John David Ashcroft is an American lawyer, lobbyist, and former politician who served as the 79th United States attorney general under President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2005. A Republican from Missouri, Ashcroft represented the state in the United States Senate from 1995 to 2001, and held statewide office as the 29th auditor (1973–1975), 38th attorney general (1976–1985), and 50th governor of Missouri (1985–1993). He later founded The Ashcroft Group, a Washington D.C. lobbying firm.
Springfield is the third most populous city in the U.S. state of Missouri and the county seat of Greene County. The city's population was 169,176 at the 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Springfield metropolitan area, which had an estimated population of 487,061 in 2022 and includes the counties of Christian, Dallas, Greene, Polk, and Webster, The city sits on the Springfield Plateau of the Ozarks, which ranges from nearly-level to rolling hills. Springfield is the second-largest urban area in the Ozarks.
Branson is a city in the U.S. state of Missouri. Most of the city is situated in Taney County, with a small portion in the west extending into Stone County. Branson is in the Ozark Mountains. The community was named after Reuben Branson, postmaster and operator of a general store in the area in the 1880s. The population was 12,638 at the 2020 census, and its population constitutes nearly one fourth of the Taney County population.
The Ozarks, also known as the Ozark Mountains, Ozark Highlands or Ozark Plateau, is a physiographic region in the U.S. states of Missouri, Arkansas, and Oklahoma, as well as a small area in the southeastern corner of Kansas. The Ozarks cover a significant portion of northern Arkansas and most of the southern half of Missouri, extending from Interstate 40 in central Arkansas to Interstate 70 in central Missouri.
Music of Missouri has a storied musical history. Missouri has had major developments in several popular music genres and has been the birthplace or career origin of many musicians. St. Louis was an important venue for early blues, jazz, country, and bluegrass. Kansas City has had famous performers such as Charlie Parker, Count Basie, Lester Young, and the distinct style of Kansas City jazz. Ragtime made influence in the city of Sedalia, Missouri, due to Scott Joplin and his publisher John Stark, and through Missouri native James Scott.
Silver Dollar City is a 61-acre (25 ha) amusement park in Stone County, Missouri, near the cities of Branson and Branson West. The park is located off of Missouri Route 76 on the Indian Point peninsula of Table Rock Lake. Silver Dollar City opened on May 1, 1960. The park is an 1880s-themed experience. Silver Dollar City's operating season runs from March until December, with the park closed for two months. Silver Dollar City is owned by Herschend Family Entertainment.
KYTV is a television station in Springfield, Missouri, United States, affiliated with NBC. It is owned by Gray Television alongside ABC affiliate KSPR-LD and Branson-licensed CW affiliate KYCW-LD ; it is also sister to Branson-licensed tourist information–formatted station K17DL-D, channel 17. KYTV, KSPR-LD and KYCW-LD share studios on West Sunshine Street in Springfield, while KYTV's transmitter is located on Highway FF north of Fordland.
The Diocese of Springfield–Cape Girardeau is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory, or diocese, of the Catholic Church in southern Missouri in the United States. It is a suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolitan Archdiocese of Saint Louis.
The United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri is the federal judicial district encompassing 66 counties in the western half of the State of Missouri. The Court is based in the Charles Evans Whittaker Courthouse in Kansas City.
The Philharmonics were a versatile African-American vocal quintet from Springfield, Missouri who became successful despite origins in a then-racially-intolerant town and era. They were at their peak in the 1950s and performed across the United States. The group could adapt to many styles of music from gospel, rhythm and blues and pop to country and Western. They had splendid harmony, choreography, a colorful wardrobe and an impeccable stage presence.
Ralph David Foster was an American broadcasting executive and philanthropist who created the framework for Springfield, Missouri, to challenge Nashville, Tennessee, as the nation's country music capital during the 1950s. His KWTO was a stepping-stone for many top country artists; and with his music businesses, led to creation of Ozark Jubilee, the first U.S. network television program to feature country's top stars.
Shane Schoeller is an American politician, currently serving as the Greene County Clerk. He is a former Republican member of the Missouri House of Representatives. Schoeller represented the 139th district, encompassing North Springfield and the communities of Walnut Grove, Fair Grove, and Willard in the northern half of Greene County. Schoeller also served as the Speaker Pro Tem of the House for the 96th General Assembly. On August 13, 2012, Speaker of the Missouri House of Representatives Steven Tilley resigned. As Speaker Pro Tem, Schoeller held the office for one month until a replacement was named.
Leonard Harrison Aleshire was a versatile American vaudeville and later country music performer from the 1920s into the 1960s. A singer, dancer and songwriter, he was also half of a musical comedy duo, Lennie and Goo Goo, with Floyd Rutledge. The pair appeared on local and national radio and television programs originating from Springfield, Missouri, during the 1940s and 50s.
M. Graham Clark Downtown Airport is a county-owned, public-use airport in Taney County, Missouri, United States. It is located one nautical mile (2 km) south of the central business district of Branson, Missouri, one nautical mile (2 km) northeast of Point Lookout, Missouri, and a few yards west of the old downtown area of Hollister, Missouri. It was formerly known as M. Graham Clark Field – Taney County Airport.
Clyde Carol Wilson, better known as Slim Wilson, was an American singer, songwriter, bandleader, and radio and TV personality who was a cornerstone of country music in the Ozarks for more than 50 years beginning in the 1930s; both in his own right, and as a member of The Goodwill Family and The Tall Timber Trio. Wilson was a mainstay of ABC-TV’s Ozark Jubilee; and hosted ABC's Talent Varieties in 1955 and his own local television show in Springfield, Missouri, from 1964 to 1975.
Raeanne Presley is an American politician of the Republican Party, having served four terms as Mayor of Branson, Missouri. Presley had previously served as an alderman in Branson, and had lost an election for mayor to Lou Schaeffer in the mid-1990s. She was defeated for re-election in 2015 by Karen Best.
Herschel Haworth Jr., better known as Speedy Haworth, was an American guitarist and singer who was involved with the golden age of country music broadcasting in the Ozarks. He was a featured cast member of ABC-TV's Ozark Jubilee from 1955–1960 and is a member of the Missouri Country Music Hall of Fame.
The Hollywood Wax Museum is a two-story wax museum featuring replicas of celebrities located on Highway 76 in Branson, Missouri.
On the evening of July 19, 2018, a duck boat operated by Ride the Ducks sank on Table Rock Lake in the Ozarks near Branson, Missouri, in the United States. The amphibious vehicle sank with 31 people on board, leaving 17 dead, during high winds associated with nearby severe thunderstorms as part of a significant derecho and tornado outbreak.
The Petersens are an American bluegrass family band from Branson, Missouri. Since the group's inception, they have been a regular feature on Country Music and Bluegrass television specials.
