We looked for a convenient campground in southern Missouri on our way to Branson. The town of Carthage seemed to be a good place to stop for a couple days. We knew nothing about Carthage but, like many other towns, we found it to be a fascinating place to visit. Carthage (pop. 12,000+) is about 10 miles from Joplin. The town was mostly destroyed on July 5, 1861 in the Civil War Battle of Carthage. Do you remember that one from your American History class? We didn’t either. When the city was rebuilt, many buildings were built of local marble, giving the town a heavy sturdy appearance.
The beautiful castle-like Jasper County Courthouse, complete with turrets and tall clock spire, occupies most of the town square. Businesses and government buildings face the square on all four sides.
We happened to be in town on the weekend of the Acoustic Music Festival. This simple all-day down home style event was held on one corner Courthouse Square. We unfolded our chairs under the shade trees and spent a few relaxing hours listening to bluegrass and old cowboy songs. We also explored some of the local antique shops around the square and admired the old buildings.
Lowell Davis – Red Oak II Missoura
Every town has a local hero or two. Artist Lowell Davis is famous in Carthage (and beyond). Davis grew up in the small town of Red Oak. He noticed that life was changing radically following World War II. He and many other people were leaving the small town life behind and moving into the cities. When he returned from years in Dallas, he found that his boyhood town of Red Oak was nearly a ghost town. He wrote: "The 1930's seemed to be a much simpler time. Neighbors helping neighbors, everyone had a garden and canned their own food. They had a milk cow and they even made their own clothes. By today's standards, they were poor ... they just didn't know it!"
Red Oak II could be described as an occupied ghost town. It’s open to visitors but there is no admission fee and it’s not advertised as a tourist attraction. We had a hard time finding it, but it was worth it. Lowell Davis and several other families live in the restored homes, including this Civil War era home.
Old time music jam sessions are held in the small church.
Davis is primarily an artist so Red Oak II includes many of his whimsical metal sculptures and a few worn out vehicles add character. Ron loved the old Nash. Davis' art is also in the Jasper County Courthouse where a large mural depicts the local history.
Another local personality was Belle Starr, the infamous Confederate spy and outlaw. Lowell Davis now lives in her restored home at Red Oak. We were lucky to get to meet Mr. Davis. Ron was standing on his front walk taking a picture of the Phillips gas station as he was leaving to go to dinner. He stopped to chat briefly. Very nice friendly guy.
Precious Moments:
You may be familiar with the teardrop-eyed “Precious Moments” children designed by artist Samuel Butcher. He began drawing these characters in the 1970s to convey special messages to family and friends. They became very popular with collectors and Butcher became rich.
Butcher also used his stylized children to depict biblical events and built an elaborate chapel and gardens in Carthage to display his work. We didn’t know anything about this place but it was free and we were curious so we decided to take a look. It was amazing! The gardens were beautiful.
A museum displayed hundreds of his porcelain figurines along with a huge doll house occupied by cute little Precious Moments children.
The chapel is the centerpiece of the complex.
It was designed specifically for Butcher’s artwork and each painting has a story behind it. The biblical events are depicted in 30 stained-glass windows and 84 murals. Quite a sight indeed! Little did we know that Carthage would be such an interesting town.
