Chapter 19

This morning we woke up to a "Dense Fog Advisory". I was somewhat skeptical, because it was only slightly foggy at the motel, and the fog was so thin, you could see sky above it. However, as we set out for Hannibal, Missouri, the fog became extremely dense. I couldn't see a thing! Yesterday, I spent all day complaining about all the big trucks, but today I had to take it back, because I was able to follow a truck all the way there!

I think there were limestone bluffs, and lots of trees. We even went through an eagle watching area, but we couldn't see any of that.

We crossed the Mississippi River, and we were in Missouri, and Hannibal. We have been feeling guilty because there is an NAACP travel ban to Missouri, but we already had reservations before we knew about that, so here we are. It is the south, though. Everyone in Missouri was very polite and welcoming to us.
The buildings in Hannibal are old -- many from the 1830s.

Hannibal is right on the river, and the home of Mark Twain. His books, like Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn, are set in a fictionalized Hannibal, and the characters in those books are based on people he knew there.
We got there early (because we are still on Eastern time), about half an hour before anything opened, and walked up and down the main street.

Once it opened, we went to Mark Twain's boyhood home, and other buildings that are part of that museum, like Huck Finn's house, Becky Thatcher's house, and the gallery.

Among other things, the gallery has a display of Norman Rockwell illustrations for those books. He was the first artist to illustrate the books who actually visited Hannibal. He even changed some of his preliminary drawings once he saw what the town and houses looked like.

After that, it was time to be on the road to Kansas City. We drove across Missouri on US36, which was part of the second paved road across the country. They are promoting it as the Genius Road, because so many famous people were born in cities along it, including: Walt Disney, JC Penney, General Omar Bradley, Walter Cronkite and General John Pershing. The first sliced bread was sold in a town on the route, and it is also known for all its quilt shops.

After a lot of driving, we stopped in the town of Laclede, where Pershing was born. This was a very small town, with no paved streets, and a sad looking downtown.

However, the small museum was well laid out and informative.

After that, we were ready to finish the drive to Independence, Missouri, and the Harry Truman Museum and Library.

It wasn't very well signed (no sign at all on the freeway?!), the town of Independence has seen better days, and our expectations weren't super high, but it really was an excellent museum.

One part we liked was a complete recreation of the Oval Office.

There were extensive displays of his presidency, complete with artifacts and letters, as well as thorough explanations of what was going on at the time.

There was a nicely landscaped courtyard, with his grave, as well that of his wife and daughter.

We could also walk over and look in at the office he used there. Fun Fact: Until recently, a president's papers and gifts he received were his personal property. They were often lost, sold, or scattered. Truman felt this wasn't right, so he gave almost all of his back to the people. The Truman Library was the first constructed under an Act which allowed the federal government to accept donated presidential materials.

Next, we dove into the town of Independence. While it did have some nice buildings, a lot of it looked quite seedy. We walked around to see various sights. The family home.

Courthouse. Soda fountain where Truman worked as a teenager. Original log courthouse. Train depot. Also, Independence was the start of the Oregon Trail, Santa Fe Trail, and other pioneer trails west.

We drove to our motel in Kansas City, and went to dinner at a barbecue restaurant that also serves pulled jackfruit. My sandwich was quite tasty. It's funny, yesterday we ran into two different people who told us "You are a long way from home", yet tonight in the restaurant, we saw two men wearing Mariners and Boeing t shirts, and they were from Tacoma and Marysville! Also our waiter told us to look for their food truck that they are going to start in Portland!

Impressions of Kansas City: The streets do not go in straight lines, just in random directions. There are huge manicured lawns everywhere, and parking strips at least 3 times as wide as those in Seattle -- grass, of course. Also two things you will not see in Seattle: brick pillars on houses and rock pillars. But if anyone if looking for a new life, I would suggest moving to Kansas City and opening a lawn care business.