May 29, 30, 31 - Wright Brothers in Dayton, Ohio

May 29

Leaving the horse and bourbon country behind, we headed for Ohio. Kentucky is one well manicured territory. The lawns are huge, often an acre or more, and all of them are mowed, even those with single wide mobiles. If there isn’t any landscaping, the gigantic lawns are still freshly mowed and there isn‘t any junk laying around. Farmland covers the hillsides and valleys. Most of the small towns look prosperous enough. As we crossed the border into Ohio, we were right in the middle of industry and office buildings and it continued all the way to Dayton. We stayed in a KOA a little out of town, probably the nicest one we have seen.

May 30

We followed the Wright brothers around Dayton today. When we were in Kitty Hawk, we decided Dayton was a must see and we were right. Our first stop was the Wright Cycle Shop. The shop that is now a museum and part of the National Park system. It was actually the fourth shop they had. An excellent 30 minute film spent a couple minutes on their childhood to illustrate how they were infatuated with the idea of flight early on and then moved to their teen years. Rather than finishing high school, Orville started his own printing press and was in business before he was 18. Wilber had finished high school and was planning to attend Yale but stayed back to care for his ailing mother becoming Orville‘s partner. Along with the printing press business, they opened a lucrative bicycle shop producing their own Van Cleve Bicycles and had a full bicycle repair shop. What they later accomplished without formal education was nothing short of amazing. They had brilliant scientific minds and the focus and determination needed to accomplish what no one else was able to do. In ten years time they went from experimenting with gliders in Kitty Hawk to having an aircraft business and flight school with all the patents necessary! After their successful flight in 1903 in Kitty Hawk, they returned to Dayton to continue their quest for flight. They realized they needed to be secretive until they had patents in hand. They worked in their bicycle shop with the shades drawn. They moved their flight experiments out to Huffman Prairie farm and by 1908 they had mastered control of the plane. It was not without accidents. One in particular where Orville was injured and the was plane ruined really brought the insight they needed. With the plane in pieces they started over rather than trying to improve what they already had. With new calculations they had the answers they were looking for. I don’t understand how they taught themselves the engineering and math through calculus that was needed. Through the years they had to build machines, tools, motors, a catapult, hangers and of course the planes. Amazing minds! At our first stop we saw the bike shop with tools and machinery they made and the printing presses with the print shop set up. They had some of the original printing on display.

National Park Museum - The Aviation Trail
Orville and Wilber Wright

This is the fourth cycle shop the Wright brothers owned,
now part of the museum and open to the public.

The Wright Brothers could have walked through the door and started
working in their shop. The original tools were all in place ready to go.

Our second stop was the Wright Brothers Aviation Center at the Carillon Historical Park. We could have spent all day right here but decided to focus on Orville and Wilber. The centerpieces is the 1905 Wright Flier III. It was restored under Orville’s direction just before he passed away in 1948. We also saw one of the 4 original bikes, the sewing machine they used to sew the muslin wing coverings, the light weight aluminum motor they made, and the drafting table they sat at for hours on end. A park ranger took us on a guided walk through the marvelous displays.

One of the 4 original bicycles still around today made by Wilber and Orville.
What they learned making bicycles played a huge part in their work in aviation. 

This is the original camera used to take the famous shot of the first flight in Kitty Hawk

Their Original Sewing Machine and Drafting Table
The propeller they made was so accurate it is still used today.

The Original 1905 Restored Wright Flier III

In the central Carillon building we walked through a new display commemorating Wilber Wright’s life. They are celebrating the 100 years since his death this year with many activities going on throughout the year. He died at 45 from typhoid fever leaving his brother to carry on. By this time they had flown all over Europe and the US giving demonstrations, opened their manufacturing plant with the patents necessary, and had their own flight school (you couldn’t by a plane without going through their flight school). Within a few years, Orville sold everything. It was just too difficult to carry on without the help and companionship of his brother. Wilber’s death must have been devastating to Orville after all they had been through and the closeness they had. He continued to use his amazing mind inventing and imagining. He died at 76 in 1948. What amazing things he saw in the world of flight. He lived to see Chuck Yeager break the sound barrier in a jet! Huffman Prairie Flying Field has been saved as part Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. We finished off the day with a quick stop to see a replica of the hanger and catapult. Just standing there on the field where the Wright Brothers worked and flew was pretty amazing. Lots of history right here. Kitty Hawk alone doesn’t begin to tell the whole story by any means!

The Catapult and Hanger at Huffman Prairie Flying Field
History was made right here.

A quote from one of the brothers.

Carillon Historical Park has a large number of historical buildings that have been moved here spread over acres and acres. A day probably wouldn’t do it justice. We did spend a little time in the main building. The exhibits were centered on industry of Dayton. There have been more patents here per capita than anywhere else in the US. We had lunch at Culp’s Café. In 1930‘s, the Culps opened a cafeteria that served as many as 5,000 customers in a day. It closed in 1960. The restaurant has a 1950’s diner look with some of the same good home cooking.

May 31

Our drive north continued today up through Ohio to Lansing, Michigan with farmland they whole way. We are using this as a base to go to Detroit to see The Henry Ford (museum) and the repurposing store from Cash and Cari show on HGTV. She isn’t filming right now but the store is open. She does estate sales on TV with some of the items going to her store. Then we are going in the opposite direction to visit New Era where Mom was born.

May 28 - Bourbon, Lincoln and Stephen Foster

May 28
Bourbon and horses is what this part of Kentucky is all about. We drove out to the countryside to Makers Mark Distillery today for their tour and tasting. All bourbon is made in the US and 97% of it is made right here in Kentucky; most of it in this area south of Louisville. They have a Bourbon Trail like the tasting rooms in wine areas. The distillery was started in 1805 with the water being a major factor. Like Jack Daniels in Tennessee, the water filtering through limestone is key to making good bourbon. Bill Samuel bought the distillery in 1954. One of the first things he did was burn the original recipe with the idea of coming up with something special. That he did. His wife came up with the idea of dipping each bottle in red wax as a trademark. We saw the kitchen where she did her experimenting in an electric fry kettle to get the wax just right. We also saw the plans laid out on the desk for the distinctive bottle. It is still being run by the same family using the same equipment. Production of the new blend began in 1958. Of course they have done a bit of expanding over the years. This happened to be the month that they do their cleaning so they weren’t in production. One good thing about that was we got to see the deep original cypress vats where the sour mash ferments. Drained and empty we could appreciate the size. There are more barrels aging bourbon in Kentucky than there are residents! They had a tasting all set up for us at the end of the tour. Jack Daniels is made in a dry county so no tasting allowed. We got to visit the still house, the oldest part of the facility. Two warehouses are over 100 years old. You could even hand dip you own bottle in the gift shop. The grounds are beautiful with the green grass, trees, creek and covered bridge; very picturesque with the historical black buildings with red shutters.

 Bill Samuel's wife got the idea of covering the top of the new bottle in this kitchen back in the 1950's.
She perfected the wax in the electric fry pot. 

Distillery at Marker's Mark - Over 100 Years Old

Cypress vats where the sour mash ferments are much deeper than they look.
They go deep below the flooring.

Beuatiful Grounds

Tasting!

We switched our sightseeing to Abraham Lincoln visiting his birthplace and his boyhood farm a few miles away. His father Thomas and his wife Nancy were considered middleclass citizens on the Kentucky frontier when they were married and moved to the small but typical farm in 1808 where Abe was born. Thomas had money in the bank paying $200.00 for Sinking Spring Farm. It ended up in a land dispute and when Abe was two years old they moved to Knob Hill. The Knob Hill cabin is where Abe had his earliest recollections. Later he told stories about his life here that he felt were influential in making him the man he eventually became. He was saved from drowning by his childhood friend, and walked two miles with his older sister to a “blab” school (school where everything was learned by recitation because there were no slates, pens or paper). He loved making letters in the dirt and reading became a passion. He had fond memories of his years here but life was hard on the frontier. He saw his baby brother die in this cabin and he helped his father plant the fields to see the crops disappear in a flash flood. Lincoln’s views on slavery probably began to be formed at Knob Hill. His parents joined a local church with antislavery beliefs. They lived on a well traveled road and probably saw slaves being marched to auction. “Abraham Lincoln, passionate defender of the Union and the man whose life and ideals affirmed the dignity of working people, was a product of the austere society of frontier Kentucky.” Before Lincoln was eight years old, the land dispute ended up in court. This must have been the reason we heard they stayed at the Talbott Tavern in Bardstown while waiting for the decision. When they lost their case, they moved again, this time across the Ohio River to Indiana.

The Lincoln family cabin at the Knob Hill farm.
Lincoln's first recollections are from living on this farm.

The Lincoln Memorial houses his birthplace cabin.

The Lincoln cabin where Abe was born.

Neither of the cabins we visited were actually in Lincoln’s family. The Knob Hill cabin we saw actually belonged to his friend’s family that lived on a neighboring farm. It was moved to this location where the Lincoln cabin had been. The memorial that houses the cabin of his birthplace was built in 1909. 100,000 citizens donated an average of $.31 each to buy the cabin and build the memorial that houses it. As the memorial comes into sight, it is very impressive with its 56 steps, one for each years of his life. However, the cabin probably isn’t the actual Lincoln cabin but a combination of Jefferson Davis’s cabin and Lincoln’s. Odd turn of events, but both cabins were disassembled and taken to a worlds fair. They think the lumber somehow got mixed up when it was disassembled after the fair. Cabins of the day were usually 16 by 18 feet, had one door, one window and a fireplace.

Chris and I visited the home, Federal Hill, at my Old Kentucky Home State Park where we were camping. It was here while visiting relatives in 1852, that Stephen Foster got his inspiration for his song, “My Old Kentucky Home.” This became Kentucky’s state song. He wrote so many songs about the south but never actually lived here. He also wrote “Swayne River,” Florida’s state song. It was a charming home but our guide needed to be a little less scripted and just relax a bit. Beginning this weekend, they have a Stephen Foster Concert here on Saturday evenings. Too bad we will miss it.

Federal Hill where Stephen Foster wrote "My Old Kentucky Home."

Chris and I hoping for a breeze playing cards in the 90 degree heat!

　

May 25, 26, and 27 - Kentucky Horse Country

May 27
Keenland Race track is open to the public to wander around and watch the horses working out in the mornings. It is another beautiful race track but on a smaller scale than Churchhill downs. They race here in April and October but many horses stay in the barns here to workout on the track and race at places like Churchhill Downs. We had fun watching the thoroughbreds and their riders both saunter down the track and race by us with the dirt flying. We were so close we could hear their heavy breathing. When we were up in the stands we overheard a phone conversation of someone watching a potential horse to purchase. It was really fun being up front and personal. Chris and I walked through the barn area and with a little help from one of the stable hands, we found the area where the horses were staying. It is such a large complex with over 1,000 stalls going on and on, row after row. It must really be something when they are all full during the racing season. The place would be humming. We were able to be right there while a horse was given a bath, walk by the stalls to see the hooves cleaned and legs wrapped, and watch them being walked around for exercise. They are getting the best care possible! On our way back we stopped to watch a horse getting its first shoes. The farrier told us that many of these horses are two year olds and that is when they get their first shoes. They are replaced every thirty days. What an experience! I thought about my friend Jodean working at the stables at the Del Mar Racetrack years ago. This is a world all to its own.

Kentucky Horse Park began in the late 70’s and has been building through the years. The state bought an existing farm with some of the barns going back to the 1880’s. It’s rolling hills span over a 1,000 acres with miles of white fences. We were taken through the history of the horse in the air conditioned International Museum of the Horse. The interactive displays were probably the best I have seen anywhere. One of my favorite exhibits was on the “Black Stallion” series by Walter Farley. I read book after book when I was in my horse crazed days. We took in the two shows, Horses of the World and Hall of Champions Presentation, both excellent and shaded but we needed the air conditioned museums before and after! Many events are held here year round. They have a track with a dressage area in the center, a large covered arena, plus an open arena. Events seem to be going on in all of them. The just opened the Kids Barn that will be very busy with lots of hands on things to do. The miniature horses a stabled here. Two babies were just born in February. They also had a Chincoteague horse here that was fun to see since we didn’t get to see them on Chincoteague Island. The stables in Hall of Champions has some of the famous race horses like Cigar, Funny Cide, and DaHoss. They are enjoying their retirement showing off to us in two shows a day and spending their afternoons and evenings in the grassy paddocks. They have pony rides for the little kids and they even offer horseback rides. It seems the state made an excellent choice when they took this park on back in the 70’s.

Another day in the 90’s! It is so unusual but that isn’t making us feel any better!

　

　
　

Kentucky Horse Park - Enjoying the View!

Beautiful - Traditional White Fences
Kentucky Horse Park

Horses of the World Show - Gypsy Horse

Hall of Champions Presentations Show
Cigar Yawning

Keenland
We watched some of the horses getting a work out on the track.

Back in the barn area, this one is having breakfast.

Bath Time
They get a bath every day!

First Shows on a Two Year Old

Getting a Workout at Keenland

May 25
Lexington, the Horse Capital of the World, was our distention today. There are over 75 horse farms in this area covering thousands and thousands of acres. I have always pictured rolling green hills with white fences but black fences are the predominate choice today. They are less costly to keep up. We saw these black fences in the Florida horse country and thought it was just a Florida thing. It is beautiful countryside and picture perfect! We stopped along the road to get some photos of the thoroughbreds and their babies with the fancy barns in the background. Many of the gated entrances were very stately and the barns were definitely not your simple farm barns. These horses have nothing but the best. The Calumet Farm was my favorite with its white buildings with red trim. In its hay day. It was the top farm with eight Kentucky Derby winners. Apparently it fell into foreclosure in the early 90’s with poor management by a son-in-law but was rescued and is back in good order.

Could this colt be a Derby winner in three years?
The barns are really something.

Black fences, Kentucky blue grass, and horses make a beautiful scene!

We had a delicious lunch downtown at deSha’s in Victorian Square. The building and bar dated back to the 1800’s. Norm went in search of a haircut and Chris and I went to Mary Todd Lincoln’s family home where she spent much of her childhood. Our soft spoken guide gave us a real understanding of the person Mary was. She was a beautiful and very well educated young woman from a prominent Kentucky family. She was fluent in French and had 12 years of schooling. She was full of life and her father fostered an interest in society and politics. When she became the First Lady, the public as well as Washington politicians perceived her to be an uneducated woman from the frontier, a bit of a pioneer like her husband. She was sophisticated, he was not. She was well educated, he was not. She was raised in a prominent family with money and in politics, he was not. Her family had slaves, his was against slavery. They were from such different worlds yet the world perceived them as from the same backgrounds. She fought this image throughout Lincoln’s term. She did overspend on redecorating the White House, but it was in such disrepair. At that time it was totally open to the public with the public making a mess of the home and its furnishings. Tourists back then would often show up in their private quarters and on their way out cut out snips of fabric from a chair covering or drapery as a souvenir. Over the years, she lost three of her four sons. After losing her husband, she stayed in mourning attire for the rest of her life. Our guide presented her abilities and her obstacles. After much studying, his belief was that her precarious mental state was a result of medicating her migraine headaches with laudanum and a mickey fin type chloroform drug. These drugs would have caused the symptoms her son was seeing. He had her committed to a mental hospital through the court system. Three years later, after she was taken off all drugs, her symptoms had disappeared. She was released and declared sane through the courts. Her remaining days were spent out of the limelight and still mourning the loses of her loved ones. The home had many of the Todd family pieces. We saw all three floors with the boys taking the top floor. I’m sure our guide could have gone on and on but another group was ready to be enlightened.

Mary Todd Lincoln's Childhood Home in Lexington

We stopped at Thoroughbred Park to see the seven life sized bronze horses and their jockeys approaching the finish line. There is a “walk of fame” for those in the horse racing business. It was too hot to dilly dally out in the sun and we headed back to the air conditioned car.

Thoroughbred Park

May 26

It is sooooo hot again - way up in the 90’s! Where’s that boat on the lake?

We went to the races today at Churchill Downs! What lucky ducks we are. It is a very imposing and beautiful facility with its twin spires and lovely grounds. We got there in time to spend some time in the Kentucky Derby Museum. It showcases the thoroughbred industry and the Kentucky Derby. A 360 degree film, “The Greatest Race,” was a great introduction. We took a guided tour of the race track and got an education on the Kentucky Derby. Our young guide is crazy about horses and horse racing! Her enthusiasm was catching. The facility is so spacious with over 1,000 horse stalls. Then it was off to the races. It was not a busy day at the race track and we got box seats in the shade with practically an entire section to ourselves. We stayed for about half of the races before we got too hot to cheer on another horse to the finish line. What a thrill to see such gorgeous horses thundering down the track. My big winner was Five Star David. I picked it thinking of you Dave, and won $10.20! It was such fun being at the track where the best of the best race for the Kentucky Derby! Derby week must be really something. I would love to see the ladies in their hats. We will be following the Belmont in a couple of weeks, the third race for the Triple Crown. I’ll Have Another has won the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness. Will he be the next Triple Crown winner?

Churchill Downs Race Track

At the Track with our Guide

Reading the "Sheet" to decide on my next bet!

What Speed and Power!

My big win on Five Star David!

It was too hot to go back to the Manor, so we decided to go the movies and see a late afternoon showing of “Marigold Hotel“ in air conditioned splendor. It is now in our list of favorites, and excellent film in every respect.

May 22

What fun we had today! We rented a pontoon “party boat” on Table Rock Lake just a few minutes from Branson. We drove out to the gorgeous Table Top State Park Marina and in a few minutes we were on the lake! These lakes have fingers going off in all directions. We phoned ahead to a floating marina and ordered lunch to go. It took a little bit of time and a few phone calls to find it with all the fingers and bays but we didn’t care - we were on the lake with big smiles on our faces. It was a perfect day. Too bad we couldn’t take some of our boat loving friends and family with us. It was a 12 passenger boat. The seats were soooo cushy! We really had fun scooting across the water.

Norm having fun at the wheel!

Picnic on the Party Boat

This is the life!

The Rankin Brothers and Rankinettes put on a musical review of 50’s up to the 80’s Rock N-Roll that was really entertaining. It was voted Best Show the last 3 years and the Best Tribute Show for 2011. They all did great impersonations of our favorites: Elvis, Neil Diamond, Buddy Holly Righteous Brother, Everly Brothers, Beatles, John Denver, and on and on for two hours. They were really pretty amazing! It would be fun to see their Sunday Country Western show. The strip was all lit up with Neon lights. Branson was on and off our list of places to see but we were really glad we made a short stop here.

May 23 &24 - Kentucky

May 23
We headed east for our last stop before going north. The drive to the Louisville/Lexington area in Kentucky was more than a days drive so we picked a place with a KOA to spend the night. We made it easy on ourselves and didn’t even unhitch the Manor. I was reading the AAA tour guide as we were going down the road and saw that the Laura Engels Wilder Museum was just off the highway. We hit it just right to see a film and have a tour of the house at Rocky Ridge Farm. She was a favorite of Rachel and Zoe when they were about 6 and 7 years old. Zoe read everything she could get her hands on that was written by Laura and her daughter Rose. Laura and Alfonzo moved here with Rose in 1894, and lived most of their adult life in this home, both living to 90 and 92. The last addition to the home was in 1912. It looks just like it did before Laura passed away. The furnishings included furniture that Alfonzo made. Laura published her first of her “Little House” books in 1932. All nine books in the series were written right here. Pa’s fiddle and some of her hand written manuscripts are in the museum.

Laura Engles Wilder's Home

May 24
We made it to My Kentucky Home State Park in time for Norm to have a nap while Chris and I played cards. We set up the “screened bug free tent” for the first time. We could enjoy the nice breeze and not be bothered by the bugs. Yea!

We went in to check out Bardstown and have dinner. What a surprise. This town, just south of Louisville, is listed in “1,000 Places to See Before You Die.” The town dates back to the 1770’s and many of the buildings are still standing. One home built in the 1780’s was lived in until 2000 and is now a classy restaurant. Talbott Tavern has been taking care of hungry folks since the 1770’s! We had a drink and appetizer in the very room where Abraham Lincoln’s family ate while they were waiting on a court case decision. George Washington, Lewis and Clark, and Henry Clay, to name a few, sipped some ale and had a bite to eat in this very room. We only had a chance to go into a couple of shops before they closed. We talked to a shop owner whose family had owned the building and clothing store since 1889. It is a darling Main Street. Maybe we will get back here when the shops are open.

　

May 21

We took the short drive to Branson today. Diving through the Ozarks is so pretty with the tree covered hills, balds (grassy areas) and farms. The balds have been kept a grassland since the Native American days. They kept them burned off so the grass would grow and they would have plenty of game to hunt. The early pioneers did the same. They have been cutting the hay recently so the balds are spotted with fresh round hay bails; very scenic. A couple we met at Petit Jean love Branson and recommended an RV park right near the center of town on the Lake Taneycomo. The lake looks like a river and actually is part of the white river system but they have many dams over hundreds of miles. The White River starts in Arkansas south of Fayetteville and empties into the Mississippi. On the map it arcs north through Arkansas and Missouri in a series of lakes that is amazing.

We drove down the “Hwy 76 Strip” with theaters and tourist attractions on both sides for miles. We saw remnants of the tornado that hit here in February. It hit the strip and damaged the Hilton hotel and condos down on the waterfront. A couple of locals we asked about it said it hardly caused a hiccup making it sound like no big deal. I remember hearing that many people were injured. Some of the businesses only had minor damage but I doubt that some of the older ones will be opening again. We had no idea what show to see, so Norm got online and we picked a musical review with the Rankin Brothers impersonating country and rock-n-roll stars. It was voted best show for the last three years, a pretty safe bet. We got our tickets at the theater and then saw an IMAX film called Ozarks Legend and Legacy. We were expecting a National Geographic. It wasn’t that, but even with it being a bit hokey, we enjoyed it. The settling is the Ozarks with a saga of a Scottish family settling here. It took us through the frontier days to the Civil War. Outlaws took advantage of men leaving their families behind to fight in the war. After the Civil War, vigilantes groups formed that finally brought order after thirty years. One of these groups was known as Bald Nobbers. They were famous for meting out their brutal brand of justice. The film continued to the present day with a grandpa telling his grand daughter the story revolving around a violin that traveled through generations. Their belief in God was ever present. It kept with the IMAX idea with beautiful photography and an airplane swooping down a river and such. Yea! We found another frozen custard place - Andy's!

Frozen Custard at Andy's!

In 2005, Branson opened an area called Branson Landing right down on the water with restaurants and shops along a wide pedestrian street. It is very classy. We had dinner outdoors at Cantina Lorado that was fabulous! Chris kept exclaiming that it was the best salsa and soft tacos she ever had. We sipped our margaritas, Christy included, as we watched the water fountain show set to music. We shopped a little after dinner waiting to see the 9:00 water fountain show with the lights and we were glad we did. It was very impressive. At $7 million, it should be. Lovely evening.

Dinner at Cantina Lorado sipping margaita's
 and watching the water fountain show on Lake Taneycomo.

Beautiful $7 million water fountain with it's 9:00 show! It is set to music and has fire!
A cruise boat is catching the show from the water.

May 20

Eureka Springs has been a tourist town since its inception back in 1879. As with other springs, the spring water here was considered a heath treatment both to drink it and bathe in it as the area was settled. Word got out quickly about its “healing” properties and by 1880, buildings started replacing canvas tents. Fires in the 1880’s destroyed most of the original buildings but new hotels, shops and restaurants quickly replaced them. The entire town is on the National Register of Historic Places. This mountain village in the Ozarks has the largest collection of Victorian homes in the central US. A “doctor” came to town and touted the healing properties of the water for cancer. Eventually it came out that he was a fraud and landed in the penitentiary. We took a tram tour and got some of the history by a local guy that has spent his life here. Some of his personal stories and reminiscing added to out tour. We stopped at one of the lovely springs and at the grand Crescent Hotel high on the hill. It dates back to 1886 and lobby must have the original front desk. I bought a piece of art in the gift shop. We heard the Seeburg Style H Orchestrion play its honkey tonk music taking us back to the museum in Florida where we saw the special exhibit on player piano type instruments.

The Seeburg Style H Orchestrion at the Crescent Hotel

This is one of the lovely springs in town.
The gardens around the springs are lovely.

Basin Spring has always been the center of town. Tourists and locals alike still gather here. The spring water has been piped to a fountain.

Before our tour, we had lunch on the balcony of the Basin Hotel overlooking Spring Street with its shops and tourists. Over 200 artists call Eureka Springs home. We enjoyed looking in the galleries and shops. We haven’t done much of that.

This is the view from the balcony of the Basin Hotel.
What a darling town.

The other night we came into town for dinner and sat on the patio at Luigi‘s. We heard some good music from the bar across the street and headed over there after dinner. “Wagon Wheel“, “rock me mama” is part of the chorus, is a song we keep hearing in the bars in these parts and it has become a new favorite. We lucked out and it was their last song before they took a break.

Thorncrown Church was our last “must see” stop. This beautiful church rises to 48 feet and sits back in the woods. It is a natural for weddings. It has 425 windows with over 6,000 square feet of glass and rises 48 feet to the Ozark sky. The story goes that Jim Reed purchased the land in 1971. People would stop by his property to view the beautiful Ozark countryside. He decided that a chapel in the woods would offer visitors a place to relax in an inspiring way. Construction started in 1979, but he ran out of money half way through. Hard as he tried he could not raise money to finish and was just about to give up. He went down to the building site for one last prayer and a few days later got a phone call from a lady in Illinois offering to donate whatever funds were needed to finish the project. Jim opened the doors in 1980, and sure enough people from all over the world have enjoyed a relaxing moment or two in this beautiful chapel in the woods.

Thorncrown Church

Inside Looking Out