Printable walking tour maps...coming soon!
Featured Photo
...view additional pictorial collection
Please Help Us Conduct Clayton Interviews
Has your family lived in Clayton for more than one generation? Do you have a friend or neighbor who has been in Clayton for many years? Everyone has interesting stories to tell. We are trying to capture these stories and memories about daily life as a permanent record of our community.Please consider taking some time to visit with someone you know. The Clayton Century Foundation - History would like to use excerpts of these interviews on the History website and in a Centennial publication. All proper credits will be noted.
Also, if someone has memorabilia...old photos and records...we would like to scan these and will return to you.
The best approach to an oral history interview is to ask open-ended questions and to focus on people's memories and experiences. Consider these questions as a springboard for planning your interview:
Name and a bit about the Family Tree:
First Clayton address and current contact information:
1. What's your first memory about living in Clayton?
2. When did you or your parents move to Clayton and what brought them here?
3. Tell me about your childhood home, neighborhood, school and friends.
4. Where do you remember going to shop - to play - to worship - or hang out/enjoy entertainment?
5. What special traditions do you remember in Clayton?
6. Were there any special teachers, merchants, community leaders, or even neighbors that you remember in a special way? What stories can you share about them?
7. Tell me about some of your friends and what you did around Clayton.
8. Describe your first job - was it in or around Clayton? What did you do with your first paycheck?
9. What can you remember about any local heroes? (School related, War service, community service)
10. Do you have any specific memories during wartime - World War I and II, Korea, Vietnam, Gulf War?
11. What were your favorite songs, books, movies and television shows? Do you have memories of Depot dances or other places in Clayton? Any encounters with local and famous artists?
12. What are some of the happiest times you've had in Clayton?
13. What haven't we talked about that you'd like to discuss in the time we have left? Are there any other Clayton memories you have to share?
Submit your written interview to the Clayton History Society. Email us at claytonhistorysociety@gmail.com or call our voicemail at (314) 467-0712 to arrange delivery options. Thank you for your help!
Link For Printing Interview questions
Tour Historic Hanley House!
Regular Tour Schedule
The Hanley House is currently giving tours on Saturdays and Sundays from noon until 4 pm. Weekday tours are by appointment only. To schedule a tour, call Sarah Umlauf at 314-290-8556 or
sumlauf@ci.clayton.mo.us. Tours are $3 for Adults and Children 12 & under are free!
Volunteer Opportunities
The Hanley House needs you! If you are interested in volunteering, please contact Sarah Umlauf at
314-226-9893 or sumlauf@ci.clayton.mo.us.
The Hanley House is located at 7600 Westmoreland in Clayton.
Clayton Centennial Book
Stake your place in Clayton's history. Casey Communications, Inc. is offering its 25-year expertise in marketing communications, corporate histories and leadership legacies to help Clayton companies gather and tell their stories in the Clayton Centennial Book. If your company would like to consider participating, please download the participation form and send to:Casey Communications, Inc.
Attn: Marie A. Casey
8301 Maryland Avenue, Suite 350
Clayton, MO 63105
marie.casey@caseycomm.com
314-721-2828
Calling All Clayton Businesses!
Tell us your Story!
In preparation for the celebration of Clayton's 100th anniversary,
we want to know about your company history...
what the early days were like, how you impacted Clayton, an unusual story, and your secrets to longevity.
We're interested in old photos and any artifacts you may have.
If you once had a business in Clayton, we also want to know all about it too!
The Leadership Clayton Class is seeking your stories.
Please contact us soon, so we can have the opportunity to talk with you. We're collecting histories to be published
in a new History of Clayton book for the city's centennial celebration in 2013.
Contact Madaline Creehan by email at mcreehan@bamstl.com
Are you a sleuth...a wannabe historian?
The Clayton History Society seeks interested individuals to assist with a variety of projects, from research about
institutions and neighborhoods to collection of community stories from citizens. The group wants to know about people,
buildings, churches, schools, businesses, parks, and historic residences. It also aims to discover and copy for permanent
records a multitude of historic Clayton documents, maps, diaries, and photographs. Get involved and make a difference in
preserving Clayton's history for future generations.
If you own a piece of Clayton history that you would like to donate to the Society, please contact Sarah Umlauf at (314) 226-9893, or leave voicemail at (314) 467-0712, or send email to claytonhistorysociety@gmail.com for more information or to inquire about volunteer opportunities.
Clayton Oral History Project
Call for Participants
The city of Clayton is partnering with OASIS to encourage residents
and business owners to recount their experiences in Clayton. A trained OASIS volunteer
(retired media professional) will work with and interview everyone who wishes to record their
stories and memories. It's an important legacy for informing and educating others. Taping will
take place in a comfortable setting at Clayton on the Park. Participants will have a copy of
their Oral History, and a second copy will be provided for the Clayton History Society's collection.
Excerpts may be selected for our website and a future History of Clayton book. The cost for
both tapes is $50.
Call OASIS at 314-367-5700 to schedule a taping time. Please join us, as we capture and celebrate the details of daily life in our community.
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