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Tag Archives: Davenport (Iowa)
Halloween History in Newsprint
From the shrouded mists of history, the mysterious Samhain (pronounced “sow-wen”) is an ancient Celtic end-of-summer or beginning-of-winter festival where Halloween finds its origins. In the early newspapers of Davenport, readers read about this curious holiday intertwined with Hallowe’en on … Continue reading
The Truth Will Out: Annie Wittenmyer
In preparation for a recent program featuring Annie Wittenmyer and the orphanage she is forever linked to in Davenport, Iowa, inconsistencies within reference works were found bringing up a number of questions. Turning to some basic documents used for family … Continue reading
Found in a Library Book: A Davenport Mayor Connection
We find curious artifacts in books from time to time. A couple of weeks ago when we were featuring our collegiate yearbooks we found two pen drawings by an Art Kroppach. Davenporters should be familiar with Mr. Kroppach. He was … Continue reading
Posted in Local History
Tagged Arthur Kroppach, Davenport (Iowa), drawings, Mayors of Davenport, university of Iowa
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Heading Back to Campus: Collegiate Yearbooks
As college campuses revive with the activities of students moving into the dormitories, attending classes, and studying in every conceivable place, we wanted to share a resource for those searching for faculty, students, and other aspects of collegiate life over … Continue reading
Posted in Local History
Tagged Davenport (Iowa), Genealogy, Iowa, Local History, Yearbooks
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“Last Seen” and the Black Community in Davenport
A valuable resource for discovering more details about the families of Davenport’s post-Civil War Black community is Last Seen: Finding Family After Slavery, an online database of advertisements “placed in newspapers across the United States (and beyond) by formerly enslaved … Continue reading
Posted in Local History
Tagged African Americans, Ashe, Black history, Cooper, Davenport (Iowa), Genealogy, Local History, Pitts, Reynolds, Robinson, Simons
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A Century of Back to School
A new school year is upon us! Fresh pencils, new beginnings, stomach butterflies, and of course…. NEW SHOES AND CLOTHES! Here is a century of back-to-school fashion from 1900-2000 available from our local business establishments! The 1900s The 1910s The … Continue reading
Posted in Local History
Tagged Advertisements, Clothing, Davenport (Iowa), newspapers, Schools
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A Beautiful Place: A Letter about Davenport of July 1842
This newsy July 1842 letter addressed to “Aunt” Elizabeth B. Langdon from Ellen Harris describes her ten-day journey along the Ohio River, then to the mighty Mississippi River as Ellen, husband William, her mother, and perhaps other family made their … Continue reading
Lost but Not Forgotten: A Brief History of 1125 Pershing Avenue
The Quad Cities have a number of structures imbued with an aura of their time, the residence located at 1125 Pershing Avenue was one of those. The setting for this historic home was the late 19th century when the City … Continue reading
Posted in Local History
Tagged Abraham Moritz, Davenport (Iowa), Local History, Peter Bendixen, Photographs
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The Poet of the Plains – Buckskin Bill
A recent acquisition to the Richardson-Sloane Archive and Manuscript Collection brought the fine line between fantasy and reality to the forefront and sent me on a fascinating research journey that took me from the onion fields of Scott County to … Continue reading
Irish Shenanigans
Davenport and the Quad Cities love celebrating St. Patrick’s Day and the month of March provides opportunity and hope for celebrating the coming of Spring and all things green. With that in mind, here are some of the March Mischief … Continue reading
Posted in Local History
Tagged Davenport (Iowa), Events, Local History, newspapers, St. Patrick's Day
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