Speaker Series: Growing Up St. Louis
Visit the Field House Museum on Facebook for an Online Speaker Series Event September 12 at 1pm. Author Jim Merkel will be joining us to discuss his book Growing Up St. Louis: Looking Back Through the Decades. The book recounts the stories that stuck with more than a hundred native St. Louisans over the last century, told by the very people who lived through them. Ranging from joyous to humdrum, and even grim, these childhood memories offer a glimpse of life in still frame, from the start of the twentieth century to the present day.
Buy the book: https://merkels-books-and-things.square.site/
About the Author
Jim Merkel is a native St. Louisan and journalist who has worked with the New York Times, Pennsylvania Magazine, and the Suburban Journals of Greater St. Louis. He is a graduate of Webster Groves High School and author of: Hoosiers and Scrubby Dutch: St. Louis’s South Side; Beer, Brats, and Baseball: German-Americans in St. Louis; The Making of an Icon: The Dreamers, the Schemers, and the Hard Hats Who Built The Gateway Arch; The Colorful Characters of St. Louis, and Growing Up St. Louis: Looking Back Through the Decades.
Making the Connection
The Field House Museum, formerly The Eugene Field House & St. Louis Toy Museum, has been fondly remembered by visitors since its opening in 1936. It was saved to preserve the legacy of Eugene Field, the “Children’s Poet,” with the help of St. Louis school children, who raised money during the Depression to protect the home from demolition. In the decades since, the Field House Museum has been a regular stop for school groups and families to learn about history and create their own memories.
How to Attend
Simply visit the “discussion” section of the event page or visit the Field House Museum Facebook Page to view the video feed during the event time. Recordings will be available on the Museum’s Facebook, Website, and Youtube Channel.