Looking for Missouri road trip tips

[Portland Blues]

My wife and I are heading out on a road trip from Portland, OR to Nashville and are looking for funky "roadside" things to see in Missouri. We're hoping for tips in the following cities:

Jefferson City
St. James
Poplar Bluff

We're writing a nightly blog that focuses on both historic preservation and things like old neon signs, roadside attractions, old gas stations and giant fiberglass statues.

Any leads would be much appreciated!

[SIU LAW]

Visit Sauget on the other side of the river. LOTS of lit up signs there.

[Portland Blues]

Visit Sauget on the other side of the river. LOTS of lit up signs there.

Thanks! Is it pretty easy to get around over there?

[SIU LAW]

Sorry man. I was just being an ass.

You don't want to check out those signs with the wife along.

[Portland Blues]

Sorry man. I was just being an ass.

You don't want to check out those signs with the wife along.

Ah, I see

[TSUCookieMonster]

St. James winery is about all there is to do there, but the wine is great (and pretty cheap).

In Jefferson City, you could stop by my parent's house and see my dad's brewery and wine cellar full of homemade wine and beer, check out the brand new Wal-Mart on the East side of town, or go eat at the newly opened Buffalo Wild Wings.

If you haven't seen the capitol in Jeff City, it's pretty cool to at least stop and look at. The governor's mansion is right up the street. Your wife might like the governor's garden too if they still have flowers. Also there is some... interesting shopping on main street. I haven't really been to JC much in the past year, as I was living in Kansas and now Paris, but there used to be some pretty weird local shops.

My brother was shopping for some shoes in the shadey shoe store (if you go, you'll see it), he walked to the back part of the store, and he saw some old lady lying on a hospital bed in the back room yelling at the owners: "Get back in here and wipe my butt!" Very surreal but true story. Mellanby_equals_grit might know what store I'm talking about, as we both grew up in JC.

PM me if you need some more recommendations or have something specific you are wanting to see.

[TheoSqua]

My tip: Cut through Iowa/Illinois instead

[TSUCookieMonster]

My tip: Cut through Iowa/Illinois instead

Ha ha, yeah. Cut through Des Moines and visit Adventureland. That is a weird weird place.

[Blueline29]

The War Memorial in Nashville is pretty cool lookin', at least from the outside (not that the inside's not nice; I just don't know how accessible it is under normal, non-special-event-driven circumstances). I was there for a concert this past Monday.

[cprice12]

On the Illinois side...

Anna, Illinois.
The home of Bunny Bread

Yup...that's what ah said.

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You can go to Collinsville, IL and see the world's largest ketchup bottle (don't do this).

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Haunted Alton, IL

Actually, taking a haunted tour of Alton is pretty cool. Alton is said to be a pretty haunted town.
A friend of mine is one of the guys who does the tours.
Here's their site: http://www.altonhauntings.com
We've been twice. It's a walking tour, and you visit numerous haunted and historical sites around town. You get to hear a lot of stories about the area's history and spooky past. It's a good time...and oddly enough, it's educational.
Part of the tour takes you underground to a portion of the old Underground Railroad, which was neat.

[Portland Blues]

Thanks for the tips. We ended up crossing the state from the NW corner all the way down to the SE corner. We're in Nashville now for a few days but have added the places mentioned to our list for the trip home.

Boy, the Bootheel section of Missouri was an interesting place.