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in Hannibal, Missouri May 21, 2012 |
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Hannibal. Missouri has a total area of
15.1 square miles of which 14.6 square miles is land and 0.5 square
miles is water. Hannibal is located by The Mississippi River in Marion
and Ralls Counties and approximately 100 miles northwest of St. Louis.
The site of Hannibal was previously occupied by early settlers and
Native American tribes. It was laid out as a town in 1819 by Moses
Bates. Hannibal had gained city status by 1845. |
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| Below:
The Mark Twain Memorial Bridge |
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| The Mark Twain Memorial Bridge is the name for two bridges over the Mississippi River at Hannibal, Missouri, childhood home of Mark Twain, for whom the bridge is named. The current bridge, north of the original site, was finished in 2000; the original bridge, built in 1936, was demolished. The bridge currently carries traffic for Interstate 72 and U.S. Highway 36. The state of Missouri has put up a stone picture of Twain on the Missouri side of the bridge. This is a Truss bridge and the total length of the bridge is 4,491 feet and the longest span is 640 feet. | |
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| Below:
The boyhood home of Mark Twain in Hannibal, Missouri |
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Below:
Mark Twain's Father's Law Office |
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Below:
A view inside Mark Twain's Father's Law Office - photo taken through glass so notice Lee's outline in the photo below. |
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A
rotating coffee cup above a diner.  |
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Below: Mark
Twain Memorial Lighthouse on Cardiff Hill |
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View
of the Lighthouse as seen from downtown Hannibal, Missouri. The lighthouse
on Cardiff Hill has a panoramic view of Hannibal and the Mississippi River.
It is reached by 244 stairs which begin at the north end of Main Street,
OR you can also drive your car close to the lighthouse
and avoid all but a few stairs. |
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Below: The bronze statue sculpted in 1925 of
Twain's most memorable and mischievous characters, Tom Sawyer and Huck
Finn walking along the banks of the mighty Mississippi River can be
seen at the bottom of the stairs. |
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 History
of Mark Twain Memorial Lighthouse on Cardiff Hill, Hannibal, Missouri |
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| The Mark Twain
Memorial Lighthouse sits on 10 acres of park on Cardiff Hill, Mark Twain's
boyhood home town, on the banks of the Mississippi River, a favorite play
area of Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry Finn, and the gang. It is the furthest inland lighthouse in the world and was first lighted in 1935 by President Franklin Roosevelt from the White House in celebration of Mark Twain's 100th birthday. It was re-lighted by President Kennedy in 1963, and rededicated and re-lighted by President Clinton in 1994. In 2001, the lighthouse underwent additional renovation through grants from the National Park Service and the Missouri Division of State Parks. The lighthouse's beacon has served to remind visitors from around the world of the spirit of adventure chronicled in Mark Twain's books. This spirit was brought to life in Twain's characters Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry Finn, and Becky Thatcher. |
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A
Flower Garden at the bottom of the lighthouse - with lots of butterflies.
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Below: The Mississippi
River as viewed from Cardiff Hill in Hannibal, Missouri. |
Below: Downtown Hannibal
as viewed from Cardiff Hill |
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Below: The two RV Gypsies in Hannibal,
Missouri - by the Mississippi River |
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Below:
The Mark Twain Riverboat * Center Street Landing * Hannibal, MO 63401
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The Sightseeing Cruise consisted of a one-hour cruise with commentary on the river's history, legends and sights. A snack bar with sandwiches and beverages was available on this trip. The Dinner Cruise was a two- hour cruise with a one-time-go-through buffet, live entertainment, dancing and beverages. On the dinner cruise everyone was escorted to a table, then everyone was free to roam the boat until the Captain announced that dinner was ready. At that time everyone returned to their assigned table and the cruise director directed everyone to the buffet table. After dinner everyone was free to roam the boat, dance and/or sit back and enjoy the entertainment. On weeknights LA Suess plays a banjo and harmonica and plays showboat era music, Dixieland and a little bit of gospel. The dress was casual. Sunday-Friday 2 hours - $37.95 plus tax- Saturday - $39.95 per adult plus tax Child - $21.95 |
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Below: The Mark Twain Statue and plaque
in Riverview Park |
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Lover's Leap
in Hannibal, Missouri |
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| The
Great Flood of 1993 |
The sign
on the building below showed the water level during The Great Flood
of 1993. |
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The size and impact of the Great Flood
of 1993 was unprecedented and has been considered the most costly and
devastating flood to ravage the U.S. in modern history, as of this date. The number of
record river levels, the aerial extent, the number of persons displaced,
amount of crop and property damage and its duration surpassed all earlier
U.S. floods in modern times. In the St. Louis National Weather Service (NWS) forecast area encompassing eastern Missouri and southwest Illinois, 36 forecast points rose above flood stage, and 20 river stage records were broken. The 1993 flood broke record river levels set during the 1973 Mississippi and the 1951 Missouri River floods. In April, the Mississippi River had crested 6 to 10 feet above flood stage and once again near the same levels during the month of May. |
| The menu below has three sections that you may visit in any order you choose. There is also a link to Iowa at the bottom of this page as well as the complete set of navigational buttons, so be sure to scroll all the way down this and every page. The page you are on has been grayed out and therefore not clickable. | ||
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Hannibal,
Missouri: |
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AFTER you have viewed each of the three
sections above, please continue on to explore the adventures of
the two RV Gypsies in IOWA
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