Our Missouri

In this episode, host Sean Rost sits down with Rachel Davidson to discuss Missouri's newest national park, Ste. Genevieve National Historical Park. Episode Image: Pencil drawing by Roscoe Misselhorn of Jean Baptiste Valle Home [Missouri Postcard Collection (P0032), SHSMO] About the Guest: Rachel Davidson is Superintendent of Ste. Genevieve National Historical Park

In the next episode of the "Origins" series, Linda Carol Jones joins host Sean Rost to discuss her book, The Shattered Cross: French Catholic Missionaries on the Mississippi River, 1698-1725. Episode Image: Steeple of Ste. Genevieve Catholic Church, date unknown [Missouri Postcard Collection (P0032), SHSMO] About the Guest: Linda Carol Jones holds a PhD in Instructional Technology from the University of New Mexico. Presently, she is Professor of Language Specialties at the University of Arkansas. She is the author of Language Encounters Along the French Colonial Mississippi and The Shattered Cross: French Catholic Missionaries on the Mississippi River, 1698-1725.

In this episode for the "Origins" series, Mark Walczynski joins us to talk about his new book, Jolliet and Marquette: A New History of the 1673 Expedition. Episode Image: Tower Rock in the Mississippi River, ca. 1960 [Missouri Postcard Collection (P0032), SHSMO] About the Guest: Mark Walczynski is a retired faculty member at Illinois Valley Community College and the Park Historian for the Starved Rock Foundation. He is the author of The History of Starved Rock 1673-1911; Inquietus: La Salle in the Illinois Country; Massacre 1769: The Search for the Origin of the Legend of Starved Rock; and Jolliet and Marquette: A New History of the 1673 Expedition.

Next up in the “Origins” series, Patricia Cleary joins host Sean Rost to talk about her award-winning book, Mound City: The Place of the Indigenous Past and Present in St. Louis. Episode Image: Monk’s Mound, 1987 [James Stebbings Photograph Collection (S0811), SHSMO] About the Guest: Patricia Cleary holds a PhD in History from Northwestern University. Presently, she is Professor of History at California State University, Long Beach. She is the author of several books, including Elizabeth Murray: A Woman’s Pursuit of Independence in Eighteenth-Century America; The World, the Flesh, and the Devil: A History of Colonial St. Louis; and Mound City: The Place of the Indigenous Past and Present in St. Louis.

Continuing the "Origins" series, John Hagermann from the Missouri Department of Natural Resources discusses Missouri’s American Indian Cultural Center at Annie and Abel Van Meter State Park. Episode Image: Mealy Mounds, Callaway County, date unknown [Missouri Department of Natural Resources Photographs (P0136)] About the Guest: John Hagermann is the Park & Historic Site Specialist at Annie and Abel Van Meter State Park and Missouri’s American Indian Cultural Center

If you are a frequent listener of the Our Missouri, you might remember the 2021 series “Bicentennial Book Club” that coincided with the state’s 200th birthday and looked at influential books and authors focused on Missouri history. With the United States’ semi-quincentennial arriving in 2026, Our Missouri is launching a 20-episode series entitled, “Origins: A Reflection on Missouri at 250 & Beyond.” From the first people to arrive at the land now called Missouri, to the efforts to bring it into the Union as the 24th state, this series examines major moments in the years prior to statehood as well as Missouri’s complex history in relation to the United States’ 250th. To open the "Origins" series, Greg Olson sits down with host Sean Rost to discuss his award-winning book, Indigenous Missourians: Ancient Societies to the Present. Episode Image: Cottonwood trees in Pike County, 1960 [Missouri Ruralist Photographs (P0030), SHSMO] About the Guest: Greg Olson is a historian and graphic artist who, for thirty-five years, has worked with members of various Indigenous tribes to tell stories of Native presence in Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma. He is the chair of the For the People Powwow Committee. He is also the author of several books, including Ioway Life: Reservation and Reform, 1837-1860; Voodoo Priests, Noble Savages, and Ozark Gypsies: The Life of Folklorist Mary Alicia Owen; The Ioway in Missouri; Indigenous Missourians: Ancient Societies to the Present.

To conclude the "Cave State" series, Anthony Orazio, superintendent of Rock Bridge Memorial State Park, joins host Sean Rost to discuss Rock Bridge Memorial State Park and the uniquely named Devil’s Icebox. Episode Image: Devil’s Icebox at Rock Bridge Memorial State Park [Image courtesy of Sean Rost] About the Guest: Anthony Orazio is superintendent of Rock Bridge Memorial State Park and the Midwest section of Katy Trail State Park.

Next in the Cave State series, Murphy Kindoll, Natural Resource Ecologist at Missouri State Parks, talks with host Sean Rost about Roaring River State Park. Episode Image: A group relaxing near the entrance to Roaring River Spring Cave, 1956 [Gerald R. Massie Photographs (P0016), SHSMO] About the Guest: Murphy Kindoll is the Natural Resource Ecologist at Roaring River State Park

In this episode, Ed Schott, superintendent of Meramec State Park, joins Sean Rost to discuss Fisher Cave and Meramec State Park. Episode Image: Stalactites in Fisher Cave, date unknown [John F. Bradbury, Jr. Postcard Collection (R1551), SHSMO] About the Guest: Ed Schott is the superintendent of Meramec State Park. Prior to this position, he worked at Route 66 State Park, Hawn State Park, and Onondaga Cave State Park. He holds a bachelor's degree in forestry from Southern Illinois University-Carbondale.

In this episode, Sean Rost talks with Nick Kromrie of Missouri State Parks about Grand Gulf State Park. Episode Image: A person gazes out at Grand Gulf [Gerald R. Massie Photographs (P0016), SHSMO] About the Guest: Nick Kromrie is park superintendent of Grand Gulf State Park, Bryant Creek State Park, and Eleven Point State Park

In this episode, Sean Rost talks with Tasha Gabel, senior naturalist for the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, about Onondaga Cave State Park. Episode Image: Two teenage girls look at cave formations in Onondaga Cave, 1959 [Missouri Ruralist Photographs (P0030), SHSMO] Banner Image: Interior view of Onondaga Cave, ca. 1945 [Mr. and Mrs. Walter Williams Photograph Collection (P0535), SHSMO] About the Guest: Tasha Gabel is a senior naturalist for the Missouri Department of Natural Resources at Onondaga Cave State Park. She earned a bachelor's degree in wildlife conservation and management from Missouri State University.

Continuing the "Cave State" series, Alice Johnson, superintendent of Graham Cave State Park and the Mid-East Section of the Katy Trail State Park, joins host Sean Rost to discuss the unique features of Graham Cave State Park. Episode Image: Graham Cave Quilt Patch by Linda Ann Eatherton, 2021 [Missouri Bicentennial Commission Records (CA6643), SHSMO] About the Guest: Alice Johnson is Superintendent of Graham Cave State Park and the Mid-East Section of the Katy Trail State Park. She has worked for the Missouri Department of Natural Resources since 2018. She holds a bachelor's degree in anthropology from Missouri State University.

If you are from Missouri, you know at least one thing: the weather in the state is always changing. In the summer, we have record-breaking heat waves. And here’s the thing, when winter comes along, there will be days when the temperature struggles to get above zero. Traveling along the state’s roadways—maybe you are doing so right now—you may also notice billboards proclaiming the subterranean wonders of Missouri. Some of these billboards even remind you that these caves are cool on hot days and warm on cold days. It’s the best of both worlds. Now, while Missouri is known as the Show-Me State, it also has a second nickname, “The Cave State,” due to the thousands of caves located within its borders. To kick off Season 8, Our Missouri travels underground to learn more about “The Cave State.” To open the "Cave State" series, host Sean Rost is joined by Guerric Good, Interpretive Resource Coordinator at Lake of the Ozarks State Park, to talk about Ozark Caverns. Episode Image: A group of men stand near the entrance to a cave, date unknown [Maximilian E. Schmidt Photographs (P0001), SHSMO] About the Guest: Guerric Good has worked at Lake of the Ozarks State Park since 2020 and has been able to employ all his passions for natural and cultural resources through his position of Interpretive Resource Coordinator.

To conclude the 2025 Summer Series, Coby Ellison joins host Sean Rost to discuss the National Museum of Transportation in St. Louis. Episode Image: Wabash, Frisco and Pacific Live Stream Miniature Railroad, 1950. [Arthur Witman Collection (S0732), SHSMO] About the Guest: Coby Ellison is the Museum Curator at the National Museum of Transportation