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Thinking Out Loud: Memories of Work, Life Along Missouri River

Diane Oerly
Fred Oerly celebrates a 2014 catch. Meredith Ludwig collected oral history from Oerly, which is featured on this episode of Thinking Out Loud.

When she set out to collect the oral histories of longtime Missouri River valley residents, Boonville's Meredith Ludwig never imagined that she would end up with over 70 hours from two dozen men and women. Her histories - collected in 2004 - are archived at the State Historical Society of Missouri. KBIA's Trevor Harris talked with Ludwig about her oral histories with the late 'Mayor of Overton' Fred Oerly and Lottie Klein.

Credit Meredith Ludwig
Meredith Ludwig on the Missouri River bridge at Boonville. On this week's Thinking Out Loud, we share edited versions of a pair of oral histories collected by Ludwig as part of the Missouri River Folk History Project.

This program originally aired on Tuesday, January 24, 2017.

Listen for new episodes of Thinking Out Loud each Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. on KBIA 91.3FM.

Trevor is a former KBIA announcer and producer. Trevor has - since 2019 - worked to preserve life stories through his business, The Recollection Agency. He also produces the Missouri history podcast Mo' Curious.
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