Nineteenth Century America
Road Trip Through History: Unexpected Stories in Quincy Illinois
Quincy, Illinois, was our final stop on this segment of driving the Great River Road.* It wasn’t so much a stop as a pause on our way home. But it was a good pause, with some unexpected stories. The town has a number of museums and restored historical homes. It also has an interesting outdoor…
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Mark Twain Wasn’t the Only Famous Person in Hannibal, MO, Part 3: The Unsinkable Molly Brown
To recap: a small local history museum in Hannibal, Missouri, introduced me to Hannibal-born celebrities who weren’t Mark Twain. Two were totally new to me. One I knew. Or at least I thought I did. Margaret Tobin Brown was born in Hannibal, Missouri to poor Irish-immigrant parents in 1867.* And after that, it turns out…
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From the Archives: The Last Laugh
We had a wonderful time in Hannibal, Missouri, the childhood home of Mark Twain, aka Samuel Clemens. But I was a little disappointed that the museums didn’t barely touched on his later life, which was fascinating and heartbreaking. For any of you who are curious about Mark Twain after he became Mark Twain, I offer…
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