Flipping through the pages of the upcoming "Cape Girardeau Faces & Places" book, you can see how farmers gathered wheat, children played and stores operated in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

You'll also get a chance to see pictures that show how the city has changed in the last century, but Friday is the final day to order the photography book at its reduced price, $29.95 plus tax. Deposits of $10 will hold the orders until the books are published and arrive in November.

More than 340 images line the pages of the book, including photos of the first Walther's Furniture building, neighborhood grocery stores and stories about families and neighbors.

There are pictures of Broadway and Lacey streets looking much different than today, images of downtown buildings and dirt roads that are now major thoroughfares in Cape Girardeau.

Story of the city

The "Cape Girardeau Faces & Places" book tells the story of the city and its residents from 1800 to 1950.

"People have really taken this to heart," said Carol Robert, who helped compile the photos in the book. "This is their life and how they grew up."

Submissions from local residents who shared pictures and stories fill the pages of this hard-cover coffee table book. Some people offered only one photo, others sent in as many as 15.

The book is a chance to pass on local history to future generations. The collection of photographs comes from old family albums, boxes in the attic and treasured pictures.

"It's a great way to preserve old photos," Robert said.

Preserving memories

Many of the photographs she sifted through when looking at submissions for the book were pictures of people that weren't identified, and some photographs had worn edges or cracks, she said.

Anyone who wants to preserve family photographs should remember to identify everyone in the picture, she added. And because Cape Girardeau was much smaller a century ago, some people are shown in several photographs even though their relatives only submitted one or two, Robert said.

More than 1,200 photos were submitted for the book but only a fraction of them could be printed. Each copy of the limited edition book includes a CD-ROM of all the photos submitted.

"And you can hear the people talking about their pictures," Robert said. Captions under each photograph tell the picture's story and in some cases, those stories were recorded for the CD.

The book is being sold at the Southeast Missourian and will be available in November at Barnes and Noble, Hastings and Hagan bookstores, and other retailers. Businesses interested in selling the book can contact Robert at 335-6611, ext. 106.

To place a book order, call the Missourian offices by Friday at 335-6611.