6 Quirky Little Towns In Missouri
Missouri’s small towns are home for some of the strangest attractions in the Midwest. The state is home to a variety of landscapes, including the Ozark Plateau in southern Missouri, the large Missouri River Valley to the north, prairies, forested hills, and extensive cave systems. The history of Missouri reflects early mound-building Native Americans, French settlers, the development of frontier Missouri, and, later, the growth of mining towns and river ports. Through these six small towns, Missouri’s offbeat nature appears in castle ruins, cave bars, flooded mines, fraternal organizations, and many other oddball attractions that are an integral part of local daily life. So pack your camera, gas up the car, and head out to offbeat Missouri.
Camdenton
A grand European dream house rose in the Ozarks, only to end in tears and woes. Most visitors start their day at the Ha Ha Tonka Castle Ruins. This was the dream of Kansas City businessman Robert Snyder, who brought in stonemasons from Europe to build his castle in 1905. When Snyder died in one of Missouri’s very first automobile crashes, his family tried to take care of the castle, but after a fire in 1942 destroyed the roof, the castle was left open and exposed within what is today Ha Ha Tonka State Park. As you walk through the open stone archways and look out over the lake, you can see how this sets the scene for the rest of your day.
Following that, many people join specialty tours at Bridal Cave, such as lantern walks or black light tours that show off the fluorescent minerals. Afternoon activities are most commonly spent at the Ozarks Amphitheater, a cultural venue set into the rolling hills, and many days end with a visit to Ozarkland General Store, where you can find a wide variety of candies and souvenirs and a nostalgic small-town feel thanks to the smell of fresh fudge wafting through the store.
Ridgedale
This cave bar takes the meaning of a watering hole to a new level. The most bizarre stop in Ridgedale is the Bat Bar, a working bar located within the primary chamber of Lost Canyon Cave. Visitors ride through the cavern via an electric cart and see bridges, man-made waterfalls, and a long interior walkway until they reach the stone bar area, where they can receive their drink orders. Following the cave stop, many of Ridgedale’s visitors take the scenic part of the Lost Canyon Nature Trail around several sinkholes and cliff openings that provide elevated views of the Ozark landscape.
On the other end of Ridgedale is the Top of the Rock Golf Course, an 18-hole layout famous for its numerous lake views and rolling hillside fairways. Visitors also make their way to the Ancient Ozarks Natural History Museum, featuring diorama-style displays of native Ozark animals, Native American relics, pioneer-era equipment, and detailed exhibits displaying the region’s wildlife.
Bonne Terre
Descending into the flooded chambers of the Bonne Terre Mine gives this town one of Missouri’s most unusual experiences. Today, a large, still body of water fills the former lead mine, with no vegetation due to minerals in the water, and it has visibility farther than most freshwater lakes. Lights installed in the caverns illuminate more than one hundred feet into the water, highlighting underground passageways, mining platforms, and rusted machinery on the lake bottom. Divers have explored over a dozen mine chambers using maps created by certified divers; non-divers go on guided boat tours around the mine’s tunnels, arches, pillars, and large flooded rooms.
Some visitors also stop at the Space Museum and Grissom Center to see original items that relate to astronaut Gus Grissom and the first years of American spaceflight. Travelers who enjoy nature visit St. Francois State Park for hiking and exploring the numerous woods and springs that flow into streams. Visitors may conclude their trip at the Bonne Terre Depot, a historic railroad depot from the early twentieth century, featuring exhibits and artifacts about the mining area.
Sullivan
Ancient geology and long human history come together beneath Sullivan. The town’s defining attraction is Meramec Caverns, a 400-million-year-old limestone system shaped by underground rivers that carved miles of passageways and left the stalactites and stalagmites that fill its chambers today. Archaeological evidence indicates that parts of the cave were used by pre-Columbian peoples as shelter, and early European travelers described it as the first large cave system west of the Mississippi River. During the Civil War, the Union army used the cavern for shelter and also mined saltpeter there, a natural source of nitrate, and some locals claim that one of the higher-level viewing areas was used by Jesse James.
Guided tours are now conducted in areas of the cavern that have been lit to show the size and age of the rock formations. Many people visit Meramec State Park and camp there at the Meramec State Park Campgrounds, where visitors can walk on a short path to the entrance of Fisher Cave, a protected cave that contains many types of dripstone formations. The park offers seasonal guided tours of this cave. After visiting the caves, many people go to the Indian Creek Gallery, located in the center of the town; the gallery features artwork from the region and handmade items created from materials found in the surrounding Ozark Mountains. Many evenings end at Rich’s Famous Burgers, a family-owned and operated small restaurant in the heart of the town that serves a limited menu but is well-liked by local residents who eat there after finishing their daily routines.
Sedalia
John Homer Bothwell never worried about summer cooling bills in Sedalia. Built over 31 years by a local lawyer as a summer home, Bothwell Lodge is an enormous twelve-thousand-square-foot home. During its construction, workers discovered three natural cave systems under the hilltop property on which the lodge sits. Bothwell added entranceways from inside the home so cool air can travel through the rooms and maintain a natural temperature in the home. The tall towers and large stone arches are symbolic of the size of his long-term project, and the high location provides great views of the wooded area below. The estate was eventually given to the state once there was no one left to take care of it, and it is now known as Bothwell Lodge State Historic Site.
Back in town, many tourists continue to the Daum Museum of Contemporary Art. The museum has exhibits of the art of both regional and national artists that rotate throughout the year. A few miles away is the Katy Depot, a historic train station from 1896 that showcases Sedalia’s railroad history as part of the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad line. Many evenings in Sedalia are spent relaxing at Liberty Park, a park area with lakefront walking trails, tree-shaded areas, and open lawn space.
Liberty
A sprawling fraternal complex with a long local legend is one of the most unusual landmarks in the region. The first stop for many is the Odd Fellows Home, a four-structure campus built between 1900 and 1930 by the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. The school, dormitory, chapel, and administrative building are largely preserved and present an impressive appearance atop the hill. During each season, visitors can take part in guided ghost tours through specific sections of the property that explain the symbols used by the organization and the historical record and ongoing lore of the site.
From the Odd Fellows Home, many guests visit the Clay County Museum & Historical Society, which features small exhibits showcasing regional artifacts from the nineteenth century, as well as early frontier-era materials and documents. The next stop is various landmarks listed in Liberty’s Historic Walking Tour, consisting of twenty-seven sites, including Freedom Fountain and the restored Corbin Mill. Visitors typically slow down at Stocksdale Park, a natural park consisting of wooded paths, open fields, and a tranquil lake located near the east side of the community.
Hidden Eccentricities
Smaller Missouri towns show how uncommonly bold, experimental, or story-filled ideas can shape an entire town. At Camdenton, the castle ruins above the lake at Ha Ha Tonka tell a story of ambition and loss. Ridgedale’s Top of the Rock area is a combination of caves, a mountain chapel, and a cave bar cut from the stone where it sits. The former lead mine in Bonne Terre is now a huge underwater world illuminated by spotlights. Sullivan’s Meramec Caverns display four hundred million years of geological changes to the earth, as well as hundreds of years of human use of the caverns. A man’s odd vision of building a cave-cooled lodge in Sedalia was realized and still exists today. The legends that have been running through the Odd Fellows Home in Liberty are carried forward to this day.
