Travel back to the 1800s and discover Sulphur Springs Resort, a forgotten mineral spa once nestled along the clear waters of the River Des Peres near today’s Manchester and Hampton. From elite summer retreat to abandoned ruin buried under rail yards and factories, this episode uncovers how one of St. Louis’ earliest resorts rose, thrived, and disappeared. Listen now!

All research, editing, and production by River CityProductions for Show-Me History.

📬 Reach us at: ⁠podcast@showmehistorystl.com⁠

🌐⁠showmehistorystl.com⁠

▶️YouTube: ⁠youtube.com/@ShowMeHistorySTL⁠

🟦 Bluesky: ⁠showmehistory.bsky.app⁠

📘 Facebook: ⁠facebook.com/showmehistorystl⁠

🐦 X: ⁠x.com/ShowMe_History⁠

💬Please rate and review us on your favorite podcast platform — every comment helps us grow!

Thank you for listening, and until next time… we’llsee you in the Lou.

Take a deep dive into the wild history of St. Louis’ River Des Peres; from a clear Ice Age stream to a polluted open sewer, to today’s concrete-lined drainage channel and greenway. In this episode, we explore floods, public health crises, massive engineering projects, and modern efforts to clean and restore this complicated urban river. Listen now!

All research, editing, and production by River CityProductions for Show-Me History.

📬 Reach us at: ⁠podcast@showmehistorystl.com⁠

🌐⁠showmehistorystl.com⁠

▶️YouTube: ⁠youtube.com/@ShowMeHistorySTL⁠

🟦 Bluesky: ⁠showmehistory.bsky.app⁠

📘 Facebook: ⁠facebook.com/showmehistorystl⁠

🐦 X: ⁠x.com/ShowMe_History⁠

💬Please rate and review us on your favorite podcast platform; every comment helps us grow!

Thank you for listening, and until next time… we’ll see you in the Lou.

Discover the powerful story of Homer G. Phillips Hospital, the groundbreaking Black teaching hospital that transformed The Ville neighborhood in St. Louis. From its fight for creation, to its rise as a world-class medical center, to its controversial closure and eventual rebirth, this episode explores one of the most important institutions in African American medical history. Listen now!

All research, editing, and production by River City Productions for Show-Me History.

Reach us at: ⁠podcast@showmehistorystl.com⁠

Website: ⁠showmehistorystl.com⁠

YouTube:⁠youtube.com/@ShowMeHistorySTL⁠

Bluesky: ⁠showmehistory.bsky.app⁠

Facebook: ⁠facebook.com/showmehistorystl⁠

X: ⁠x.com/ShowMe_History⁠

💬Please rate and review us on your favorite podcast platform — every comment helps us grow!

Thank you for listening, and until next time… we’ll see you in the Lou.

Before Fairgrounds Park became a place for picnics and recreation, it was the site of one of the Union Army’s most vital Civil War installations: Benton Barracks.

In this episode of Show Me History, we uncover the rich and largely forgotten story of the 150-acre military complex built just outside of 1860s St. Louis. Learn how it became a training ground for thousands of soldiers, a hospital for the wounded, and a place of transformation for newly freed African American troops following the Emancipation Proclamation.

From its strategic construction and sanitation innovations to its commanding officers and post-war legacy, Benton Barracks played a key role in the Western campaign—and in the evolving story of Civil War America.

All research, editing, and production by River City Productions for Show-Me History.

📬 Reach us at: podcast@showmehistorystl.com
🌐 showmehistorystl.com
▶️ YouTube: youtube.com/@ShowMeHistorySTL
🟦 Bluesky: showmehistory.bsky.app
📘 Facebook: facebook.com/showmehistorystl
🐦 X: x.com/ShowMe_History

💬 Please rate and review us on your favorite podcast platform — every comment helps us grow!

Thank you for listening, and until next time… we’ll see you in the Lou.

Before the Blues and the football Cardinals, there was the St. Louis Hawks — a powerhouse NBA franchise that brought the city its only professional basketball championship in 1958.

In this episode of Show Me History, we take you courtside for the rise and fall of the Hawks, tracing their journey from Buffalo to the Tri-Cities, Milwaukee, and finally St. Louis. You’ll hear about legendary players like Bob Pettit, nail-biting playoff rivalries with the Celtics, and how the Hawks helped pave the way for St. Louis to become a multi-sport city — only to be pushed out by the very teams they made possible.

Packed with drama, civic pride, and court-side controversy, this is the story of the last pro basketball team to call St. Louis home — and the complex reasons they left for Atlanta in 1968.

🏀 Rivalries. Racism. Relocation. The story of the Hawks is one St. Louis shouldn’t forget.

All research, editing, and production by River City Productions for Show-Me History.

📬 Reach us at: podcast@showmehistorystl.com
🌐 showmehistorystl.com
▶️ YouTube: youtube.com/@ShowMeHistorySTL
🟦 Bluesky: showmehistory.bsky.app
📘 Facebook: facebook.com/showmehistorystl
🐦 X: x.com/ShowMe_History

💬 Please take a moment to comment and rate the show on your favorite platform. Every interaction helps us grow!

Thank you for listening — and as always, we’ll see you in the Lou.

Did you know that St. Louis has a virus named after it?

In this episode of Show Me History, we uncover the forgotten public health crisis that struck St. Louis during the sweltering summer of 1933: an outbreak of what would come to be known as St. Louis Encephalitis Virus (SLEV). With over 1,100 reported cases and at least 200 deaths, the city found itself at the center of a medical mystery - one eventually linked to the tiniest and deadliest of culprits: mosquitoes.

Learn how local doctors and scientists, including a pioneering female pathologist, cracked the case and helped give the virus its name. We’ll also explore what this illness looks like today, who’s still at risk, and why it continues to resurface across the U.S.

It’s a chilling chapter in medical history — and yet another reason to keep swatting at mosquitoes.

All research, editing, and production by River City Productions for Show-Me History.

📬 Reach us at: podcast@showmehistorystl.com
🌐 showmehistorystl.com
🟦 Bluesky: showmehistory.bsky.app
📘 Facebook: facebook.com/showmehistorystl
🐦 X: x.com/ShowMe_History

💬 Please take a moment to comment and rate the show on your favorite platform. Every interaction helps us grow!

Thank you for listening — and as always, we’ll see you in the Lou.

Long before rail yards and highways, there was a sandbar in the Mississippi that became a stage for honor, bloodshed, and survival.

Bloody Island.

In this episode of Show Me History, we uncover the dark and fascinating history of this lawless strip of land between St. Louis and Illinois. From high-society duels and political showdowns to early engineering feats (including a young Robert E. Lee’s involvement!), discover how Bloody Island became infamous — and why it ultimately disappeared from the map.

You'll meet notorious figures like Thomas Hart Benton, Charles Lucas, and Benjamin Gratz Brown, and witness how politics, pride, and pistols shaped the early days of Missouri.

All research, editing, and production by River City Productions for Show-Me History.

Reach us at: podcast@showmehistorystl.com
Website | Bluesky: showmehistory.bsky.app
Facebook: facebook.com/showmehistorystl
X: x.com/ShowMe_History

Please take a moment to leave a comment or rating on your favorite podcast platform. Every interaction helps!

Dueling, deception, and the death of a river island — it all happened here.

What if St. Louis had its very own Disneyland? In this episode of Show Me History, we uncover the incredible, nearly-forgotten story of Walt Disney’s Riverfront Square — a bold and imaginative plan to build a Disney theme park in the heart of downtown St. Louis.

From the rediscovery of lost blueprints in 2015 to the city's ambitious redevelopment dreams of the 1950s and 60s, we explore the political, cultural, and financial drama that brought Disney to Missouri — and ultimately led him to walk away. Learn how a clash over beer, control, and creative vision turned a promising partnership into a missed opportunity.

You’ll hear about the attractions that never were, the park that could have been, and how these unrealized dreams influenced the creation of Walt Disney World. It’s a whirlwind tour through urban planning, corporate ambition, and hometown pride — with a dash of Missouri mystery.

Website: showmehistorystl.com
Twitter: @ShowMe_History
Facebook: ShowMeHistoryStL

BlueSky: @ShowMeHistory.bsky.app

All research, editing, and production done by River City Productions for Show-Me History.

Please take a moment to drop us a comment and rate us on whatever platform you're listening on. Every interaction helps! Thank you for listening!

Tune in and discover the Disney park St. Louis almost had — and why it never came to be.