Interest in scholarly study of the Ozarks has grown steadily in recent years, and The Ozarks in Missouri History: Discoveries in an American Region will be welcomed by historians and Ozark enthusiasts alike. This lively collection gathers fifteen essays, many of them pioneering efforts in the field, that originally appeared in the Missouri Historical Review, the journal of the State Historical Society.

Now available in a new and enlarged edition is the popular fourth-grade textbook, Missouri Then and Now. Closely correlated with Missouri's Official Course Content Standards and profusely illustrated, with color pictures and maps distributed throughout the book, this state-of-the-art text promises to meet the instructional needs of twenty-first- century classrooms. Teachers will welcome the many special features designed to facilitate the mastery of the basic competencies measured by the Missouri Assessment Program.

Missouri Then and Now incorporates geography, civics, economics, anthropology, and sociology with history to give students an opportunity to learn about their world on several levels: the community (the origin and subsequent growth of towns), the region (the occupation and settlement of the Mississippi River Valley), the nation (the struggle for statehood, the westward movement, the Civil War, and the depression of the 1930s) and the world (exploration, world wars, the global economy, and the worldwide communications network). This edition also adds valuable new insights concerning the importance of scientific and technological innovations.

Young Missourians will be introduced to a host of remarkable women, men, and children with stories that will help bring history to life. Individuals who have made special contributions to the state are featured in the "Famous Missourians" sections placed throughout the book, and the routines of daily life and ordinary people are also accorded significant coverage. An important new feature in this edition, "In Their Own Words," gives students the opportunity to read excerpts from actual source documents. These brief passages from letters, diaries, reports, and other historical documents, which have been edited and made accessible to fourth graders, are ideally suited for active learning.

In addition to its many new features, Missouri Then and Now retains the attributes that made earlier editions practical for teaching history. Each chapter begins with guiding questions intended to help students formulate their own ideas and initiate individual and group research activities. A listing of recent books, videos, and web sites located at the end of each chapter will lead students to varied information sources specifically related to Missouri topics. The new words identified for each chapter and the glossary placed in the appendix remain useful tools for vocabulary building exercises. A separate Teacher's Guide includes suggested student research topics for each chapter along with guiding questions. An accompanying matrix helps teachers identify the applicable knowledge and process standards and includes sample learning activities appropriate to the specific topic. These and a host of other attractive features will make Missouri Then and Now a popular choice in Missouri's fourth-grade classrooms.

Missouri has been likened to a “cave factory” because its limestone bedrock can be slowly dissolved by groundwater to form caverns, and the state boasts more than six thousand caves in an unbelievable variety of sizes, lengths, and shapes. Dwight Weaver has been fascinated by Missouri’s caves since boyhood and now distills a lifetime of exploration and research in a book that will equally fascinate readers of all ages.

Missouri Caves in History and Legend records a cultural heritage stretching from the end of the ice age to the twenty-first century.  In a grand tour of the state’s darkest places, Weaver takes readers deep underground to shed light on the historical significance of caves, correct misinformation about them, and describe the ways in which people have used and abused these resources.

Weaver tells how these underground places have enriched our knowledge of extinct animals and early Native Americans. He explores the early uses of caves: for the mining of saltpeter, onyx, and guano; as sources of water; for cold storage; and as livestock shelters. And he tells how caves were used for burial sites and moonshine stills, as hideouts for Civil War soldiers and outlaws—revealing how Jesse James became associated with Missouri caves—and even as venues for underground dance parties in the late nineteenth century.

Bringing caves into the modern era, Weaver relates the history of Missouri’s “show caves” over a hundred years—from the opening of Mark Twain Cave in 1886 to that of Onyx Mountain Caverns in 1990—and tells of the men and women who played a major role in expanding the state’s tourism industry. He also tracks the hunt for the buried treasure and uranium ore that have captivated cave explorers, documents the emergence of organized caving, and explains how caves now play a role in wildlife management by providing a sanctuary for endangered bats and other creatures.

Included in the book is an overview of cave resources in twelve regions, covering all the counties that currently have recorded caves, as well as a superb selection of photos from the author’s extensive collection, depicting the history and natural features of these underground wonders. Missouri Caves in History and Legend is a riveting account that marks an important contribution to the state’s heritage and brings this world of darkness into the light of day.