I have a favor to ask. I am having difficulty using the search engine in the Missouri State Archives Provost Marshal files to locate the F1608 file about the Ste. Genevieve County man at Gratiot Street Prison. Although I have known of these files for some months, this is my first attempt to use them, and I have to admit ignorance. I recall pulling my hair out when the Missouri State Archives opened their wonderful military service records files the same way and I had to learn their wacky but effective query system.

I tried "Ste. Genevieve County" in the county designator, but failed to obtain any such listing of F1608 with "Gratiot Street," "Gratiot," "prison," "hospital," or such key words. Please advise a frustrated researcher how to use the quirks of this new seachable database. If you would please give me the Ste. Genevieve County prisoner's name, I think it would help.

If anybody else would like to assist to show me how to use this search engine, I would appreciate it.

Humbly yours, Bruce