Skip to main content

Judy Klaus Collection

 Collection
Identifier: P1296

Scope and Contents

The Judy Klaus Collection contains three photographs showing Amanda Klaus with her Bigfoot ride-on monster truck, 1989 - ca.1993. One photo shows Amanda sitting in the truck in her grandparents' kitchen, shortly after receiving it. Another photo shows her sitting in the truck on the driveway between her home and her grandparents' home. The third photo was also taken on the driveway and includes her younger brother, Tim Klaus. This photograph shows Amanda sitting in the truck while her brother sits on a toy ATV.

Amanda received the truck as a Christmas gift from her maternal uncle Jerry Johnson in 1989, when she was three years old. The family gathered on Christmas Eve to celebrate at the home of her grandparents, John and Vera Johnson. The photograph of the kitchen was taken during this celebration in their home at 2236 Montgomery Street in North St. Louis City. The photographs taken outdoors show the driveway between the Johnson home at 2236 Montgomery and Amanda's family home next door at 2228 Montgomery Street. The men in the photos include her grandfather, her father, and her uncles.

Photographs were donated by Amanda's mother, Judy Klaus, who prior to donation wrote notes from memory on the back of the photos. These notes stated that the truck was a gift from Amanda's Johnson grandparents in 1990, when she was four. Judy later found a photograph with contemporary notes providing the correct information -- that the truck was a gift from uncle Jerry Johnson in 1989, when Amanda was three.

Dates

  • 1989-ca. 1993

Conditions Governing Access

No viewing restrictions.

Conditions Governing Use

Copyright restrictions may apply. The user assumes full responsibility for conforming to the laws of copyright.

This collection may contain material with privacy concerns. All living people have a right to privacy which ends legally at their death, and federal and state laws and archival ethics protect private, living individuals by giving them a right to be left alone without intrusion into their personal affairs

Biographical / Historical

As a child, Amanda Klaus lived at 2228 Montgomery Street. Her grandparents, John and Vera Johnson, lived next door at 2236 Montgomery Street. (2228 and 2236 are the correct address numbers for these next door houses, although the numbers are not consecutive.) The two homes had a shared yard and driveway between the houses. The Johnsons helped all of their children buy adjacent houses on Montgomery Street, so Amanda's uncles also lived on this block. Amanda's family moved to St. Peters in 1993, and John and Vera moved into the Klaus' old home after the Johnson home burned down around 1994 or 1995. John and Vera lived at 2228 Montgomery until John's death in 1997 and Vera's death in 2001. 2228 Montgomery was torn down in 2016 when St. Louis City took over the area for the new National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency campus.

St. Louisan Bob Chandler owned a truck repair business in the 1970s and after modifying his Ford F-250 with increasingly larger and larger tires and better suspension, Chandler invented what is considered the first-ever monster truck. He named the truck Bigfoot and Chandler’s creation became the blueprint for the monster trucks of today. Bigfoot quickly became a pop culture sensation in the 1980s and was featured in shows, movies, on clothing, and reproduced as children's toys. One of those toys, the Power Wheels Bigfoot Ford 4x4x4 Monster Truck ride on truck, was a Christmas gift for 3-year-old Amanda Klaus in 1989.

Extent

0.02 Cubic Feet ( (1 folder; 3 photographs))

Language of Materials

English

Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements

No physical or technical restrictions.

Custodial History

Prior to donation, Judy Klaus, Amanda Klaus's mother, wrote notes from memory on the back of the photos. These notes stated that the truck was a gift from Amanda's Johnson grandparents in 1990, when she was four. Judy later found a photograph with contemporary notes providing the correct information -- that the truck was a gift from uncle Jerry Johnson in 1989, when Amanda was three.

Donor Information

Collection donated by Judy Klaus, Amanda Klaus's mother, in 2025.

Existence and Location of Copies

Digital copies and item-level records of select images are posted as they are created and can be accessed through the Online Collections on the Missouri Historical Society website (mohistory.org/collections).

Digitized images are generated from the original item whenever possible and files are adjusted only to ensure an accurate representation. Master files are saved in TIF format and JPEG viewing files are automatically generated from the master files.

Formats

Photographs

Processing Information

Processed by Lauren Sallwasser, 2025.

Title
Guide to the Judy Klaus Collection.
Status
Completed
Author
EAD by Lauren Sallwasser using ArchivesSpace.
Date
2025
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Repository Details

Part of the Missouri Historical Society, Photographs and Prints Department Repository

Contact:
Library and Research Center
225 South Skinker Boulevard
St. Louis MO 63105