Photos & Video

A snow storm on Jan. 27, 2009, was deemed the "worst ever" as over 67,000 spent time without power. The storm took place over several days. About 40 people took shelter at the Black River Coliseum while others went to other shelters. The area saw over 10 inches of snow, causing a temporary gas crisis, and hotels and restaurants to fill.

The Fraternal Order of Police presented gifts to children at Early Childhood and Head Start in a new addition to their program in 2012.

The Wheatley Historical Preservation Association held its 12th annual Christmas Gala on Saturday, at the Wheatley campus.

Volunteers came out to Mt. Calvary Power House Church on Saturday morning to help give needy families food, coats, toys and diapers for the holidays.

Wappapello Lake Area Association alongside the Wappapello Lake U.S. Army Corps of Engineers held the 27th Annual Festival of Lights at the Redman Creek East Campground. Community members and visitors are invited to come view the lights and vote on the decorations throughout the campground.

Saturday morning, 115 kids came out to the Walmart Supercenter to go shopping with approximately 40 first responders for the 2019 Shop With A Hero event.

Eight bags of new socks were transported out of Eugene Field Elementary School yesterday afternoon. The bags contained roughly 1,576 pairs of socks.

The Sioux District Pinewood Derby was hosted at Poplar Bluff Junior High School on April 9, 2011.

The First Annual Lou Family Jingle Jog was held in downtown Poplar Bluff on Saturday morning as a fundraiser for Louie Smith Memorial Fund.

The First Church of God hosted A Walk Through Bethlehem on Friday night with a re-enactment of the scriptures and time period of Jesus' birth.

Butler County employees gathered Friday for a potluck Christmas meal during lunchtime at the courthouse.

Poplar Bluff Municipal Library hosted a Christmas card making class Thursday night.

Check out these photos from the 2009 Santa Land at the Black River Coliseum on Dec. 1.

On Saturday, December 7th, participates of all ages came to the Santa Run to raise funds to continue the upkeep of the Brodie Gargac Memorial Ball Field. The morning started with a 5k, then a mile walk/run, and finished with short sprints for the children in attendance.

The 2019 Christmas Parade made it’s way through downtown Poplar Bluff on Friday evening.

The Stage Company in Poplar Bluff will perform "Junie B. in Jingle Bells, Batman Smells!" at the Rodgers Theatre at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 6, 7, 13 and 14 and at 3 p.m. Dec. 15. Based on the best-selling book series by Barbara Park, the story of first-grader Junie’s attempts to thwart her nemesis during a Secret Santa gift exchange and sing-a-long unfolds with both humor and a message about the Christmas spirit.

The Poplar Bluff High School drama club put n a rendition of "Greater Tuna" on Nov. 19, 2011.

Hundreds gathered Tuesday at the Black River Coliseum for the annual Santa Land event, featuring activities for children, characters in costume and, of course, Santa Claus.

The Tinnin Fine Arts Center will host the Center Stage production on 'The Christmas Carol, A Live Radio Play' this weekend, which puts an emphasis on the sounds of the show with voice acting and on-stage sound effects.

Families turned out to greet Santa on Saturday at the Rodgers Theatre before a double feature of “A Charlie Brown Christmas” and “Home Alone.”

The United Gospel Rescue Mission hosted it's annual Thanksgiving banquet on Thursday. Rev. Greg Kirk said this was the biggest year yet with 1,400 meals served and 200 more carried out.

Volunteers have been working since Monday at the United Gospel Rescue Mission to prepare for a Thanksgiving feast. The UGRM expects to feed at least 1,300 people Thursday.

The Three Rivers Raiders basketball team fine tuned their free throw percentages during the 2011-2012 season. In a Thanksgiving 2011 game against Dyersburg State, Three Rivers went 33-for-36 as they cruised past their opponent at the Bess Activity Center. The Raiders finished the game on a 37-19 run to win by 69. Final score: Raiders 126, Dyersburg State, 57.

Fisk Elementary school hosted its annual Veterans Day event on Monday, Nov. 11, where veterans in the community were invited to come out to the school. Students put on a program for them and at the end of the assembly, the veterans were asked to line up and shake hands with the students as they returned to class.

Mules alumni basketball players gathered Saturday, Nov. 16, for a special series of games. Participants included graduates of classes 1987 to 2019.

The Neelyville R-IV schools hosted it's annual Veterans Day assembly Friday morning where veterans are invited to attend and students create artwork, perform poetry and sing songs about patriotism and veterans.

In November 2002, the City of Poplar Bluff held a city Christmas tree lighting ceremony for the first time in decades. Former Greater Poplar Bluff Area Chamber of Commerce director, Ed Dust formed a committee of prominent community leaders to purchase four 24 foot Christmas trees to decorate the Butler County Courthouse lawn and other areas throughout the city. The city water tower, which once stood on Westwood Boulevard, was also lit for the occasion. The trees were illuminated on Nov. 22. 2002 and remained lit until after New Years Day.

The 30 veterans who went on the recent Veterans Honor Tour to Washington, D.C., gathered at First Baptist Church in Poplar Bluff Saturday for a reunion. Each veteran was presented with an American flag by Congressman Jason Smith.

An enthusiastic crowd cheered on their favorite mice Saturday night as they raised money to support the Poplar Bluff Rotary Club’s Good Habit Store at Lake Road Elementary. For the 10th year, the Rotary Club hosted its annual casino night and mouse races at the Holiday Inn.

Twin Rivers R-X High School drama club will put on an original production Tuesday night of the play Confessions of Troop 185.

It's that time of year again. Stores and highways are filled with blaze orange vests, campers and gun racks. Missouri's firearms deer season begins Nov. 16 and runs through Nov. 26. The late youth portion begins Nov. 26 through Dec. 1. Deer camp is a tradition for many hunters. This week's throwback highlights Chris Rhodes' deer camp from November 2003. Click the Hunting Diaries link www.darnews.com/forms/hunting on our home page to share your photos with us. Wishing all of you a safe and productive hunting season!

The Julia Kraft Guild of the Church of the Holy Cross hosted it annual craft fair and bazaar on Saturday.

The annual WMU Fall Festival was held on Saturday at the Pleasant Hill Family Center.

The Poplar Bluff R-I School District is working on finishing up the new Early Childhood Center, which is located next to the Kindergarten Center.

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Park Ranger Aleigha Alexander and student intern Alyssa Moss presented a program on nocturnal animals Wednesday morning to fourth- and sixth-grade students at Sacred Heart Catholic School. The students learned about such nocturnal animals as opossums, red foxes, coyotes, barred owls and brown bats. The park rangers are from Wappapello Lake.

One person was injured after a vehicle overturned on East Pine Street in Poplar Bluff, near Peach Street. Two vehicles were involved in the accident.

The Qulin schools had a Halloween parade Thursday morning in the middle school gym where students and teachers alike dressed in their best costumes.

Beechwell General Baptist Church in Campbell will celebrate its 150th anniversary on Sunday. According to church member, Jennifer Krepps, Beechwell is the oldest General Baptist Church in Dunklin County. It was once known as the “mother church” to all area General Baptist churches. The church was originally founded in September of 1869 by Bro. Alonzo Fowler, Bro. J.T. Davis, the first pastor and 19 other church members. The church was named Beechwell because of a grove of beech trees at the foot of the sand hill on the site. The original log and frame structure was built shorty after the church was organized in 1869 and was later destroyed by fire. Beechwell Church moved to its present location at 38220 State Highway H in Campbell in 1922. Five years later, that structure also succumbed to a fire. The building was rebuilt and expanded in 1953 and 1967. Dedication of a new sanctuary was held in September 1973. Bro. Gary Long is the current pastor of Beechwell General Baptist Church. Lunch will follow the Sunday morning service. An anniversary celebration is set for 1:30 p.m. Sunday featuring the Krepps family in concert.

The Kindergarten Center hosted its annual Fall Festival on Tuesday night, which serves as a fundraiser to keep experiences such as class photos, yearbooks and field trips free for families.

The Poplar Bluff Technical Career Center had students in each field of study design pumpkins that are on display through tomorrow. The pumpkins draw inspiration from the field the students are in. The contest is being held through a canned food donation. The pumpkin that receives the most cans is named the winner with those students receiving a prize. The cans of food will be donated to one of the local food banks to help with the upcoming holiday needs. See more photos and the story in Saturday's edition of the Daily American Republic.

The Poplar Bluff High School Beta Club hosted Wizarding School on Saturday. The event, designed after the Harry Potter series, served as a fundraiser for members of the organization to travel to the national convention.

About 20 teenagers from across Southeast Missouri are participating in a pilot program designed to boost their interest in law enforcement careers. The teens are members of an Explorer Post established in Troop E by the Missouri State Highway Patrol in 2017.

Poplar Bluff city firefighters were called at approximately noon Wednesday to a fire at a vacant house at 1408 Grove St. They were called to the property by a Poplar Bluff police officer who was already on scene, according dispatch information.

Neelyville Schools held its annual Neelyville Tiger Fest on Saturday, October 19th. Activities and venders filled the afternoon with much for the community to participate in. Activities included a costume contest, lip sync contest, and singing. High School clubs like Jr. Beta and Art Club had food stands set up as fundraisers.