CALL TO ORDER –President John Corbett called the meeting to order at 10:11 a.m. at 6314 West Park, St. Louis, MO. Eight members were in attendance; Bob Corbett, John Corbett, Terri Corbett, Tom Haller, Bob Howard, Louise Howard, Carol Nemeth and Sally Sharamitaro.
Meeting Minutes - A motion was made and seconded to approve the minutes of the last meeting, November 14, 2015. See for November Minutes . A vote was taken, the motion passed and the minutes were approved.
Treasurer’s Report – Terri Corbett presented the most current treasurer’s report. The DHS had an ending bank balance as of February 1, 2016 of $24,492.00. She repeated that the increase in funds is due to the generous donation for the new Dogtown sign project, and stands at this time at $6,667.98. A motion was made and seconded to approve the treasurer’s report. A vote was taken, the motion passed and the treasurer’s report was approved.
Dogtown Sign Project 2016 - John updated the members on the status of the new Dogtown sign project. This is the large sign planned for the garden area between Felix’s and the Lehman building, and is a joint project between Steve Cole, owner of Felix’s, and the Dogtown Business Association.
In describing the new sign for the artists, John realized what the sign might look like from the opposite side. Dogtown spelled backwards was a bit of a shock for John, so he immediately contacted Steve Cole and the others involved.
The size of the signposts had already presented some concern for drivers at the intersection of Tamm and Clayton Avenues. The planners had hoped there would be a way to work around that and prevent not only the traffic problems, but any delays in the approval process.
John shared with the members several ideas that had been keeping him awake at night. He noticed how the banner between the two miners looked like a “gate”, and wondered how a totally “new idea” would sound to the other planners. Given the two miners on the sign are holding the banner high, John came up with “Gateway to St. Louis” for the wording on the banner. The name “Dogtown” will remain in the sign, but in a new location.
In addition, he noticed that the new steel zoo sign was quite a hit, John wondered if it might be an option for our new Dogtown sign. He was happy to hear that both of his “new ideas” were well received.
John will follow up with the artists, the media and marketing folks, as well as with the city of St. Louis for permits. And lastly, he reminded members that the sign project will require the collection of an estimated total of $20,000.
Discussion followed regarding fund raising, the sign and what John has learned about the zoo and what they call their “20 year plan”.
The date of the 2016 Street Musicians Festival is set for Saturday, September 17, 2016.
Veteran’s Memorial 2016 – John discussed the current plans for an extension of the veteran’s brick garden, and how it will accommodate the Unknown Soldier stone as well as any additional brick orders.
Bob Howard asked John if he would speak a bit more about the veteran’s research project that he heard had been done by John and Dan McGuire. John was happy to do so. Bob said he plans to pass along the information to his Vietnam Veteran’s group.
John then told the story of how he had lost the original “brick man’s” telephone number and was concerned how to find someone who could do as good a job. He went on to tell how surprised and relieved he was when he accidently “found” that same brick man.
It happened while John was visiting his daughter’s house, and noticed that there was a large brick project going on right next door. Just as surprised, was the “brick man”, who said he would be happy to provide another estimate for the new extension. John plans to get at least one additional bid.
Currently the plan is for the 2016 installation ceremony to be held on Memorial Day Weekend, Sunday, May 29, 2016.
Historian/Archivist – - DHS Historian Bob Corbett reported on the current situation with the DHS archives and collections.
John reported that he picked up the VHS tapes and using the new cable he purchased, was in the process of transferring the interviews, etc., from the tapes to his personal computer.
Further discussion was held on, not just the archives themselves, but the next archivist. At that time John spoke up and agreed to officially take over the archivist position.
Bob then took the opportunity to discuss the Dogtown webpage. Currently it “lives’ on the Webster University website, he said, as a benefit to him as Professor Emeritus. The concern for Bob is what would happen to it in the event of his death. It is massive in size, and requires at least an introductory knowledge of “HTML” coding language to maintain it.
He wanted to remind the members of the large collection of St. James School photos stored there, the entire reproduction of the book on St. James Parish, written by Rev. P.J. O’Connor, and the years of “Let’s Go” parish bulletins. In addition Bob also stores personal information, family history, book reviews, etc. on his website.
There is another possibility that Bob will look into. It concerns the web domain name, Corbettland.com, which he purchased a few years ago as a possible backup, in the event he needed to move his entire webpage from the Webster server.
Much discussion followed on various storage locations for the archives, including St. James School, the Missouri Historical Society, and as John mentioned, something similar to the warehouse his son John now owns. Security is a major issue no matter our final choice.
GOOD OF THE ORDER/NEW BUSINESS –
Fund Raising Ideas - John announced that there is still an offer for a fund raiser thanks to Joe Jovanovich from the Pat Connelly Tavern. A motion was made and seconded that a DHS fund raiser be held. A vote was taken and the motion passed.
Other - Tom Haller suggested that the DHS consider designing a brochure to promote itself. He brought samples of two local brochures, one from University City, another from the Taos Company. Tom suggested that they could be made available at the various restaurants in and around Dogtown.
The meeting adjourned at 11:19 a.m. The next meeting will be May 2016 at 10:00am. An email will be sent to all list members announcing the meeting, date and location.
Respectfully submitted,
Sally Ryan Sharamitaro
Secretary
Dogtown Historical Society
| HOME | DOGTOWN |
| Bibliography | Oral history | Recorded history | Photos |
| YOUR page | External links | Walking Tour |