Taylor Library and Museum offers a sense of history

Few visitors are finding their way to the Gene Taylor Library and Museum in Sarcoxie and that's a shame.
The museum, which is staffed by volunteers, offers a fascinating look at the Congressman who served Missouri for eight terms, 1973 to 1989, and it also features many items related to Sarcoxie history.
I stopped by the museum Thursday for my first visit since my days at The Carthage Press. One of the most interesting experiences I had during my time at The Press was doing a five-part series, "Presidents I Have Known," based on interviews with the congressman. The interviews took place at the museum and over the period of several hours, Congressman Taylor related his experiences with presidents Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan and George Bush (who was vice president during the congressman's last four terms). Among other things, the Congressman talked about:
-A meeting with President Nixon and former Seventh District Congressman Dewey Short during the Watergate crisis when the president asked the two Missourians if he should resign. They both advised him against it.
-Being called to the White House, along with other gifted Congressional storytellers to swap stories with President Reagan
-Dealing with the Iranian hostage crisis in 1980
-The job done by his former Congressional colleague Gerald Ford when he took over as president after Nixon's resignation.
Gene Taylor was in Washington during exciting times in our nation's history, and that era comes to life in the museum. One of my favorite stops is the congressman's office, an exact replica of the one he had in Washington. The walls are covered with dozens of photos of the congressman with various presidents and luminaries from politics, stage and screen, athletics, and every other walk of life.
Photos of Senator Kit Bond and current state senator and former Taylor legislative assistant Gary Nodler with longish hair are definite blasts from the past as are photos of Congressman Taylor with St. Louis Cardinals hall-of-famer Bob Gibson and most poignantly, his son, Larry Gene Taylor, who died last year at age 51.
If you get a chance, swing by Sarcoxie and stop by the Gene Taylor Library and Museum. It will be well worth your time.
(Photo information: from left, Congressman Taylor, President Ronald Reagan, Congressman Mel Hancock and former U. S. Attorney General and Missouri Governor John Ashcroft. Photo by J. R. Raybourn)