For ninety-five years, St. Louis residents counted on Famous-Barr to buy the things they used every day and to celebrate the moments that happened only once a year. Customers might bump into Sophia Loren while shoe shopping or confide in Santa Claus during a visit to Toyland. May Company purchased the Famous Clothing Company in 1892 and acquired the William Barr Dry Goods Company nineteen years later. In 1914, Famous-Barr opened the doors of its iconic downtown location, treating folks across Missouri and Illinois to almost a century of spectacular window displays and legendary luncheons.

This is a story of the life of a young boy born in 1936 during the Great Depression, who began to grow up during World War II and started school two years before the war ended. There were two brothers and a sister born in 1938, 1940, and 1943. Their mother passed away because of cancer in April 1945, leaving behind four children aged two, four, six, and eight. Its a story about how we all survived, grew up, married, had families, and lived a normal and happy life. With a loving grandparent, they were able to stay together for five years until the grandmother passed away in 1950. The rest of the story is about a long and hard road, about a road less traveled, with many ups and downs.

If you are a retailer that wants to take your business to the next level, you need quick answers that you can put in place today. You need to read this book if: your store has hit a plateau that you cant seem to overcome; your marketing dollars arent getting the job done; your store gets many browsers but few buyers; your customers are not finding what they want at your store. Richard L. Gordon, an expert retailer and marketer, relies on concise case studies and decades of experience to show what works. With him as your guide, youll find out how to hire the best employees, deliver excellent customer service, and build your brand and business to new heights. Dont trust the success of your business to a manager or employees who havent delivered results. When you take control of your store and equip yourself with solid, tested strategies, youll end up with A Line Out the Door. filled with ideas and strategies that any specialty retailer could us if they want to take their store to the next level. Rich Gordon truly understands the strategies and concepts that are so necessary to excel as a retailer in todays environment. If you want to be taken seriously as a retailer today, read it and by all means act on what you learn! Maxine Clark, CEO of Build-A-Bear

During the 1950s and 1960s, labor leaders Harold Gibbons and Ernest Calloway championed a new kind of labor movement that regarded workers as "total persons" interested in both workplace affairs and the exercise of effective citizenship in their communities. Working through Teamsters Local 688 and viewing the city of St. Louis as their laboratory, this remarkable interracial duo forged a dynamic political alliance that placed their "citizen members" on the front lines of epic battles for urban revitalization, improved public services, and the advancement of racial and economic justice. Parallel to their political partnership, Gibbons functioned as a top Teamsters Union leader and Calloway as an influential figure in St. Louis's civil rights movement. Their pioneering efforts not only altered St. Louis's social and political landscape but also raised fundamental questions about the fate of the post-industrial city, the meaning of citizenship, and the role of unions in shaping American democracy.

St. Louis has been a shining beacon on the shores of the Mississippi River for more than 250 years, and many iconic landmarks have come and gone. The city hosted the World's Fair in 1904, with beautiful acres of buildings, gardens and fountains, nearly all of which are lost to time. Famous Busch Stadium now sits on an area that was once a vibrant community for Chinese immigrants. St. Louis Jockey Club was an expansive and popular gathering spot in the late nineteenth century until the state outlawed gambling. The Lion Gas Building was home to a unique mural featuring more than seventy shades of gray in tribute to famed aviator Charles Lindbergh. Author Valerie Battle Kienzle details the fantastic forgotten landmarks of St. Louis.