9 volumes microfilmed

 Finding Aid

These are standard accounting volumes for the firm of Gay & Skinner, a general merchandise
establishment in Mount Vernon, Lawrence County, Missouri. Included are ledgers, journals, and a
combination journal/daybook. The firm's principals have not been positively identified, but may
have been T. K. Gay and J. M. Skinner.

Sarah Guitar Collection, no date (C3391)
1.5 cubic feet (5 card files); also available on 2 rolls of microfilm

 Finding Aid

Card file compiled by Sarah Guitar, reference librarian of the State Historical Society of Missouri, as a guide to county boundaries of Missouri, 1812-1929; Missouri congressional district boundaries, 1845-1933; Missouri senatorial districts, 1820-1931; and Missouri judicial circuits, 1815-1915.

Historical Committee of the Verona Centennial Collection, 1968 (R0942)
(1 folder)

 Finding Aid

This is a booklet produced for the centennial celebration of Verona in Lawrence County, Missouri, on August 2-4, 1968. Included are brief illustrated histories of the town of Verona and its businesses, schools, churches, and government.

Home Culture Club, Mount Vernon, Missouri Collection, 1906-1928 (R0722)
(1 folder)

 Finding Aid

This collection includes photocopies of a banquet invitation and three yearbooks of the Home Culture Club in Mount Vernon, Lawrence County, Missouri.

Hunter Family Papers, 1864-1880 (R0469)
0.3 cubic foot (1 folder)

 Finding Aid

The Hunter Family Papers contain photocopies and typescript copies of correspondence of the Hunter and Hagler families of Jasper, Lawrence, and Polk counties in Missouri. The letters were written by Elizabeth Hunter and her daughters, Priscilla A. Hunter and Charlotte Elizabeth (Hunter) Hagler, and were addressed to another daughter, Margaret (Hunter) Newberry. Topics include news of family and friends, turmoil during the Civil War, farm life, and religious matters.

Independent Order of Odd Fellows, Mount Vernon Lodge No. 151 Records, 1865-1974 (R0689)
(4 rolls of microfilm)

 Finding Aid

These are the records of Odd Fellows Lodge No. 151 in Mount Vernon, Lawrence County, Missouri. The records consist of minutes of meetings, rolls of officers, reports to the Grand Lodge of Missouri, membership records, and miscellaneous papers.

Independent Order of Odd Fellows, Sarcoxie Encampment No. 98, Pierce City, Missouri Records, 1951-1974 (R0712)
(1 roll of microfilm, 1 folder)

 Finding Aid

These are records of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows at the Sarcoxie Encampment No. 98 in Pierce City, Missouri, containing minutes of meetings, reports to the Grand Lodge of Missouri, correspondence, membership applications, and financial papers. Included are minutes of the Aurora Encampment, 1966-1968.

David A. James Papers, 1790-2008 (C4126)
5 cubic feet

 Finding Aid

The research material of a hotel management instructor, whose work resulted in the publication Historic Hotels of Missouri: Hotels, Inns, and Taverns of 19th Century Missouri.

Larry James Collection, 1874-2019 (SP0038)
1.5 cubic feet (33 folders, 6 photographs, 239 negatives)

 Finding Aid

The Larry James Collection consists of photographs taken and collected by local historian and author Larry James. Photographs in this collection were also taken by freelance writer and photographer, Charles Townson Allonby. The books in this collection were written or co-written by Larry James and focus on the history of Newton County, Missouri.

Frank W. Jones Collection, 1920 (R1224)
(1 folder)

 Finding Aid

This is a political campaign card for Frank W. Jones of Stotts City, Missouri, who was the Democratic candidate for State Representative from Lawrence County in 1920.

Mona Darlene Jones Collection, 1969-2011 (R1343)
3 cubic feet (35 folders, 1 DVD, 14 audio tapes, 8 vinyl records)

 Finding Aid

This collection contains awards, plaques and certificates; playbills, fliers, programs, magazine and newspaper articles; photographs including pictures of featured performers, bands on stage, of the crowd, and of impromptu jam sessions; 17 photo albums; audio recordings on reel-to-reel, vinyl, and a 90 minute DVD, "Dixon Bluegrass Festival; Bluegrass Picking' Time: Through All These Years," 2012, by Mona Jones.

Junior Chamber of Commerce, Mount Vernon, Missouri Minstrel Collection, 1955 (R0744)
(1 folder)

 Finding Aid

This is a program for the Jaycee 'Dixieland Minstrel' presented at the high school auditorium in Mount Vernon, Lawrence County, Missouri, on April 25-26, 1955.

Kellogg and Whaley Records, 1870-1879 (R0332)
(5 rolls of microfilm)

 Finding Aid

The Kellogg & Whaley Records contain daybooks (1870, 1872-1879), journals (1872-1879), and ledgers of a general merchandise establishment owned by James Madison Kellogg and William W. Whaley. The store was located on the courthouse square in Mount Vernon, Lawrence County, Missouri.

Klingsporn Family Papers, 1855-1865 (R1383)
0.02 cubic foot (2 folders)

 Finding Aid

The Klingsporn Family Papers contain Lutheran devotional booklets, notes on scriptures, poems, and birthday notes mostly written to William/Wilhelm Klingsporn. The Klingsporn family lived in the Freistatt, Lawrence County, Missouri.

Karl L. Koelker Papers, 1896-1948 (R0011)
2 cubic feet (52 oversize folders)

 Finding Aid

The Karl L. Koelker Papers contain the negative photocopies of the mining pages form the Sunday issues of the Joplin Daily Globe (later the Joplin Globe), dated from 1896 to 1948. They contain news and production figures for the lead and zinc mining region in southwestern Missouri.

Ladies Saturday Club, Aurora, Missouri Collection, 1911-1912 (R1021)
(1 folder)

 Finding Aid

These are three annual program schedule and membership booklets for the Ladies Saturday Club at Aurora in Lawrence County, Missouri. The booklets are for 1911 to 1914. They include the names of officers, chairwomen, and members.

Richard Hundley Landrum, "The Immigrant's Guide", 1882 (R0374)
1 folder

 Finding Aid

This is a promotional newspaper published by R. H. Landrum and Euphrates Boucher at Mount
Vernon, Lawrence County, Missouri. The publication contains articles promoting agriculture and
stock-raising in southwestern Missouri and the opportunities for immigrants to Lawrence County.

Richard Hundley Landrum Papers, 1865-1929 (R1328)
0.01 cubic foot (1 folder)

 Finding Aid

These are letters written to Richard H. Landrum of Mount Vernon in Lawrence County, Missouri, from family and friends in Missouri, Kansas, Tennessee, and Texas. They touch on politics, land, crops, Civil War and family matters.

Lawrence County Bank Records, 1873-1924 (R0543)
2 volumes, 1 folder MICROFILM

 Finding Aid

This collection consists of two corporate minute books (1873-1903 and 1903-1913) and miscellaneous
correspondence (1920-1924) of the Lawrence County Bank in Peirce (now Pierce)
City in Lawrence County, Missouri. The bank was, for the most part, owned and managed by
Lewis L. L. Allen and his son, L. L. Allen.

Lawrence County Bank Records, circa 1880-1896 (R0980)
(2 oversize volumes, 1 folder)

 Finding Aid

These are records of the Lawrence County Bank in Pierce City, Missouri. Included are an account book, ca.1880-1896; an Exchange Register, 1891-1893; and a few miscellaneous papers, 1881.

Lawrence County, Missouri Mercantile Records, 1852-1872 (R0315)
(3 rolls of microfilm)

 Finding Aid

The Lawrence County, Missouri Mercantile Records contain ledgers, journals, and daybooks on microfilm from mercantile establishments located in or near Mount Vernon in Lawrence County, Missouri. Included are records attributed to stores operated by “B. & O. Stone,” “Whaley & George,” Samuel Stone, “Haley & McCanse,” “Gay, Allen & Co.,” Nancy Stone, and “Kellogg & Whaley.”

Marionville, Missouri Promotional Booklet Collection, 1968 (R1441)
0.01 cubic foot (1 folder)

 Finding Aid

The Marionville, Missouri Promotional Booklet contains information about the city of Marionville, Missouri.

Mark Twain National Forest Local History Collection, 1930s-1980s (R0471)
(4 rolls of mircofilm)

 Finding Aid

This collection was selected from unofficial files on miscellaneous historical topics, including local histories, the CCC, the YCC, the "Irish Wilderness," and the Eleven Point River. There are transcriptions of interviews with older members of the community and Forest Service retirees.