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Archivist Receives Official Parkville DesignationBy - August 10, 2005 - 8:30 amEmail this article | Printer friendly page | Media Inquiries The Parkville, Mo. Board of Alderman recently designated Carolyn McHenry Elwess, '71, as the official "Cannoneer Extraordinaire for the City of Parkville" for her welcoming cannon fire for the Lewis & Clark visitors in 2004. Last year, the Lewis & Clark planning committee asked the Elwess' to fire the cannon as the Lewis and Clark boat came up river to Parkville on June 29, 2004. "David wanted to do it but sadly, he died a week and two days before the event. I took [the cannon] down to the river and each time the boatmen fired their signal cannon, I answered them--a total of four shells--in his memory," said Elwess. "I later heard that no other town along their journey had a cannon and the re-enactors got a big kick out of it." For the past 15 years, Elwess, the Park archivist for the Fishburn Archives, and her late husband, David, '64, used their Winchester signal cannon to salute the Legion Hall Color Guard at the local Fourth of July parades. During the 2005 parade, the Color Guard stopped the entire parade in front of the Elwess house and fired back with their M-1 rifles. Carolyn said, "It was absolutely hilarious!" The reason she was awarded a proclamation is that last year, a newly hired policeman was about to suggest that Elwess refrain from firing the cannon during the parade--that is, until the mayor came by on her fire truck and shouted "shoot the cannon!" On June 21, 2005, Parkville Mayor Kathryn Dusenbery bestowed the designation upon Elwess to serve as proof that she may fire her cannon on any occasion, provided that she has signed authorization from the Chief of Police. |