West Plains, MO and the White River Country

[warwickland]

Vicinity of West Plains, MO - pop. 10,866, home of Daniel Woodrell, writer of the novel Winter's Bone.

If you have any Drive By Truckers, put it on!

[Highlander]

West Plains looks nicer than I remember.  For the longest time, the Ozarks did nothing or tried vainly to take advantage of its natural beauty in terms of tourism resulting in a myriad of uninspired tourist attractions and "Hillbilly Buffet's" around southern Missouri.  And what in my opinion is the tacky Branson - Table Rock Lake disaster (OK, some folks may like it but it's not for me).

So are those river shots the North Fork of the White or the Eleven Point?  Some nice pictures of what appear to be some natural springs too. 

[warwickland]

So are those river shots the North Fork of the White or the Eleven Point?  Some nice pictures of what appear to be some natural springs too.  

North Fork of the White River. I remember seeing some turn of the century map referring to the "White River Country" as a shaded, nondescript region, thus my reference. I prefer the Current River area for natural beauty, but have deep ties to this particular area immediately west of West Plains.

[Highlander]

North Fork of the White River. I remember seeing some turn of the century map referring to the "White River Country" as a shaded, nondescript region, thus my reference. I prefer the Current River area for natural beauty, but have deep ties to this particular area immediately west of West Plains.

Technically correct since the North Fork is part of the White River drainage.  Much of White River country now lies under a chain of lakes from Beaver - Table Rock - Taneycomo - Bull Shoals and the North Fork has Norfork Lake.  Sadly, much of the passage of the White River through the Ozarks is now indundated.  Yea, the North Fork of the White flows through a relatvely narrow canyon like valley which allows agricultural plateau land much closer to the river.  The Salem Plateau in the Current River area is much more evenly disected resulting in more pleasant scenery. 

[Roanoker]

Thank you for the tour. I like your variety of subjects.

[chrizow]

very cool.  every time you post one of these tours of a missouri town/area, i am reminded that i am woefully uneducated about my home state.  i have never been to west plains, ste. genevieve, or really almost anywhere in MO.  sad. 

[Thaine]

A guy I went to law school's family owns the West Plains Bank and he gave up a mid six figure salary from Blackwell Sanders in Springfield to go back home and work at the bank.

[chrizow]

^ i support that 100%.  get out of springfield and the big firm rat-race, go back home with some scrill in the bank, buy a house secluded in the forest, and work the family business. 

[mlind]

I love pictures of small mid-western towns.  It sort of looks like it's not doing well. 

[warwickland]

very cool.  every time you post one of these tours of a missouri town/area, i am reminded that i am woefully uneducated about my home state.  i have never been to west plains, ste. genevieve, or really almost anywhere in MO.  sad.  

Thanks. I partially grew up in this area, spent summers with my grandparents, so I know it somewhat well. I always thought the area had an interesting appalachian meets southern plains vibe, slightly mid-westernized. I like how in Missouri you can go to the different corners of the state and come away with a strong impression of what the states adjacent are like, with the exception of the people of northern Missouri who often have as much of a twang as southern Missourians (unlike Iowan/Nebraskans but like many outstate Illinoisans).

I love pictures of small mid-western towns.  It sort of looks like it's not doing well.  

West Plains was in better shape than many of its northern Missouri counter parts...barely. Theres newish light industrial on the outskirts, and most of the downtown storefronts that were in plain view at least in the square were occupied. The neat, unique side lanes weren't in as good of shape.

[Highlander]

^ i support that 100%.  get out of springfield and the big firm rat-race, go back home with some scrill in the bank, buy a house secluded in the forest, and work the family business. 

Springfield has a rat-race?

very cool.  every time you post one of these tours of a missouri town/area, i am reminded that i am woefully uneducated about my home state.  i have never been to west plains, ste. genevieve, or really almost anywhere in MO.  sad. 

When I was 16 and could now drive, my friend and I bought a copy of Oz Hawksley's "Missouri's Ozark Waterways" and proceded to systematically try to float all the streams in the Missouri Ozarks.  We spent parts of several summers doing this and learned our way around southern Missouri very well.  I think I've seen nearly every small town in southern Missouri and northern Arkansas. 

[mlind]

In the early 1940's, my father and some friends were towing a boat in the Ozarks.  It came loose from the hitch and the trailer & boat went down a hill.  They trudged downhill to retrieve it and passed a house with some people (called hillbillies at the time) sitting on the front porch.  As they pulled the trailer back up the hill, they passed the house again.  One of the people on the front porch turned to another and said "I told you a boat went by."

[missingkc]

Thanks for the pictures.  Love the cat on the map, undoubted hiding the very thing you want to see.  Love the little retail alleys that seem to come off the corners of the square.  I've never seen that anywhere.  Is that the Milky Way?  If so, wow.

Love the Ozarks.  Mom was from Neosho.  Dad was from Noel which is pretty much a dump now but was a really neat little resort town back then.

[Highlander]

Love the Ozarks.  Mom was from Neosho.  Dad was from Noel which is pretty much a dump now but was a really neat little resort town back then.

Yea, my parents use to take us down there when I was a wee one; we floated on the Elk River and the overhanging limestone bluffs along the highway into town made me think we were up in the mountains.

Isn't there a Tyson chicken processing plant there now?