From the Archives: The Last Laugh

We had a wonderful time in Hannibal, Missouri, the childhood home of Mark Twain, aka Samuel Clemens.  But I was a little disappointed that the museums didn’t barely touched on his later life, which was fascinating and heartbreaking.  For any of you who are curious about Mark Twain after he became Mark Twain, I offer…

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Road Trip Through History: In Search of Mark Twain in Hannibal MO

Unlike most of the places we’ve visited on our expeditions along the Great River Road, I had been to Hannibal, Missouri, before. But it had been a long time—decades in fact. When we drove into town on this trip, I carried two sharp memories—a recreation of the famous scene in which Tom Sawyer tricks other…

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Road Trip through History: The George M. Verity Riverboat Museum

I will admit that I had my doubts about the George M. Verity Riverboat Museum in Keokuk Iowa. We have visited, and enjoyed, riverboat museums in the past and I didn’t expect that we would learn anything new about the boats and their relationship to the river. Besides, it was the end of the day…

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