Vintage Missouri

Vintage Missouri Remember when? We do. Join thousands of Missourians rediscovering the people, places, businesses, and memories that shaped our state. Every picture has a story.
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Every story keeps Missouri history alive.
⚠️we use A.I to enhance or add color to some photos Through photos, post cards, stories and your input, I'm capturing the area the way it was, the way it can never be again.

THEN & NOW - The Missouri Highway Patrol: 1964 warning a motorist for littering. 2026 Busting a scumbag with drugs.
07/29/2026

THEN & NOW - The Missouri Highway Patrol:
1964 warning a motorist for littering.
2026 Busting a scumbag with drugs.

Monett, Missouri’s Three High Schools Through the Years For more than a century, generations of Monett students have wa...
07/29/2026

Monett, Missouri’s Three High Schools Through the Years

For more than a century, generations of Monett students have walked through the doors of three very different high schools, each reflecting the city’s growth and changing needs.

The first Monett High School, completed in 1905, was an impressive red-brick building with Romanesque arches, a distinctive cupola, and beautiful limestone trim. It replaced the original Central School as Monett’s dedicated high school and became home to the city’s earliest graduating classes.

As Monett continued to grow, the school quickly became too small. In 1922-23, a much larger three-story high school was constructed by noted builder M.E. Gillioz. This building not only educated Monett’s high school students for decades, but its third floor also housed a two-year junior college, which operated until 1953, a little-known chapter of Monett’s educational history.

Eventually, even that building could no longer meet the community’s needs. A modern campus was built, giving Monett High School the facilities it has today while continuing the tradition of educating generations of Cubs.

Three schools. Three eras. Countless memories.

Whether you attended the stately 1905 building, the classic 1923 school, or today’s campus, each one played an important role in shaping Monett and the lives of thousands of students.

Which Monett High School did you attend, or which one do you remember best?

THEN & NOW – Busch Memorial Stadium & Busch Stadium - St. Louis, Missouri.(C. 1967 & 2026)Few places in Missouri have ch...
07/29/2026

THEN & NOW – Busch Memorial Stadium & Busch Stadium - St. Louis, Missouri.
(C. 1967 & 2026)

Few places in Missouri have changed as dramatically as this view of downtown St. Louis.

The “THEN” photo captures the city’s newest landmark in about 1967. Busch Memorial Stadium had just opened the year before, replacing old Sportsman’s Park as the home of the St. Louis Cardinals. Its distinctive circular design quickly became one of the most recognizable stadiums in America. The Gateway Arch, completed just two years earlier, still towered over grounds that were far less developed than they are today.

For nearly 40 years, Busch Memorial Stadium hosted countless unforgettable moments. Cardinals legends like Bob Gibson, Lou Brock, Ozzie Smith, Willie McGee, Mark McGwire, Albert Pujols, and many others thrilled generations of fans there.

In 2006, Busch Memorial Stadium was demolished and replaced by today’s Busch Stadium, built just south of the original site. While the new ballpark embraces a classic brick design and offers spectacular views of the Gateway Arch, many fans still have fond memories of the old “cookie-cutter” stadium where so much Cardinals history was made.

The skyline has changed, the stadium has changed, but the Arch continues to watch over downtown St. Louis just as it has for nearly six decades.

Which Busch Stadium holds your favorite memories—the original Busch Memorial Stadium or today’s Busch Stadium?

THEN & NOW – The Chadwick HotelExcelsior Springs, Missouri(C. 1910 & 2023)Long before modern hotels and interstate trave...
07/29/2026

THEN & NOW – The Chadwick Hotel
Excelsior Springs, Missouri
(C. 1910 & 2023)

Long before modern hotels and interstate travel, the Chadwick Hotel welcomed visitors from across the country who came to Excelsior Springs seeking the healing powers of its famous mineral waters.

Built during the city’s booming resort era, the Chadwick stood on the northwest corner of West Broadway and North Wyman Street (later known as Thompson Avenue). The large wood-frame hotel was one of Excelsior Springs’ best-known landmarks, with its distinctive corner tower and wide wraparound porches providing guests with a comfortable place to relax between visits to the nearby springs and bathhouses. Contemporary Sanborn Fire Insurance maps confirm the hotel’s location and show it occupying the corner of Broadway and Wyman in 1909.

By the early 1900s, Excelsior Springs had become one of America’s premier health resorts. Thousands traveled by rail to drink and bathe in the mineral waters, believing they could relieve ailments ranging from arthritis and rheumatism to digestive and kidney disorders. Hotels like the Chadwick were at the heart of that thriving tourism industry.

As medicine advanced and health-resort travel declined, the grand hotel era came to an end. The Chadwick was demolished in 1968, and a new Commerce Bank building was constructed on the site. The property was later acquired by the Excelsior Springs School District, which purchased the building in 2006, remodeled it in 2007, and continues to use it today as the district’s Central Office.

It’s hard to imagine that where school administrators now work, generations of travelers once arrived by train, checked into the Chadwick Hotel, and began their search for health and healing in one of Missouri’s most famous resort towns.

RIDE THE DUCKS – Branson, Missouri(C. 1998)Who remembers taking a Ride the Ducks tour in Branson?Ride the Ducks splashed...
07/29/2026

RIDE THE DUCKS – Branson, Missouri
(C. 1998)

Who remembers taking a Ride the Ducks tour in Branson?

Ride the Ducks splashed into Branson and quickly became one of the city’s most recognizable attractions. Using refurbished World War II-era DUKW amphibious vehicles—originally built to carry troops and supplies from ships to shore—the tours combined a drive through Branson with a trip straight into Table Rock Lake without ever changing vehicles.

The experience was unlike anything else in town. Passengers were handed duck whistles, the captains mixed local history with plenty of jokes, and the moment the vehicle rolled down the boat ramp and into the lake never failed to get a reaction. For many families, it became a Branson tradition.

The DUKW itself has an incredible history. More than 21,000 were built during World War II, serving in major Allied invasions from Normandy to the Pacific. After the war, many were sold into civilian use, and a number eventually found new life entertaining visitors in Branson.

This photo shows one of the original Ride the Ducks vehicles outside Jennifer’s Americana Theatre on Highway 76, dating to around 1998.

Did you ever ride the ducks in Branson? What do you remember most—the splash into the lake, the captain’s jokes, or those famous duck whistles?

Shearer Chevrolet’s “Modern Lubrication Department” 7239 Manchester at Southwest. - Maplewood, Missouri 1939.
07/29/2026

Shearer Chevrolet’s “Modern Lubrication Department” 7239 Manchester at Southwest. - Maplewood, Missouri 1939.

THEN & NOW – YMCA - NE corner of 5th & Center Streets - Hannibal, Missouri(C. 1911 & 2024)For more than a century, the H...
07/29/2026

THEN & NOW – YMCA - NE corner of 5th & Center Streets - Hannibal, Missouri
(C. 1911 & 2024)

For more than a century, the Hannibal YMCA was one of the city’s true gathering places.

The original YMCA opened in 1911 overlooking Central Park. It quickly became much more than a gym. Generations of Hannibal residents learned to swim there, played basketball on its hardwood floor, exercised, attended youth programs, and made lifelong friendships within its walls. During the 1960s alone, the building was bustling with fitness classes, summer camps, fundraisers, and community activities that became treasured memories for countless local families.

In 1982, the Hannibal YMCA moved to its current location, allowing it to expand its programs while continuing its mission of serving the community. The beloved old downtown building was eventually demolished, leaving behind only memories and photographs of a place that meant so much to so man.

If you grew up in Hannibal, chances are you, or someone in your family, spent time inside those walls. Whether it was your first swim lesson, a basketball game, summer camp, or simply meeting up with friends after school, the old YMCA helped shape generations of Hannibal’s youth.

Do you remember the old YMCA at Fifth & Center? Share your memories below.

Back in the 70’s and still today, lots of people in Missouri claimed to have seen something unexplainable while living i...
07/28/2026

Back in the 70’s and still today, lots of people in Missouri claimed to have seen something unexplainable while living in or traveling through our Ozarks region.

Whether you call it Bigfoot, Sasquatch, or Momo, Missouri has long been one of the nation’s biggest hotspots for reported sightings.

The state’s most famous legend is Momo, short for the Missouri Monster, first reported near Louisiana, Missouri, in Pike County, during the summer of 1972. Witnesses described a towering, 7- to 8-foot-tall creature covered in dark hair, with a terrible odor and enormous footprints. The story quickly made national headlines and put the small river town on the map.

Since then, according to the BFRO website, more than 160 Bigfoot sightings have been reported across Missouri, with many concentrated in the Ozarks and heavily forested areas. Some of the counties with the most reported encounters include:

• Jackson County
• Crawford County
• Taney County
• Pulaski County
• Boone County
• Cass County
• Jefferson County
• Vernon County
• Douglas County
• Franklin County
• Lawrence County
• Reynolds County
• Stone County

Other well-known locations include Mark Twain National Forest, the Current River, the Eleven Point River, and the remote hills and hollows of the Missouri Ozarks.

No scientific evidence has confirmed Bigfoot’s existence, but the stories have become a lasting part of Missouri folklore and continue to spark curiosity, debate, and the occasional late-night campfire conversation.

Have you, or someone you know, ever had a Bigfoot encounter in Missouri? If so, tell us where it happened. We’d love to hear your story!

Missouri has now & had many great indoor shopping centers in the past. My childhood favorite was The Independence Center...
07/28/2026

Missouri has now & had many great indoor shopping centers in the past. My childhood favorite was The Independence Center in Independence, Mo. - What was your favorite mall growing up? - Did you ever work in one? Can you identify the 4 in the photo?

Seems like every town had one. I’m not talking about the skating rink, I’m talking about the girl behind the skating rin...
07/27/2026

Seems like every town had one. I’m not talking about the skating rink, I’m talking about the girl behind the skating rink 😂
…Bless her heart ❤️

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