Waynesville Downtown Walking Tour

Historic sites in Waynesville, Missouri

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Waynesville Downtown Walking Tour

Waynesville, Missouri 65583, United States

Created By: Pulaski County Tourism Bureau & Visitors Center

Tour Information

Program powered by Pulaski County Tourism Bureau

Waynesville is rich with history from the Trail of Tears, Civil War to historic Route 66! Park the car and spend some time in Waynesville! Enhance this downtown walking tour with our brochure. Download it now or pick a copy up at the Pulaski County Visitors Center. 137 St Robert Blvd. Saint Robert MO.


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What You'll See on the Tour

FORMER HAYES CREAMEE, Historic Route 66 and MO-17: In the late 1950s, Dallas and Harold Wells opened a laundry pick-up and drop-off site in a small, frame building at this junction. During the early ‘60s the building became Hayes Creamee,... Read more
GEORGE M. REED BUILDING, Next door to 407 Historic Route 66: One door west of 407 Historic Route 66 and hidden behind a false front and awning is this two-story concrete block building constructed in 1911 by then-postmaster George M. Reed, ... Read more
OLD STAGECOACH STOP, 106 N. Lynn St.: The original log building was built by William Walton McDonald in the mid-1850s. The original structure was two log cabins connected by an open “dogtrot.” One cabin was used as a residence and the o... Read more
SECURITY BANK OF PULASKI COUNTY, 110 Lynn St.: After the old Waynesville State Bank went into voluntary liquidation, Waynesville Security Bank opened for business on Feb. 1, 1936. In August 1957, Waynesville Security Bank contracted to purc... Read more
TALBOT HOUSE MARKER, 405 North St.: The Talbot House was built in 1885 by the Rev. Albert Washington Davis, a pastor of Waynesville Methodist Church. He died at the age of 26 in 1888, just three years after constructing the house. His widow... Read more
KOREAN BAPTIST CHURCH, 210 N. Lynn St.: This church, formerly Waynesville Methodist Church, was built in 1945. However, the first Methodist church constructed on this site was completed in 1887. Organized before the Civil War, founder Wilso... Read more
FORMER TUTS CAFÉ NO. 1, 305 North St.: During August 1943, “chef deluxe” Nelson “Tut” Royalty opened Tuts Café in the eastern half of this building, then known as the Brisch Building. In 1948, Royalty moved to Columbia, MO, to ope... Read more
FORMER PULASKI COUNTY JAIL, Northeast corner of the square: For many years, across the street from the Rollins home site sat a squat, concrete block building that housed the Pulaski County Jail. Though the construction date is unknown, by 1... Read more
BIRTHPLACE OF THE HISTORIC BYWAY, 301 Historic Route 66: Though Route 66 was officially decommissioned in 1985, the nostalgia for the Mother Road lives on through pop culture as well as the communities once served by the transcontinental hi... Read more
WORLD WAR I CANNON, 303 Historic Route 66: The World War I cannon made its return as a fixture on the square in December 2010. Many years ago, the cannon was removed by a group of local boys as part of a Halloween prank — it was struck by... Read more
1903 COURTHOUSE MUSEUM, 303 Historic Route 66: Pulaski County’s fourth courthouse was designed by Henry H. Hohenschild. Bricks were fired nearby at Dr. Tice’s farm. Look for the original Stromboli fan with wooden blades hanging in the o... Read more
ROUTE 66 SHIELD, 303 Historic Route 66: The 8-foot Route 66 Shield sits on the 1903 Courthouse Museum’s front lawn, the brainchild of Tim Berrier of Lone Oak Printing. From his shop window across the street, Berrier saw many visitors driv... Read more
BLOODLAND METHODIST CHURCH BELL, 303 Historic Route 66: Bloodland was once a thriving community in the middle of the area selected by the Department of the Army to build Fort Leonard Wood. In 1941, there were three general stores, three fil... Read more
ROUTE 66 COURTHOUSE HIDDEN IN PLAIN SIGHT? 303 Historic Route 66: Located on the back side of the Pulaski County Courthouse Museum. On the evening of June 3, 1903, a lightning strike hit the Pulaski County Courthouse. The ensuing fire destr... Read more
FORMER PUBLIC HEALTH CENTER, Northwest corner of the square on North and Benton Street: Public health was a challenge in Waynesville in the 1940s. The small village was unequipped to handle the massive population boom Fort Leonard Wood brou... Read more
FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH, 202 N. Benton St.: Baptist churches were also among the earliest to be established in the Waynesville area. The First Baptist Church was organized in 1880, and the first church building, a log structure, was located at... Read more
BAKER HOTEL MARKER, Benton and North Streets: Built prior to 1907, this building was originally a stick-built structure by blacksmith, liveryman, and mail carrier Lee Baker. The structure was rebuilt and enlarged to 26 bedrooms after a fire... Read more
WILSON-LONG BUILDING, 119-123 N. Benton St.: This building, constructed for Roy C. Wilson and V.V. Long, was completed June 1942. The first story housed the Greyhound Bus Depot and the Pulaski County Democrat office. Shortly after the struc... Read more
TALBOT POST OFFICE BUILDING, 117 N. Benton St.: Also constructed in 1941 for Dr. Charles A. Talbot, this building was completed in May and was first used as the Waynesville Post Office. Less than two years, later the Pulaski County Democrat... Read more
ROUBIDOUX PLAZA, 115 N. Benton St.: The plaza’s footprint occupies two former storefronts. The southern half was once home to Dodd’s General Store while the northern half housed Waynesville’s first movie theater. The Wayne Theater ope... Read more
TALBOT BUILDING, 107 N. Benton St.: This building was constructed in 1941 for Dr. Charles A. Talbot and was completed in September. Talbot operated City Drug Store on the lower level while Dr. Clyde Miller tended to patients on the second l... Read more
RIGSBY HOUSE, 103 N. Benton St.: In 1924, Claude and Evalina Rigsby bought this house, which stands on Lots 6 and 7 in Block 4 of the original town of Waynesville. The foundation is made of rough-hewn logs and was constructed in the 1870s b... Read more
RIGSBY BUILDING, 229 HISTORIC ROUTE 66: This building was constructed in 1951 by Claude Rigsby. It replaced a frame building that had been built in 1941 to house his wife’s (Evalina) beauty parlor. The new brick building’s first story h... Read more
WAYNESVILLE MURALS & ARTWORK, 225 Historic Route 66 & 211 Historic Route 66: Overlooking Historic Route 66, these public artworks stand as testaments to the creative inspiration carried along the Mother Road throughout the 20th cent... Read more
ORIGINAL CITY HALL & FIRE DEPARTMENT, 201 North St.: Most likely constructed between 1941-1943, this building originally served as Waynesville City Hall and Fire Department. The tower-like structure atop the building housed a siren that... Read more
ROUBIDOUX PARK, Olive Street and Roubidoux Drive: Also known as Waynesville City Park, this public green space includes a concrete walking trail with access to Roubidoux Spring and the Trail of Tears Memorial at Laughlin Park. On the north ... Read more
TOTEM POLE, Olive Street and Roubidoux Drive: Located at Roubidoux Park across the street from Little Heroes Playground, this totem pole was created by members of a local woodcarving club in the late 1980s.
ROUBIDOUX FORD & FORMER BRIDGE, Western end of North Street: This site was the location where early pioneers and settlers crossed — or forded — Roubidoux Creek before the steel bridge was constructed in 1911. Steel for the bridge wa... Read more
ROUBIDOUX BRIDGE, HISTORIC ROUTE 66: This concrete arch bridge was built in 1923 as part of a State Highway 14 road improvement project. The bridge was designed by Missouri State Highway Commission and was built by Koss Construction Company... Read more
MEMORIAL CHAPEL (FORMERLY BELL HOTEL), 202 Historic Route 66: The Bell Hotel, on the banks of the Roubidoux River, was constructed around a one-room cabin. Parts of that structure are still visible inside the building today. The hotel began... Read more
BELL GARAGE — SAFETY GARAGE, 206 Historic Route 66: Bell Garage included a café and Sinclair gas station/garage next to the hotel. The building has been repurposed and is now a florist shop.
FORMER MALLOWS MARKET/OWLS CAFÉ, 307 Historic Route 66: The Owl Café was in front of Carl Brisch’s garage building on the south side of Route 66 in West Waynesville. It was operated by Mr. Martin, closed, but reopened in 1943 when Lucil... Read more
CHEROKEE CAMPSITE, Laughlin Park, Spring Road: Long before Waynesville was platted, Joseph Roubidoux Ill, a French fur trapper and trader from New Orleans, built a camp cabin near this spring that is now named for him. Many years later in 1... Read more
ROUBIDOUX SPRING/UNDERWATER CAVE, 100 Historic Route 66 East: Pack a swimsuit — plunging into the cool, pristine waters of this natural swimming hole is a favorite pastime for locals and visitors alike. This freshwater spring is the 16th ... Read more
VICTORY PUB MARKER, 218 Historic Route 66: Victory Pub was established by Greek immigrant George Morris in 1942. The pub was beloved by neighboring Fort Leonard Wood soldiers and Route 66 travelers for almost 70 years before being demolishe... Read more
FORMER BANK OF WAYNESVILLE, 100 S. Benton St.: Constructed in 1904 on land purchased from attorney Joe McGregor, the Bank of Waynesville was housed in the lower level with the second story divided into offices. George M. Reed’s abstract b... Read more
LONE OAK PRINTING, 66 Historic Route 66: This concrete block building was completed in 1906 by Waynesville grocer Joseph Martin Long. The first floor housed Long’s store and the post office while the second story contained the opera house... Read more

 

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