Missouri? Maybe...Seeking Info on Certain Towns

[Hillman]

Yea Boonville is cool.But their Street Musicians need to find an instrument easier to move around



hillman

[ozarksboy]

Originally Posted by OA 5599

Newburg, eh? I've been through there many a time myself...one of the things us UMR students found to do was go cruise down back roads. Newburg feels downright creepy at night...probably the abandoned houses, lack of people outside, and overgrown streets on steep hillsides. I've always thought it was an interesting town and have wanted to know more about the history...it looks like it must have been a booming place at some point...perhaps getting bypassed by US 66 choked off the town while places like Rolla and St. James grew?

Newburg is a good little town, and one of these days the rich folks in St. Louis are going to discover it and start buying up property. It is in a beautiful setting. Most of the folks who live there are of moderate means. It is not creepy.

It does have an interesting history tied to the railroad. There was a roundhouse there, and the place boomed during the construction of Fort Leonard Wood. After that, though, it fell in population and in importance.

It has a good little school district,though, that teaches the basics well. Friend of mine graduated from high school there, went to SMS for an undergrad degree and then to Ball State University for a master's degree. Worked for IBM in Atlanta and got a Ph.D. while there. Now lives in SW Mo and works out of his home as a consultant making more than you, me, ShadowCaver and probably CaliBassman put together. And he graduated from Newburg.

OK, now that I've mentioned Newburg, everybody forget about the place. I don't want to ruin it with a bunch of transplants.

[OA 5599]

Thanks for the info...I had always wondered about the town, with the interesting old houses and large business district that both seemed to have fallen into decline (hence some of the creepy-ness at night, although most certainly not during the day). The setting is beautiful indeed...I found it to be one of the most interesting natural settings out of small towns in the Missouri Ozarks (along with Eminence, Gainesville, Ironton/Arcadia/Pilot Knob, and maybe Jerome also). I was surprised a few years ago when I found out that Newburg had a high school....I always assumed they shipped the students to Rolla. The drive from Rolla out CC highway, down a few gravel roads to Newburg, and back on old US 66 was one of my favorite 35 minute escapes from studying.

[Miss Rutabaga]

Thanks so much for ALL the information. I really, really appreciate all the time you took to respond. And I'm going to look into all the options.

By the way, if it sounded like I was being some "big city slicker" wanting to come live in the country because I saw it in a magazine...uh...no.

I just like reading. I like talking to people who think a bit outside the box. I enjoy a good cup of coffee and a chat. I am well-educated (at one of those harumph Eastern colleges) and enjoy being friends with conservatives, liberals and everything in between. The most interesting people live in small towns....and you're right...sometimes they are "under the radar".

I grew up in a town of 6,000 in that big bellowing "Lone" state that is threatening to secede from the Union. It was very rural. It was so small that we only had a 1-H Club. Our prom was held in a phone booth (Remember those?)

I did go away to see the world....and like Dorothy was blown into Kansas and then Missouri for a year or two during my 20s and I just liked it a lot.

Now that I've seen it all....Missouri might be the place I'd like to hang my Paris hat...and put up my big old bookshelves.

Thanks again...you guys rock!

PS I know that small towns can't meet all the criteria, the only place to eat where I grew up was...oh you know it---the DQ...I'd be glad for a few amenities...one? two?

[ozarksboy]

Originally Posted by OA 5599

Thanks for the info...I had always wondered about the town, with the interesting old houses and large business district that both seemed to have fallen into decline (hence some of the creepy-ness at night, although most certainly not during the day). The setting is beautiful indeed...I found it to be one of the most interesting natural settings out of small towns in the Missouri Ozarks (along with Eminence, Gainesville, Ironton/Arcadia/Pilot Knob, and maybe Jerome also). I was surprised a few years ago when I found out that Newburg had a high school....I always assumed they shipped the students to Rolla. The drive from Rolla out CC highway, down a few gravel roads to Newburg, and back on old US 66 was one of my favorite 35 minute escapes from studying.

Newburg has a fine school system.

The town also has a flourishing artistic culture and it is the home of the Lyric Live Theater.
,,,

[Lake Junkie]

Miss R...you don't sound like a slicker to me. You may be a little ahead of the curve in some areas, but that's not necessarily bad! It sounds like you may have found a place that would suit you, and you can be a great ingredient in the mix...

I'm a book person too. I love the idea of what you're proposing, and have loved many of the changes I've seen in Missouri in the 17 years since I pulled up my Californ-y roots & set them down in this rocky soil. I know a lot of people decry growth...but if a town/person/institution isn't growing, it's dying.

This is a great place to do research, but it's also become somewhat of a community itself. Please consider checking back from time to time and just saying hello...? I've made some very dear friends and wonderful antagonists on this forum.

[ajf131]

Originally Posted by Silvermouse

The only place I can think of that even comes close to most of your list is Eureka Springs Arkansas. Granted it's a long way from Lee's Summit, but it's got artsy/crafty/historic homes out the wazoo. Could be a pricy place though.

Only problem is that Eureka Springs, Arkansas technically isn't the Midwest.