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    Hannibal: The Otis Howell Collection
    Hannibal: The Otis Howell Collection
    Hannibal: The Otis Howell Collection
    Ebook192 pages37 minutes

    Hannibal: The Otis Howell Collection

    By Steve Chou

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    About this ebook

    Hannibal, Missouri, on the banks of the Mississippi River, prides itself as "America's Hometown." This book is a photo journey through Hannibal's postwar years as captured through the lens of Otis Howell, news photographer for the Hannibal Courier-Post. The years between the end of World War II and Vietnam were exciting and nostalgic ones. They were the days of Elvis, Howdy Doody, "I Like Ike," Desotos, and Sputnik. In Hannibal, Bud's Golden Cream was a popular spot and people shopped at Silverburg's and Kresge's. A special treat was a Saturday matinee at the Rialto or the Star. KHMO's "Man on the Street" was a regular fixture at Broadway and Main. Hannibal: The Otis Howell Collection recalls people and places from the events of that time through over 220 rare images. Many of these photos have not been seen since they first appeared on the pages of the Hannibal Courier-Post decades ago.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherArcadia Publishing
    Release dateMay 5, 2004
    ISBN9781439614860
    Hannibal: The Otis Howell Collection
    Author

    Steve Chou

    Steve Chou is a highly recognized influencer and speaker in the world of ecommerce and has taught thousands of students to profitably sell physical products online. His blog, MyWifeQuitHerJob.com, has been featured in Forbes, the New York Times, Entrepreneur and MSNBC. He also runs the My Wife Quit Her Job podcast, which is among the top twenty-five marketing shows on Apple Podcasts, and a YouTube channel with hundreds of thousands of subscribers. With his wife, Steve runs BumblebeeLinens.com and hosts an annual conference called The Sellers Summit. He carries both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in electrical engineering from Stanford University.

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      Book preview

      Hannibal - Steve Chou

      Chou.

      INTRODUCTION

      The year was 1945. War was over and the soldiers were headed home. Among them was a 27-year-old Army medic named Otis Howell who had served in the Pacific Theater of Operations. Arriving back in Hannibal, Missouri, he was immediately hired at the local newspaper, the Courier-Post, where he had worked delivering papers before the war. The staff photographer was leaving and a vacancy would be created. Otis had no prior photographic experience save for snapshots taken with a Kodak box camera while in the service.

      Thus began a thirty-five-year career in photo journalism. In that time Otis Howell traveled untold thousands of miles with his trusty Speedgraphic, photographing fires, floods, building dedications, demolitions, parades, and graduations throughout the Northeast Missouri area. He was a familiar fixture at high school football games and would often be called in the middle of the night to cover some auto accident or other developing story. Otis rubbed shoulders with all walks and classes of humanity, from the President of the United States to a nine-year-old who had found an early crop of mushrooms.

      The man behind the camera was born April 13, 1918 in Frankford, Missouri, the son of Clifton and Dollie (Fisher) Howell. Otis was just nine months old when his father died in the influenza epidemic of 1919. Just before starting school Otis moved to Hannibal with his mother and older sister. Times were tough; Otis left school after the ninth grade in order to help support the family. After Otis returned to Hannibal in 1945, he began courting Delorise Vark, who also worked at the Courier-Post as the circulation manager. They were married four years later. The Howells had two daughters, Martha and Mary. Otis retired from the Courier-Post in 1980 due to declining health. He passed away on January 24, 1983 just a few months shy of his 65th birthday.

      This book is a tribute to a man who preserved a vital slice of local history through the course of his daily occupation, and when wisdom of the day dictated that the vast collection of negatives was needless clutter, he rescued them to be studied and appreciated by future generations. The gift that Otis gave to his beloved town was completed when his widow donated the collection to the Hannibal Public Library.

      The collection itself numbers in the tens of thousands of negatives, spanning much of Otis Howell’s career with the Courier-Post. I have spent more than a year studying these negatives, selecting the material for this book, and cross-referencing pictures with the newspaper editions in which they first appeared. I have sought to give a glimpse of the life and times of Hannibal, Missouri during the years of 1947 to 1967. This book has a lot of streetscape changes, building demolitions, remodelings, and new construction. There are photos of many of the events and happenings, and candid shots of Hannibal at work and at play.

      For the person who grew up in Hannibal at that time, this book should bring back many fond memories. For the others, this will give a feel for Hannibal and small-town Midwestern America as a whole during those exciting postwar years.

      Those who remember Otis Howell recall a man who was hard-working and dedicated to his profession. He was a man who truly loved what he did. Despite no formal training in photography, Otis became quite proficient at his trade, even winning professional awards for his work. A person of his talent and enthusiasm could have prospered by seeking more prestigious positions with larger papers in larger cities. That he chose not to has made Hannibal a richer community.

      Steve Chou

      November 2003

      One

      FROM VJ TO KOREA

      1947–1953

      This is a view from the 700 block of Broadway looking west. The photograph is taken from the middle of the street, with the A&P partly visible at right, Kansteiner Hardware in the next block, and then the telephone building. On left is Rupp Bros. Auto Parts, then Conlon Lumber & Coal Co. Just beyond is First Methodist Church. This photo dates from mid-1947.

      The building at 422 North Main was undergoing a remodeling and expansion in February 1947 when this photo was taken. As of 2004, Murphy Motors occupies this structure.

      Just a couple of blocks away, Foley Motors, a Packard automobile dealer, was putting up this new building at 308 North Third. It is the current home of Ayers Pottery. (February 1947)

      Logan Shoe Store at 123 North Main was another business busily revamping the exterior of their store. Workers on the scaffolding are giving the front a more modern appearance. To the left of Logan’s is J.J. Newberry and to the right is Dolly’s

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