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Introduction
ST LOUIS: The largest city in Missouri and one of America’s largest inland ports, St Louis was once a booming centre for fur traders and explorers opening up ‘The West’. It is now a modern communications, commercial, industrial and cultural centre. It still retains its love affair with the Mississippi River, on whose banks can be heard ragtime, blues and Dixieland jazz. The influence of the many ethnic groups that created the city can still be seen in the German burgher houses, elegant French mansions (on its southside), and in the Italian ‘Hill’ neighbourhood and other diverse enclaves.
At 192m (630ft), the Gateway Arch on the riverfront is the nation’s tallest memorial. It honours St Louis as the starting point for settlers who began their trek to the western frontier from the city and contains an observation deck and exhibits on the American West. Among the area’s 100-plus attractions are: the Six Flags St Louis theme park, the Missouri Botanical Garden, sights along Old Route 66 and the St Louis Zoo and other cultural attractions in Forest Park.
EXCURSIONS: Hannibal in northeast Missouri was Mark Twain’s hometown. Many museums and shows celebrate the author’s life and works.
KANSAS CITY: Once the eastern terminus for some of the West’s most famous trails, such as the Oregon, California and Santa Fe, Kansas City is now a major commercial and agricultural centre for the Midwest. Kansas City is situated on the State line between Missouri to the east and Kansas to the west.
The Worlds of Fun entertainment complex has more than 120 rides, roller coasters and live entertainment. The Country Club Plaza, the nation’s oldest shopping centre, was established in 1922. Other attractions include Oceans of Fun, a water theme park, and the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. The Arabia Steamboat Museum displays artefacts recovered from a steamboat which sank in the Mississippi with 200 tons of cargo in 1856.
EXCURSIONS: Independence, 16km (10 miles) east of Kansas City, celebrates its association with former resident Harry S Truman at the Truman Library & Museum. St Joseph, north of Kansas City, boasts the Pony Express National Memorial and the Patee House Museum. The Lake of the Ozarks in central Missouri has more than 1600km (1000 miles) of forested shoreline and offers watersports, canoeing, golfing, tennis, caves, shows and museums. It is home to three outstanding State parks – Bennett Springs, the Lake of the Ozarks and Ha Ha Tonka. In Liberty, the Jesse James Bank Museum is the site of the nation’s first daylight bank robbery.
BRANSON: Branson first became popular at the turn of the 20th century, when Harold Bell Wright’s The Shepherd of the Hills, with its colourful depiction of life in the Ozarks, was published. Today, the area is known as a live entertainment capital and for its three picturesque lakes, Lake Taneycomo, Table Rock Lake and Bull Shoals Lake, which provide excellent opportunities for fishing and water activities. Branson’s best-known attraction is Silver Dollar City, a turn-of-the-century crafts village with daily music shows and rides like the Thunderation Rollercoaster, the Lost River Water Ride and the new Buzz Saw Falls. Branson offers pop, swing, rock and roll, country and gospel music performances at around 40 theatres, with more than 90 daily shows, and attracts legends of the entertainment world such as Andy Williams and Mel Tillis.
Copyright © 2003 Columbus Publishing Ltd.
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