Looking Back: O’Connell Building, Ryan’s Store

Looking Back

Looking Back: O’Connell Building, Ryan’s Store

by Marcia Napier, Grain Valley Historical Society The Historical Society Museum looks he married Creola Warren in 1906. He forward to welcoming our new also helped his brothers with a café neighbor, Iron Kettle Brewing. And while (circa 1912) across the alley where the the business is new to Grain Valley, the Historical Society is currently located. building is 100 years old. His tonsorial (April 23, 2020 Valley A few years ago, Patricia Davis Parr News ) burned in 1920 and he replaced it made a presentation to the Historical with the current two-story brick Society. She took us on tour through the building which may well be built on the streets of our town and told us what original foundation. The building was she knew about the homes, churches, rented to Charles and Ida Ryan who ran and businesses that made up Grain a general store. Inside along the north Valley from about 1900 to 1940. wall were dry goods and the groceries Beginning at Walnut Street and shelves were on the south side. preceding south along the west side of Mrs. Parr recalled the rolling ladder Main we would have passed the that allowed customers to reach the top Christian Church, two small houses, and shelves. At some point, the Ryan’s the Sni-A-Bar Bank. South of the bank opened the locker plant in the building was a building which housed different on the north side and a wide door was businesses including a café, a millinery put into the wall, connecting the two shop, and a locker plant. If I had buildings. remembered this reference in April, I Later, Ed and Louise Crull ran the would have known that the millinery grocery store until 1953. After that I have shop was on the west side of Main no memory of the building being Street. occupied downstairs until the antique The next building is the subject of shops came to Grain Valley sometime in this article. Mrs. Parr’s grandfather, John the 1990s. I’ve talked with a few “oldT. O’Connell, was the local barber when timers” and no one remembers much

The November ballot includes a number of judges up for retention. The Missouri Plan, also known as the NonPartisan Court Plan, allows the voters to have a say in the retention of judges and remains a model for the nation. In the City of St. Louis, and in St. Louis, Jackson, Clay, Platte and Greene counties, judges apply for their positions on the bench and are selected on the basis of merit. In this judicial process laid out in the state’s constitution, judges who serve under the Missouri Plan have been nominated by a judicial commission and then selected by the governor. After their first 12 months on the bench and the end of each term, nonpartisan judges must go before the voters in a retention election. Voters are asked whether each of these judges should be retained. To be retained, each judge must receive a majority vote. If a judge does not receive a majority of votes, his or her judicial seat will become vacant at the end of its present term. The judicial commission will then nominate three candidates for the position and the governor will appoint one to fill the vacancy. The terms for appellate court judges are 12 years. Among trial judges, circuit judges serve six-year terms, while associate circuit judges serve four -year terms. The performance of Missouri judges serving under the Non-Partisan Court Plan are reviewed by a statewide committee. The Judicial Performance Review Committee votes on whether they believe a judge substantially meets about the building during the 1960s, 70s, and 80s. Maybe it was vacant? The second floor housed a theatre which was popular after the Royal Playhouse closed. It was also used for meetings by The Royal Neighbors and The Modern Woodman of the World. I can recall going up the steep, creepy stairs to attend Halloween parties sponsored by The Royal Neighbors when I was in elementary school. That is also where I took tap and ballet lessons from Glo-Del Dance Studio between 1950 and 1953. Gloria was my teacher and she and Deloris came to Grain Valley on Saturdays in the winter to teach tap, jazz, and ballet. “If these walls could talk…” We’ve all heard that old saying. But it’s true and if walls could talk I’m sure there are many stories to tell. We’ll just have to patronize Iron Kettle Brewing and make up some new stories for the second hundred years in the life of this great

West side of Main Street, circa 1910-11. Photo courtesy Grain Valley Historical Society

Visit the Grain Valley Historical Society at 506 S. Main on Wednesdays or visit us online at ww.grainvalleyhistory.com and Facebook (@grainvalleyhistory).

On The Ballot: Missouri Judges

old building. overall judicial performance standards. The Judicial Performance Review Committee analyzes the performance of judges up for retention. The committee conducts its reviews based on whether a judge substantially overall meets judicial performance standards. Relevant information from a variety of sources is considered as part of the review process. The Committee voted all judges up for retention votes in November substantially met overall judicial performance standards. Jackson County voters will decide on the retention of the following judges in November:

Supreme Court of Missouri: Judge Patricia Breckenridge Judge Patricia Breckenridge was appointed to the Supreme Court of Missouri in September 2007. Prior to being appointed to the Missouri Supreme Court, she was appointed to the Missouri Court of Appeals for the Western District in 1990 and served until 2007. Prior to that, she served as an associate circuit judge in Vernon County from 1982-1990. Judge Breckenridge received both her bachelor’s degree with honors in agricultural economics and juris doctorate from the University of Missouri-Columbia. The civic and charitable activities of Judge Breckenridge pertaining to the administration of justice include volunteering with Lawyers Encouraging Academic Performance (LEAP); being master of the Elwood Thomas American Inn of Court, providing mentorship and education to young lawyers and law

see JUDGES on page 5