Read more: State
CAPE GIRARDEAU, MO (AP) -- One of the founders of a chain of hotels and restaurants is being remembered for his hard work, frugality and concern for family, employees and his community. James Drury was 78. He died Monday. A cause of death was not disclosed. James Drury and his brothers Charles, Jerome, Tom and Robert opened a Holiday Inn in Cape Girardeau in 1961 and built their first Drury Inn in nearby Sikeston several years later. The business became MidAmerica Hotels Corp., which operates hotels in Cape Girardeau, St. Louis and Paducah, Ky., as well as Burger King restaurants in Missouri, Illinois, Arkansas and Kentucky. James Drury was president of the corporation starting in the 1970s
(Copyright ©2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
