Branson, Missouri, June 25, 2014 — Today, near the literal heart of the American population, was an all-American day: Getting my kicks on Route 66, visiting the museum complex at Fort Leonard Wood, finishing I-44 and US 65 in Missouri, and capping off with a Titanic exhibition.
One of the many murals in downtown Cuba, “Mural City,” along old US 66.
The Missouri Ozarks are nice to drive through, at least on an interstate. The drive is very scenic. I stopped at Route 66 Diner (how could I not?) near the north end of Spur I-44 to Fort Leonard Wood. Burger and fries were $8, a very un-66-like price.
Things move a little slower on the old old US 66 at Devil’s Elbow.
One thing I learned about Fort Leonard Wood was that the base originally was planned for Leon, Iowa, but was relocated. One of the first four-lane segments of 66 was built to handle fort traffic. That segment was the last part of 66 bypassed by I-44 (PDF), and both it and the Devil’s Elbow alignment before it are drivable today.
I spent two hours at the one-building-three-museums covering the Army Corps of Engineers, military police, and Chemical Corps.
Then it was back on I-44, and to a rest area that is a microcosm of US 66’s history in Missouri. Literally. It has a lot in common with the Lincoln Highway-themed Iowa Welcome Center near Missouri Valley. The picnic areas are styled like US 66 roadside attractions and the building has an inlaid map of the highway on the floor.
A highway-quality US 66 shield is beside a sidewalk painted like a highway to the “roadside stops/attractions.”
Springfield includes Bass Pro Shops on its attraction signs.
I turned south on US 65, which was clogged until Osage. Then it got hilly. Up and down and up and down. It may have been an expressway, but I am fine with not doing that on a daily basis.
I crossed into Arkansas, clinching 65 in Missouri, and turned around, bound for Branson and the Titanic exhibit. The exhibit was everything I’d hoped for and more. (And for the second day in a row, I could do something after 5 PM.)
Bernard Hill (Captain Smith in the movie) narrates some of the audio clips you heard by pressing buttons. I saw things I hadn’t seen before, like Kate Odell photos and Father Browne photos. Many artifacts from passengers were from the small time frame between stops in the British Isles.
Then I got to the reproduction of the Grand Staircase…and “Southampton” was the background music. It was perfect. A “crew member” pointed out that the staircase was built to spec, including a new design trend for 1912, linoleum.
My passenger card was a third-class male going to Iowa (!), and I figured he was toast, but he lived.
In the gift shop, it looks like anything vaguely boat-shaped with a black bottom, white top, and four funnels can be sold as Titanic-related. (We knew that already. -Ed.) I wasn’t impressed with some things. A kit from Poland was for the “101th” anniversary.
I ended a very long day having covered two museum sites, the World’s Largest Rocking Chair, and a bit of highway history.