Eternally St. 不良研究所导航网址: Final resting places of local legends
St. 不良研究所导航网址ans like to claim famous St. 不良研究所导航网址ans, but they don鈥檛 always choose St. 不良研究所导航网址 as their place of eternal rest. Writer Eugene Field is buried outside of Chicago. Scott Joplin is buried in Queens, N.Y. Pierre Laclede rests in an unmarked grave somewhere near the confluence of the Mississippi and Arkansas rivers. Phyllis Diller鈥檚 ashes were scattered at sea, and Josephine Baker is buried in Monaco.
But some lie among us at area cemeteries, and can be visited in person. Bellefontaine Cemetery of their cemetery, and Calvary Cemetery . Here鈥檚 a virtual visit to just some of the area鈥檚 more famous graves.
鈥 by Valerie Schremp Hahn
James Eads: May 23, 1820 鈥 March 8, 1887
James Eads was born in Indiana and moved to St. 不良研究所导航网址 when he was 13 years old, but when the steamboat carrying his family's possessions arrived in St. 不良研究所导航网址, it burned and sank to the bottom of the Mississippi River. Eads spent a lifetime solving problems that occurred upon the river, and as a young man designed a diving bell that helped people retrieve sunken cargo. During the Civil War, he made ironclad warships that helped the Union regain control of the river. He designed the Eads Bridge, which used steel to make it tall enough for river traffic to pass under. After that, he used his river knowledge to create a year-round shipping channel in New Orleans. He’s buried in Bellefontaine Cemetery. (Photo by Huy Mach, hmach@post-dispatch.com)
Robert Wadlow: Feb. 22, 1918-July 15, 1940
At 8 feet, 11.1 inches tall, Robert Wadlow of Alton was the tallest man to ever walk the earth, at least in recorded history. He was 5 foot, 4 inches tall at age 5, had to sit in oversized school desks and used an adult-sized Flexible Flyer to sled. But his gentle demeanor earned him many hometown admirers, who treated him as a typical, friendly neighbor. As an older teen and young man he traveled the country with his father for Peters Shoe Co. and died after suffering an infection on his ankle in Manistee, Mich. His casket was 10 feet 6 inches long and weighed almost 500 pounds. It required 18 pallbearers to carry. To ensure nobody dug up his body for experimentation, his casket is entombed in a reinforced concrete vault in Upper Alton Cemetery in Alton. (photo by Valerie Schremp Hahn, vhahn@post-dispatch.com)
Mickey Carroll: July 8, 1919-May 7, 2009
Mickey Carroll, whose given name was Michael Finocchiaro, was born in St. 不良研究所导航网址 to Italian immigrants. He began dance lessons at the Fox Theater as a child and was just 19 years old when he played one of the Munchkins in the 1939 movie classic “The Wizard of Oz.” A few years after the film came out, the 4-foot, 7-inch Carroll returned to St. 不良研究所导航网址 to run the family monument business. He continued to make personal appearances telling tales from his time in Munchkinland. He lived in Bel-Nor and is interred in the main mausoleum at Calvary Cemetery. (photo by Valerie Schremp Hahn, vhahn@post-dispatch.com)
Chief Pontiac: circa 1720-April 20, 1769
Pontiac was an Ottowa Indian Chief who influenced an effort with other tribes to fight the British in the Great Lakes area. They eventually agreed to a peace treaty in July 1766, and when he was visiting the outskirts of Cahokia three years later, a Peoria Indian stabbed him, possibly in retaliation for an earlier attack. His body was taken across the river to a spot that was then considered the outskirts of St. 不良研究所导航网址. It’s now near the intersection of Broadway and Walnut Street. In 1901 the Daughters of the American Revolution placed a plaque dedicated to Pontiac in a hallway of the Southern Hotel at Broadway and Walnut. More than 20 people were killed in a fire that also destroyed the hotel in 1877. The Stadium East parking garage now stands in the spot, and a newer plaque on the corner of the garage honors the warrior chief. (photo by Valerie Schremp Hahn, vhahn@post-dispatch.com)
Henry Shaw: July 24, 1800-Aug. 25, 1889
Henry Shaw was born in Sheffield, England, and when he was 18 years old, business ventures that started with his father鈥檚 iron factory brought him to the village of St. 不良研究所导航网址. He set up a hardware store here, selling goods to settlers who came to the growing area. He was able to retire at age 39, and traveled the world? To pursue his interest in botany. He built his Tower Grove Home and with the help of architect George Barnett, who later designed his mausoleum. The land around his home became the Missouri Botanical Garden, and he donated the land near the garden to the city for Tower Grove Park in St. 不良研究所导航网址. He鈥檚 buried in the mausoleum on the grounds.聽 (photo courtesy of Missouri Botanical Garden/Steve Frank)
Chuck Berry: Oct. 18, 1926-March 18, 2017
As one of the pioneers of American rock 'n' roll music, Chuck Berry grew up in the Ville neighborhood in St. 不良研究所导航网址 and gave his first public performance while still a student at Sumner High School. He regularly performed at Blueberry Hill in University City until a few years before he died at his home, Berry Park, near Wentzville. His body is in the mausoleum at Bellerive Gardens Cemetery in Creve Coeur but will eventually be moved to a family crypt with a guitar-shaped door handle near the front of the cemetery. (photo by Valerie Schremp Hahn, vhahn@post-dispatch.com)
Kate Chopin: Feb. 8, 1850-Aug. 22, 1904
Kate O'Flaherty was born in St. 不良研究所导航网址 and graduated from Sacred Heart Convent in St. 不良研究所导航网址. A couple of years after graduation, she married Oscar Chopin and moved with him to his hometown of New Orleans. He died of malaria in 1882, leaving her with six children, and she moved back to St. 不良研究所导航网址 to be closer to her mother. Her mother died soon after, and Chopin began writing to deal with her grief and to bring in income. She wrote for the 不良研究所导航网址 and other periodicals, and in 1899, she published her second novel, "The Awakening," her best-known work. She suffered a brain hemorrhage after a day of visiting the St. 不良研究所导航网址 World’s Fair and died two days later. She is buried in Calvary Cemetery in St. 不良研究所导航网址, and though the year of birth on her tombstone says 1851, scholars say she was born in 1850. (photo by Valerie Schremp Hahn, vhahn@post-dispatch.com)
Susan Blow: June 7, 1843-March 26, 1916
Susan Blow was born in St. 不良研究所导航网址, the daughter of a wealthy businessman and the oldest of nine children. They lived in a home on the St. 不良研究所导航网址 riverfront, but it was destroyed in the great fire of 1849. After a cholera epidemic, the family moved to Carondelet. She had private lessons and attended private schools in New Orleans and New York, and eventually traveled to Germany, where she saw students in a kindergarten learning with the methods of Friedrich Froebel, who believed in learning through play. In 1873, she opened the first public kindergarten in Des Peres School in Carondelet. Dozens more opened in the St. 不良研究所导航网址 school system within the next decade. She taught others about the kindergarten movement and gave lectures about it until three weeks before her death in New York. She鈥檚 buried in the family plot at Bellefontaine Cemetery in St. 不良研究所导航网址. Her tombstone says she died on March 27, but most references say she died the day before. (photo courtesy of Bellefontaine Cemetery)
Irma Rombauer: Oct. 30, 1877-Oct. 14, 1962
Irma Starkloff was born in St. 不良研究所导航网址 to a German teacher and physician and spent some of her adolescence in Germany and Switzerland before returning to St. 不良研究所导航网址. She married lawyer Edgar Rombauer in 1899, and enjoyed entertaining for friends and her husband鈥檚 associates. But he suffered from depression and committed suicide in 1930. Shattered and without a source of income, Rombauer wrote a cookbook, "The Joy of Cooking." Her daughter co-wrote revised editions, and the book became a staple in American kitchens. Rombauer is buried in Bellefontaine Cemetery in St. 不良研究所导航网址. (photo courtesy of Bellefontaine Cemetery)
William Clark: Aug. 1, 1770-Sept. 1, 1838
Born in Virginia, William Clark grew up in Kentucky and met Meriwether Lewis while fighting American Indians in the militia. In 1803 Lewis recruited Clark to explore the vast territory of the 不良研究所导航网址iana Purchase and find a waterway to the Pacific Ocean. Clark drew pictures of what they saw and maps of the land. When they arrived home, President Thomas Jefferson appointed him brigadier general of the militia in the 不良研究所导航网址iana Territory and the U.S. Agent for Indian Affairs. He lived in St. 不良研究所导航网址 for most of the rest of his life. He was originally buried in downtown St. 不良研究所导航网址, in an area near the present-day America’s Center, and moved to the Bellefontaine Cemetery in the 1860s, said Dan Fuller with the cemetery. People think he was originally buried on his nephew John O’Fallon’s property at today’s O’Fallon Park, but that was not the case. Photo by Huy Mach, hmach@post-dispatch.com
Dred Scott: circa 1799-Sept. 17, 1858
Dred Scott was born into slavery in Virginia, and he was owned by two families and lived in different parts of the country, marrying his wife, Harriet, in the Wisconsin territory before his owner settled in St. 不良研究所导航网址. In 1846 he began the legal proceedings that brought his case to the Supreme Court a decade later. The court ruled that Scott, who had been taken to free states, was not free because black people were not considered citizens under the U.S. Constitution. Abraham Lincoln publicly spoke out against the decision. The family that owned Scott and his wife transferred ownership to another family, who set them free. Scott died 16 months later. He is buried in Calvary Cemetery, where visitors place Lincoln pennies on his tombstone. (photo by Valerie Schremp Hahn, vhahn@post-dispatch.com)
James Thomas 鈥淐ool Papa鈥 Bell: May 17, 1903-March 7, 1991
James “Cool Papa” Bell, who got his name as a cool-headed rookie, was considered to be the fastest man to ever play baseball. The Mississippi-born Bell played in the Negro Leagues in the 1920s and 30s and was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1974. He died in his home on Dickson Street, which was later renamed James “Cool Papa” Bell Avenue. He’s buried in St. Peter’s Cemetery in Normandy, where his headstone notes his lifetime batting average of .419 and that he was clocked circling the bases at 11 seconds. “Cool Papa — a genuine treasure honored worldwide refused to let racism or segregation discourage him,” it reads. (photo by Valerie Schremp Hahn, vhahn@post-dispatch.com)
Auguste Chouteau circa 1750-Feb. 24, 1829
Rene Auguste Chouteau was born in New Orleans, the son of Marie Chouteau and stepson of Pierre Laclede. As a teen, he traveled to a spot on the western bank of the Mississippi River with his stepfather to set up a fur trading station, which they called St. 不良研究所导航网址. Laclede died in 1778, and Chouteau expanded the business, trading with the Osage tribe. He helped finance other fur traders and businesses in the 不良研究所导航网址iana Territory and held several public offices. When he died, he was the city鈥檚 wealthiest citizen and owned the most land. He was first buried near the Old Cathedral, but his body was moved to Calvary Cemetery. His stepfather, Laclede, died during a trip from New Orleans to St. 不良研究所导航网址 and is buried in an unmarked grave near the confluence of the Arkansas and Mississippi rivers.
Stanley Musial: Nov. 21, 1920-Jan. 19, 2013
Stanley Frank Musial played with the St. 不良研究所导航网址 Cardinals for 22 seasons, capturing seven batting titles and three Most Valuable Player awards. During his baseball career he took a year off to serve in the World War II, and after playing baseball he stayed on with the Cardinals as its vice president and then general manager. He died at his home in Ladue and is buried in Bellerive Gardens Cemetery in Creve Coeur, where visitors leave baseballs and baseball cards at his gravesite. “He lived his life with a dignity and charm to countless fans across generations,” a plaque at the site reads. (photo by Valerie Schremp Hahn, vhahn@post-dispatch.com)
William S. Burroughs: Feb. 5, 1914-Aug. 2, 1997
William Burroughs was born into a wealthy St. 不良研究所导航网址 family - his grandfather had invented the adding machine - and studied English at Harvard University. He is best known as a primary writer of the Beat Generation, turning out novels like 鈥淣aked Lunch,鈥 鈥淛unky,鈥 and 鈥淨ueer,鈥 and wrestling with drug and alcohol-induced demons. He accidentally killed his second wife in Mexico City by trying to shoot a glass off her head. He lived all over the world, including London, Paris, and Morocco, drawing from his heroin-fueled experiences to write his semi autobiographical works. He鈥檚 buried near his grandfather in Bellefontaine Cemetery.聽 (Photo courtesy of the cemetery)
Homer G. Phillips: April 1, 1880-June 18, 1931
Born in Sedalia, Homer G. Phillips studied law at Howard University and came to St. 不良研究所导航网址, where he set up a law practice and married. He became an influential lawyer and Republican politician, fighting the city鈥檚 housing segregation ordinance and defending blacks accused of involvement in the 1917 race riots in East St. 不良研究所导航网址. He helped persuade Mayor Harry Kiel to include a hospital for blacks in a $87 million public works bond issue that also funded Kiel Auditorium, the Civil Courts building, the Soldier鈥檚 Memorial, and other improvements. The bond issue passed, but whites in the medical field wanted to control it. The city agreed to build it in the Ville neighborhood, home to many black middle class families. Phillips never saw the hospital built; he was gunned down while waiting for a streetcar. Two teens were acquitted in the case, which was never solved. The hospital, dedicated six years after his death, was named for him. He鈥檚 buried next to his wife Ida, an actress and soprano, in St. Peter鈥檚 Cemetery in Normandy.
Tennessee Williams: March 26, 1911鈥 February 25, 1983
Thomas Lanier Williams III was born in Mississippi and moved to St. 不良研究所导航网址 when he was eight years old, when his father got a job at the International Shoe Company here. He attended Soldan and University City high schools, and studied writing at the University of Missouri at Columbia. Among nearly 100 plays, novels, poems and short stories, he wrote “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof,” “The Glass Menagerie,” and “A Streetcar Named Desire,” and modeled characters after some family members, with whom he had complicated and tense relationships. He famously despised St. 不良研究所导航网址. “I found St. 不良研究所导航网址ans cold, smug, complacent, intolerant, stupid and provincial. … I hate the place,” he said in a 1946 Post-Dispatch interview. He died in a hotel room in New York City after choking on a plastic bottle cap. He wrote in his will that he wanted to be buried at sea, but his brother Dakin Williams arranged for him to be buried at the family plot at Calvary Cemetery.
Photo by Robert Cohen, rcohen@post-dispatch.com
Want more famous St. 不良研究所导航网址ans?
Who's who on the St. 不良研究所导航网址 Walk of Fame
Author Ridley Pearson marvels as the recipient of the newest star on the St. 不良研究所导航网址 Walk of Fame, unveiled on the Delmar Loop on Monday, April 2, 2018. Photo by Robert Cohen, rcohen@post-dispatch.com
Want to take a cemetery tour?
Several area cemeteries offer tours during the month of October. Find more about them here.
The Wildey Odd Fellows Cemetery in Washington, Missouri, is on the upcoming cemetery tour. Photo by J.B. Forbes, jforbes@post-dispatch.com
The conservative talk show host, a native of Cape Girardeau, died Feb. 17, a year after announcing he had lung cancer.
Even today, after more than 200 years, historians know of only 14 burial sites of the 34 expedition members.聽
On Oct. 14, 1921, the 不良研究所导航网址 ran this article about the 'statue of grief' that Herman C.G. Luyties wanted placed at his grave…