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Category Archives: Local History
A Davenport Success Story: Von Maur, Inc.
Way back when Davenport was just getting started, general stores, or dry-goods stores, stocked almost everything a person might need, and maybe a few little extras they might want. At the same counter, one could buy a yard of fabric, … Continue reading
Posted in Local History
Tagged Petersen and Sons, Petersen Harned Von Maur, The Boston Store, Von Maur
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Elsie Von Maur: Seventy-Five Years of Quad-City Music
The recent passing of Elsie Von Maur at the age of 106 led us to realize that our collection of Symphony programs reflect almost ninety-two years of music, seventy-five of which may be seen as part of Mrs. von Maur’s … Continue reading
Posted in Local History
Tagged Elsie Von Maur, Music, Quad-City Symphony, Tri-City Symphony
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In Remembrance
Anyone who has gone far enough along Main has passed it– but how many of us have taken the time to look at the large stone memorial in the middle of the street or think twice about why it stands … Continue reading
Now Available! An Online Davenport Newspaper Index!
We are excited to finally be able to offer our in-house local newspaper index online. This is a subject index for events and articles of local interest from the Quad-City Times, the Leader, the River Cities Reader, and other area … Continue reading
Posted in Genealogy, Library, Local History
Tagged Marriage Announcements, Newspaper Index, obituaries
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Just Shelved– Pride in our Hometowns: Portraits of Iowa
Subtitled “Great places to spend the day—or a lifetime,” this photograph-rich book gives both historical and current accounts of twenty-five towns and cities across the state of Iowa. From small (Adel, Pella, Woodbine) to large (Clinton, Mason City, Sioux City), … Continue reading
We never failed to catch em’!
What an appropriate motto for the Hostetler Studio and its owner and chief photographer, John Benton Hostetler! His talent never failed to catch the sparkle in a hopeful bride’s eyes, the wisdom in a patriarch’s wrinkled face, or the mischief … Continue reading
Posted in Local History
Tagged Advertisements, Hostetler Studios, John Benton Hostetler, Photographs
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Remembering Patrolman Emil Speth
Ninety-one years ago Davenport Police Patrolman Emil Speth walked the streets of Davenport, Iowa, wearing badge number 13. He was appointed to the department on July 13, 1911, according to an entry in the Davenport Police Roll Call Register January … Continue reading
Remembering the Effie Afton
Today is the anniversary of the first time a riverboat hit the railroad bridge between Davenport and Rock Island, Illinois. Why is this more significant than any other Mississippi River disaster, or any other time (and there were several) when a boat … Continue reading
Posted in Local History
Tagged Abraham Lincoln, Accidents, Bridge, Effie Afton, Fire, Mississippi River, riverboats, Train
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St. Luke’s Training School for Nurses
Today starts National Nurses Week. To honor these indispensable people, let’s take a look at the first nurses’ school in Davenport: When St. Lukes’s Hospital (now Genesis East) was first organized, it naturally had nurses on staff. But after only … Continue reading
Posted in Local History
Tagged Hospitals, Nursing, St. Luke's Hospital, St. Luke's Training School for Nurses
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A Flood of Images
In honor of this year’s flooding (which surprised us as much as anyone), we pulled a few of our images of Floods Past from our Historical Photograph Collections for your enjoyment: The 1940s: This photos were taken during the same flood in the early … Continue reading
Posted in Local History
Tagged Floods, Mississippi River, Photographs, weather, Weather Records
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