The curators brought the collections out of storage and oversaw 
the acquisition of new ones, including the Whelpley Collection of Indian 
artifacts, the Hurter Bird Collection, a valuable collection of marine 
shells, an extensive gem stone collection, and three important collec- 
tions of butterflies and moths.7 
From 1945 to 1956, St. Louis residents had the opportunity to see 
some of the Academy’s collections, both old and new, in exhibits at 
the Lindell building. The exhibits included an Indian textile display, 
an “‘industrial room,’’ an exhibit entitled ‘‘Indian and Stone Age Man 
in America,’’ and an exhibit on the history of aviation.® 
In 1946 the Academy named Donald P. Lowry Director of the 
Museum. Lowry, formerly a curator at the museum of the Chicago 
Academy of Science, had primary responsibility for development of 
exhibits. He resigned in 1947, however, and Richard C. Froescher was 
chosen to take his place. But Froescher also left after a year. For some 
time afterward, the museum had no director, and the curators entirely 
supervised the development of exhibits.9 
Like the exhibits at the museum, the Academy’s publications 
featured a wide variety of topics. For example, the organization published 
both Arthur L. Hughes’ ‘‘Nuclear Energy and the Hydrogen Bomb’’, 
an explanation of nuclear physics; and August P. Beilman’s ‘‘What Tree 
Shall I Plant?’’—a list of the kinds of trees that grow best in Missouri. !° 
In addition to publishing, the Academy conducted a lively lecture 
program. One year’s offerings included talks on viruses, the natural 
history of ferns, the history of fabrics, the Dead Sea Scrolls, the ef- 
fects of radiation, and technical developments in the glass industry."! 
The lectures often attracted fair-sized audiences. Nevertheless, 
many members were not entirely happy with the programs—they felt 
that in order to draw larger numbers of people, the organization was 
forced to present subjects of popular interest lacking real content. As 
one member put it, this led ‘‘to neglect of fields that are of great scien- 
tific significance.’ !2 
This concern and others like it prompted changes in the Academy 
during the years it occupied the Lindell building. For instance, the 
Academy once again changed its constitution and by-laws in ways that 
altered how it governed itself. Specifically, in 1950 the Academy changed 
the administrative body from the old Council to a Board of Directors. 
Another change came in 1956 when the organization elected Mrs. Elmer 
L. McCaddon to the Board. She was the first woman to serve on the 
administrative body in more than 50 years. Mrs. MaCaddon organized 
the Women’s Division of the Academy, which became very active. !3 
Another part of the Academy, the Junior Academy, remained busy, 
too. Junior Academy members continued to take prizes for their pro- 
52 
