Our Dedication to Research
The Cape Girardeau County Historical Society established the Research Annex Library in 2020 to house the permanent history books, small manuscripts, genealogical family books, genealogical free use databases, and military research archives.
We have formed an Alliance of Regional Research Sites so that we can help researchers access materials and sites across the county to maximize their time.
Research Hours: Tue.-Fri. from 10:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. Or by appointment Thursday evenings, or weekends. Please give us a call prior to your visit so we can have your research materials ready for your perusal. 573-204-4240
Featured Collections: A complete book series documenting the Civil War battle and skirmish field notes; an extensive topical small manuscripts collection of the persons, places, and events of the region; an extensive regional photographic collection; free access to online genealogical databases and family research binders; regional history monographs; regional maps; historic correspondence collections; postcard collections; newspaper clippings and regional newspaper resources.
Listed below are descriptions of the Historical Society’s larger collections which are available for our patrons to use for research purposes:
Founder’s (Lorimier, Rodney, Jueneman) Documents, books, artifacts, and photos from the descendants of Louis Lorimier, saved and preserved by the family from the early 1800s.
Keathley An eclectic collection of books, artifacts, documents, audio files and photos from the family business, IXL Handle Factory which included the LaPierre-Sawyer factory in Jackson. Also includes artifacts from Mr. Keathley’s world-wide travels and extensive genealogical work by him on his and related families.
Kinder A large collection of artifacts, books, documents and photos from Elroy Kinder’s historical research on Cape Girardeau County, including his personal family research and many historic sites.
Kiefner-Alves A digital collection of documents from the Alves family.
Bruss A digital collection of documents and photos from Reverend Bruss’ life in Neely’s Landing.
Military A massive collection of military memorabilia from Red Clifton, a former police chief in Jackson and smaller military collections from other Cape Girardeau County families.
Williams/Johnson Documents, books, and photos from the descendants of the Williams family of Jackson, MO who owned Big Hill Farm and the Williams Mercantile which was in the building which houses the History Center now.
Rob Lewis Genealogy Digital files from Rob Lewis’ extensive genealogical research on the families of Cape Girardeau County.
Fluegge-Saupe Books, documents, photos and artifacts from the Fluegge-Saupe family, founders of Pocahontas Lumber Company in Pocahontas and then Jackson, MO.
DeGraff Photos, documents and artifacts from the Kenneth Hager family who owned the Jackson Lumber Company.
Wishmann Vintage clothing and costumes used by Trisha Wishmann as a volunteer on the Iron Mountain Railway in Jackson.
LaGrand Books, artifacts, photos and documents from the life of Ivan D. LaGrand, a firefighter in Cape Girardeau, MO.
Joe Haupt/Randy Reisenbichler Extensive collection of the negatives of Joe Haupt, a local photographer from the 1940s to the 1970s.
We can help you make appointments at other regional research libraries and sites. Here are some additional links:
Special Collections & Archives, Kent Library, Southeast Missouri State University
https://library.semo.edu/service-areas/special-collections-and-archives
The State of Missouri Historical Society Cape Girardeau Research Center
Cape Girardeau County Archives Center
https://www.capecounty.us/archive-center/
The Kellerman Foundation for Historic Preservation
Cape Girardeau County History Center & Research Annex 