Branson
"Branson, Missouri is one of the United States' top year-round vacation destinations where visitors find world-class entertainment set in the natural beauty of the Ozark Mountains. Branson is popular for its live performance theaters featuring top attractions of yesterday and today. There’s more to Branson, Missouri than theater – there are fine museums, shopping, and dining. Outdoor adventurers enjoy the three freshwater lakes and the championship golf courses.
Some of the top attractions in the state of Missouri are found in Branson, including the award-winning Silver Dollar City, an 1880’s theme park that features demonstrating craftsmen, live shows, food, shops, and rides. Branson is also host to numerous festivals throughout the year. Celebrating the heritage of the Ozark Mountains is “The Shepherd of the Hills” outdoor play based on the novel by the same name. Branson’s other attractions include an IMAX theater, Dolly Parton’s Dixie Stampede Dinner & Show featuring live animals, the Branson Scenic Railway, and “Titanic: The Legend Continues”, where visitors can view recreations of staterooms, steerage, the Grand Staircase, and view priceless treasures and artifacts of this famous ship.
On the water, Branson visitors find the Showboat Branson Belle - a dining theater paddlewheel boat that tours on Table Rock Lake. The 700-passenger boat features three-course lunch and dinner cruises. Yacht and catamaran tours are also available.
Branson’s list of museums include the American Presidential Museum, Antique Toy Museum, Ralph Foster Museum at College of the Ozarks, Roy Rogers-Dale Evans Museum & Happy Trails Theater, and the Veterans Memorial Museum."
Mark Twain Boyhood Home & Museum
The life of one of America's most beloved authors, Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens) is captured in the Mark Twain Boyhood Home & Museum located in Hannibal, Missouri. The museum collection consists of eight buildings and two interactive museums. Collections at the museum also include original Norman Rockwell paintings commissioned for Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn.
The collection starts at the Interpretative Center, which was acquired to display exhibits on the association between Mark Twain and the town of Hannibal. The next building is the Boyhood Home. This house was occupied by the Clemens family from 1844 to 1853. Open to the public since 1912, this is one of the earliest home preservation projects in the country, designated as a National Register of Historic Place and a National Historic Landmark. There is a gift shop on site at the Mark Twain Boyhood Home.
Other attractions at the Mark Twain Boyhood Home & Museum showcase Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn. These two fictional characters are depicted on Frederick Hibbard's "Tom & Huck" statue, dedicated in 1926. The Judge Clemens Justice of the Peace Office, where Twain's father John Clemens practiced law and the Grant's Drug Store/Pilaster House where the Clemens family lived for a short time (and where Judge Clemens died) are featured buildings. Recreated as a period drug store, parts of the Grant's Drug Store building are accessible. There is also the Huckleberry Finn House and Becky Thatcher's Home. The character of Becky Thatcher was based on Laura Hawkins, a childhood friend of Sam Clemens. Owned by the museum, the Hawkins Family home is free and open to the public.
The Museum Gallery houses interactive exhibits based on five of Twain's books and information on the life of Mark Twain. Traveling exhibits are also featured in the museum throughout the year. The Mark Twain Boyhood Home & Museum is open daily year-round and is closed on Easter, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's Day.
Harry S. Truman Presidential Museum & Library
The 33rd President of the United States, Harry S. Truman, was born in Missouri in 1884. The life and political career of this two-term president, who died in 1972 at the age of 88, is honored in the town of Jefferson City, Missouri at the Truman Presidential Museum & Library.
The president who made the saying “The Buck Stops Here” famous, served the country near the end of World War II following the death of President Franklin Roosevelt. Opened in 1957, the Truman Presidential Museum & Library is filled with World War II exhibits and historical memorabilia. The museum collection includes nearly 30,000 artifacts associated with the historical events of Truman's career and Presidency.
The “Harry S. Truman: His Life and Times” exhibit at the museum details the stages of Truman’s life, from his boyhood, family, early political career, time in the White House, and his life as a retired citizen. Educational programs at the exhibit help students to understand the importance of history and how it affects their lives as citizens of the United States. Interactive exhibits at the Truman Presidential Museum and Library allow young people to try on period clothes, campaign for president, and to compare life today to the life of Harry Truman.
The "Harry S. Truman: The Presidential Years" exhibit focuses on Truman’s presidency. The difficult choices that Truman made in his presidency are explored - recognizing Israel as a state, desegregating the military, and the implementation of loyalty oaths for Federal employees.
The Truman Presidential Museum & Library is open daily year round and is closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day.