Mule photo exhibit will be on display in New Madrid

NEW MADRID -- Everyone has a mule story, says Duane Dailey, the photographer behind the exhibit, Missouri Mules and Men.

According to Dailey, when the show was unveiled at the McDougall Center Gallery at the University of Missouri's School of Journalism last fall, it drew people from across the region. Many wanted to retell a story told by their grandfather or other ancestor about mules.

As Don Lloyd prepared the exhibit in New Madrid for its opening on May 1 at the Riverwalk Gallery in the Hart-Stepp House, he had mule stories of his own.

Lloyd, who grew up in Anniston, recalled the farmer who would drive his mule team into town during his lunch break. Invariably, he said with a laugh, the mules would untie themselves and trot down the road, only to be chased after by the farmer.

The exhibit, according to the organizers who have brought it to Southeast Missouri, will bring back memories of a time when mules were essential to farms of Southeast Missouri. It will also introduce a new generation to Missouri's famed state symbol.

For the full story, see today's e-edition.