Make St. Joseph, Missouri Your Vacation Destination

On the banks of the muddy Missouri River, the city of St. Joseph is a place with history. Once known as “the city worthwhile”, St. Joseph – St. Joe or Joetown to natives – has preserved the past and kept the pioneer heritage alive.

Billed today as the place where the Pony Express began and Jesse James met his end, St. Joseph offers multiple musuems. The Pony Express National Memorial at 914 Penn Street has preserved the original stables for the short-lived courier service that ran between St. Joseph and Sacramento. Riders made the trip in ten days on horseback, a marvel at the time. Just across the street in Pattee Park, view a railroad engine from the Burlington Northern preserved and displayed for future generations.

A few blocks away the Pattee House at 12th and Penn, was among the finest hotels west of the Mississippi River when it opened its’ doors in 1858. Now a museum, the Pattee House offers insight into local history and is also the site where the Jesse James Home is now located. The small frame house where the infamous outlaw was killed in 1882 is furnished in period style and is open to the public.

The St. Joseph Museum features Native American exhbits and a closer look at other facets of the decades that turned St. Joe from a frontier tradiging post to a modern city.

Twin Spires, a Catholic musuem, is located in the former Immaculate Conception Church.

Other historical venues include the Doll Museum on South 12th Street, a National Military Heritage Museum on Messanie Street, The Robidoux Row Museum at 3rd and Poulin (first apartment house west of the Mississippi) and the Albrecht-Kemper Museum of Art on Frederick Avenue.

Krug Park in the city’s north end is famous for its’ lagoon, rose gardens, natural ampitheatre, and the bison, longhorn cattle, and burros that call the park home. Krug Park is also the launching point for the city’s 26 mile long scenic parkway system and begins a 9.5 greenbelt. Picnic and playground facilities are also available.

View the river from the vantage point of Wyeth Hill or from the overlook at King Hill, another noteworthy local site.

Dine on steak at the Hoof ‘N Horn, a historic restaurant near the remaining stockyards that date from the glory days when St. Joseph was the third largest packing site in the United States.

Shop at East Hills, the region’s shopping mall located on the business loop highway known as “The Belt” and enjoy other amenities in the area.

Further information can be obtained from the St. Joseph Convention and Visitors Bureau by calling l-800-785-0360