The second day of our reunion we drove to the river town of Hannibal, Missouri where the Tom Sawyer stories are set. In many ways, Hannibal today has become a "theme town." Everything is connected to Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens) and Tom Sawyer, his literary creation.
Outside of town is a Mark Twain State Park and nearby is the Mark Twain Memorial Shrine where various artifacts from the life of Samuel Clemens are preserved.
Inside the Mark Twain shrine, the house where he was born is preserved much as it was more than a century and a half ago. Here Pierre Baker views the house which was originally in Florida, Missouri but later moved to Hannibal.
Becky Thatcher was the fictional young girl who shared many adventures with Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn. Her real-life inspiration was a girl who lived across the street from Samuel Clemens, Laura Hawkins. Terry Tompkins, one of our group from California, brought flowers to her grave where he was consoled by Ric Frank.
Samuel Langhorne Clemens was one of the free spirits and entrepreneurs who settled the West and made it a more literate and civilized place. Before he adopted the pen name of "Mark Twain," he had tried various business and journalistic ventures in the Gold Rush days, worked in Brazil, traveled in Europe, and failed in several business endeavors.
This is the home where Mark Twain lived as a boy, with the famous fence he persuaded his friends to paint for him.
An unforgettable part of the Tom Sawyer adventure takes place in a cave where Becky and Tom were lost for three days. Today modern visitors can share some of the same experiences of this cave.
The Mississippi River is very much a part of the culture and atmosphere of the people who live along its banks although not to the extent as in the days when dozens of steamboats made their way up and down its course.