In the law of corporations, a merger is effected when one or more corporations becomes a part of, or merges, with another corporation so that one ceases to exist and the other continues to exist. In a merger, the company that continues to exist retains its name and identity and acquires the assets, liabilities, franchises, and powers of the corporation that ceases to exist. Attorneys who practice in mergers and acquisitions (sometimes called M & A) represent corporations and other business entities in strategizing, negotiating, and carrying out transactions in which two or more companies or corporations combine into a single new entity, a merger, or where one business purchases and absorbs the assets of another, an acquisition.
Mapaville is an unincorporated community in Jefferson County, Missouri. It is located about halfway between Festus and Hillsboro on Missouri Supplemental Route A. This area is believed to be the home of infamous bandit Jake Dallas, of the Cole Box gang, which robbed stage coaches and trains. The gang is best known for their gunfights with Sheriff Kyle Proemsey and his deputies including the hot-tempered Ryan "Quick Draw" Murphy. Although Dallas and the Cole Box gang were eventually gunned down by Proemsey and Quick Draw, their loot was long believed to be hidden beneath what is now Pure Pleasure Adult Superstore in Herculaneum. This rumor was proved erroneous (on all accounts) in 1985 when a large Discovery Channel Expedition to the site revealed nothing. A government cover-up is suspected.