Almost Yesterday

Wednesdays at 5:42 a.m., 7:42 a.m. & 5:18 p.m.
  • Southeast Missouri State University

Almost Yesterday is a glimpse into the rich history of our region. Dr. Frank Nickell takes listeners on a journey to specific moments in time, such as the first radio broadcast on KFVS, the history of Farmington’s Carlton College, and the short-lived safari on a Mississippi River island. A gifted storyteller and local historian, Dr. Nickell’s wit and love for the past are combined with sounds and music that augment his narrative.

On Saturday, June 7, 2008, Almost Yesterday received First Place in the "Special Programs" category at the Missouri Broadcasters Association Awards Banquet in Kansas City, Missouri.

Local support for Almost Yesterday comes from Ted Yates, Attorney at Law.

Almost Yesterday: Cape Girardeau Celebrates "Taft Day"

By • Jul 28, 2020
President Taft was the first chief-of-state to visit Cape Girardeau.
Southeast Missouri State University

It seems like almost yesterday that President William Howard Taft visited Cape Girardeau. His purpose was to promote the deepening and stabilization of the Mississippi River channel.

Almost Yesterday: The Sinking of The Stonewall

By • Jul 21, 2020
Library of Congress

It seems like almost yesterday that the steamboat the "The Stonewall" burned and sank just south of Neely's Landing, Missouri. It was October 27, 1869 and the sidewheeler "The Stonewall" was travelling south on the Mississippi with tons of cargo -- about 300 passengers, 200 head of livestock -- bound for Cape Girardeau, Memphis and New Orleans.

Almost Yesterday: The Gads Hill Train Robbery

By • Jul 14, 2020

It seems like almost yesterday that the first train robbery in Missouri occurred. The date was January 31, 1874 and the location was a small settlement named Gads Hill on the St. Louis and Iron Mountain Railroad, north of present day Piedmont, Missouri. The community consisted of three or four houses, and a combined store, post office and train platform.

Obviously, the founder of the town, George Creath, had a literary background as “Gad’s Hill” figured prominently in Shakespeare’s King Henry IV, and Charles Dickens’ summer home inKent, England was named “Gad’s Hill place.”

Almost Yesterday: The Hill-Burton Act

By • Jul 7, 2020
Southeast Missouri State University

It seems like Almost Yesterday that Congress passed the “Hospital Survey and Construction Act” which became Public Law 725. This act provided funds to hospitals, nursing homes, and chronic care facilities, which had declined during the Great Depression and World War II.

By 1945 and the end of World War II, many American hospitals were obsolete – and approximately 50% of the nation’s counties had no hospital facilities at all.

Almost Yesterday: The Tri-State Tornado

By • Jun 23, 2020
March 18, 1925
Southeast Missouri State University

It seems like almost yesterday that the most devastating tornado in American history passed through Southeast Missouri. The F-5 tornado first touched down in Reynolds County, west of Ellington and stayed on the ground for approximately 220 miles, for three and one-half hours, crossing southern Missouri and Illinois, finally dissipating in southern Indiana.

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