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Published: October 30th 2016
Although it was windy and overcast, I encountered no rain as I drove from Clarks Ferry Campground in Davenport IA to Frank Russell Campground on Mark Twain Lake, a half hour west of Hannibal MO and near Monroe City MO. As we had agreed several days prior, I called a friend and former coworker to tell him I had arrived, and we decided to get together on Thursday, October 6, 2016. He and his wife live about an hour west of the campground. Irene, my GPS, led me straight to their house. They bought a 300+ acre farm to “keep them busy” and, ideally, to provide a small income. They have found, as we all seem to do as we age, that they’ve been kept busier than they expected and are now finalizing the sale of most of the property to the man who is currently leasing it. I had a great time as we got caught up on “not-so-current” events and they showed me their livestock and their property.
I was offered a bed for the night but declined, as I needed to get back to the computer to formulate a plan for the week. We agreed “Football Sunday”
would be a good thing. After spending Friday wangling the area’s attractions list, I discovered some attractions were open only on the weekend during my “off season” visit, and found myself ending “tourism Saturday” several miles west of my friend’s new home. I decided it was quite a waste of my time (say nothing of the fuel) to drive an hour eastbound past his place to the campground only to return again the next morning westbound for “Football Sunday.” A phone call got the okay for a raincheck on the overnighter for Saturday night vs. the Thursday that had been offered.
Saturday, October 8, 2016 found me with an unusually long attractions list. My first stop was a couple of miles from the campground – the
Northeast Missouri Vietnam Memorial near Perry MO. The memorial is located on the same property as the
M. W. Boudreaux Memorial (Mark Train Lake) Visitor Center. I’m almost always in on a “two for the stop of one” deal. The Vietnam memorial has a unique way of personalizing the tribute to each of the fallen by having the names engraved on one of twelve “monthly” plaques – the month of placement being the month of the casualty. Very nicely done, and the setting is
stupendous.
Outside the visitor center, there are placards explaining the various features of the dam, including the Tainter (flood control) Gates, the Hydro Electric Turbine Inlet Gates, the Earthen Embankment and the Concrete Structure – which consumed 450,000 cubic yards of concrete – and placards that explain how to differentiate a soaring bald eagle from a soaring turkey vulture. Inside, there are some nice mounts of local bird and mammal species. Both are worth a brief stop, and the views of the lake are superb.
A short dive away, I stopped at the
Mark Twain Birthplace State Historic Site in Florida MO. What can I say – Hemingway, Steinbeck, London, Melville and Twain? Mark Twain (1835-1910) wrote two iconic novels that captured the mind and heart of this adventuresome lad –
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) and, what has been called "The Great American Novel,"
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884). Born
Samuel Langhorne Clemens, Twain was the sixth of seven children but three of his siblings did not survive childhood. When he was four, Twain's family moved to Hannibal MO, a port town on the Mississippi River, which inspired much of his writing. In 1847, his father died of pneumonia, and Twain left school
the next year, after the fifth grade, to become a printer's prospective apprentice apparently. When he was 18, he left Hannibal and worked as a printer in New York City, Philadelphia PA, Saint Louis MO and Cincinnati OH.
Twain's childhood dream was to be a steamboat pilot, and such it was that steamboat pilot Horace E. Bixby took on Twain as a "cub" pilot to teach him the river between New Orleans LA and Saint Louis for $500 – payable out of Twain's first wages after graduating. Twain studied the Mississippi and learned its landmarks, how to navigate its currents and how to "read the river" with its continually shifting channels and reefs and its hazardous submerged snags and rocks. After two years, Samuel Clemens received his pilot's license. Piloting gave him his pen name, Mark Twain, from "mark twain," the leadsman's cry for a measured river depth of two fathoms (12 feet) – safe water for a steamboat. He first used the pen name when he signed a humorous account of his travels on February 3, 1863. After travelling extensively as a young man, Twain spent most of his post-steamboat life in upstate New York and Connecticut.
The “Big Three” I Described In The Narrative
Mark Twain Birthplace State Historic Site - Florida MOTwain’s birthplace has been enclosed inside a modern visitor center where informational placards provide biographical information about Twain, his wife and their four children. His wife and three children predeceased Twain. The interior of the house is off limits, but the visitor can readily see the living areas and the period furnishings via three open doorways. Several pieces from the family’s Hartford CT home are on display as well as the carriage Twain used in Hartford. Probably the most outstanding artifact exhibit is a trio of originals related to
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer: some of the proof sheets, part of the manuscript and the original contract. Another display case contains Twain’s works as published in numerous languages and outlines some of the ways Twain made thousands of changes to the English language. This is an excellent stop for those with an interest in Twain or his work but, truthfully, might be a little out of the way for the hurried tourist.
My next stop was the
Union Covered Bridge State Historic Site in nearby Paris MO. The 125' structure, built in 1871, served travelers in Monroe County for 99 years and is the only one of the four remaining covered bridges in Missouri
that represents the Burr-arch truss design. A kiosk near the parking area contains informational placards with the history, construction and preservation of the bridge; the history of covered bridges in America, as well as American designs and innovations; covered bridges in Missouri; basic truss designs for covered bridges and the genealogy of Burr-arch truss design. I have never before seen this amount of in-depth covered bridge information in a single stop. The bridge itself is in great condition and resides in a serene, scenic setting. It’s worth a stop for relaxation or education.
I really didn’t know what to expect from the
Walt Disney Hometown Museum in Marceline MO. Walter Elias "Walt" Disney (1901-1966) was born in Chicago, the fourth child of Elias Disney (1859-1941) and Flora Call Disney (1868-1938). The family moved to Marceline in 1906 but then moved to Kansas City MO In 1911. In the five years Disney was in Marceline, he developed an interest in drawing and earned his first artistic income when he was paid to draw the horse of a retired neighborhood doctor. Disney practiced drawing by copying newspaper cartoons. While in Marceline, Disney lived near the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway line and developed
his life-long fascination with trains.
Walt Disney had an interesting life and personality to say the least. It is said in the museum that Disney always considered Marceline home. Even though he only lived there for five years, those were very formative years and, for most of us, the ages from 5 to 10 hold fond and precious memories. That “hometown” claim by Marceline is reinforced by the fact that Disneyland’s Main Street, U.S.A. (which links Adventureland, Frontierland, Fantasyland and Tomorrowland) is, indeed, a replica of the main street in Marceline. Additionally, over her lifetime, Ruth Flora Disney Beecher, Walt’s only sister and youngest sibling, amassed a collection of over 2000 personal artifacts and other memorabilia (including intimate and personal correspondence) which she requested be displayed in Marceline, “… the one location on the planet that seemed to resonate the strongest …” with her family. That, boys and girls, is a powerful argument for the Marceline claim to Walt Disney.
The museum is chock full of Disneyabilia, photographs, informational placards, videos and on and on and on. After about an hour, I was Disneyed out as I was beginning to encounter repetition. The attraction is a definite “must see”
for all us baby boomers, but don’t expect to see it all, read it all or watch it all and leave with your sanity intact.
My next stop was the
Gen. John J. Pershing Boyhood Home State Historic Site in Laclede MO. Irene brought me into Laclede “the back way” and took me directly to the attraction. There were no directional signs or signs of life at the structure itself. Finding a secured screen door with the entry door open, I voiced my presence. A young man informed me that a tour was in progress but that I would be given access as soon as the tour had concluded. I was getting anxious because closing time was fast approaching. Finally, he brought me into the house and gave me a quick overview of the landmark. I was a little ticked; HOWEVER, as I was leaving town, I saw the errors of MY ways. Irene and I had skipped the office/visitor center/museum building entirely. He was probably as incensed for my violation of the “rules” as was I for my “harsh” treatment. If nothing worse happens during the rest of my life, I’ll be in great shape. As for the house. I wouldn’t even go so far as
to say it is nice. Okay is a better adjective, but remember though, Pershing lived there at some point, which makes it a worthy stop.
My final attraction of the day, since it doesn’t close at 5 PM, was the
1868 Locust Creek 151' Covered Bridge in Meadville MO. I have a bone to pick with the Missouri State Park web site designers (and many others). There is a convenient link on the web page for every state park – “get directions.” The link then prompts you to enter your address and generates a map. No address, no printable set of driving directions, no GPS coordinates. A map! The person who plans doesn’t always want to go to the park RIGHT NOW, but may plan to go next weekend, etc., etc. AND he/she might be researching using a COMPUTER and not a smart phone. Regardless, my GPS did not have the park in its data set (with whose data maintenance folks I also have a bone to pick) so I ended up skipping the attraction, went to my friends’ home, stayed the night and watched football on Sunday – life was good after all.
Monday, I set out for Louisiana MO to check
out some
Murals. If there is a better way to tell a town’s story than murals, please let me know because I have yet to find it. On the way, I happened upon a small, inexpensive, unadorned Veterans Memorial in Center MO. Thank you, Wayne and Virginia Huse for caring. I continued on to Louisiana where I was lucky enough to encounter a lady as I climbed from the truck who told me where I could obtain a mural map. As I walked around the downtown area and along the riverfront, I saw that the economic hardships that have befallen many small communities seem to have occurred in Louisiana. I will include a mixture of “around Louisiana” pictures and mural pictures for your viewing pleasure. The kind lady who told me the source of the mural map also told me of a “good eatery” in Louisiana – Izola’s Place. Consider the (I believe) pork tenderloin sandwich. It’s plate-size huge, and I’m glad I saw it before I ordered. My bacon-cheeseburger and excellent homemade onion rings were delicious. (I watched the lady dipping the onion rings and placing them in the fryer one ring at a time.)
I made the
drive from Louisiana to Hannibal on
The Great River Road and drove around Hannibal a bit, took a few pictures and headed back to the campground. The overcast skies and my 2-hour walk around Louisiana, of which I am NOT accustomed, took the wind out of my sails. On a normal day, I would have parked the truck, walked to the
Mark Twain Boyhood Home and Museum and climbed the hill to the
Cardiff Hill Park Lighthouse and Statues, but on this day.... I settled for a couple of pictures of the Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer statues at the base of Cardiff Hill.
I had a nice, relaxing week in northeast Missouri, got to spend a significant amount of time with a very good friend and his wife and got to see some attractions that, indeed, were at the top my list. Although the weather was iffy for a few of my days, I didn’t let that get in the way of a little bit of tourism and a whole bunch of R and R.
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