It’s the time of year here in the Ozarks where the weather is decent enough for getting out and about. Somedays, it’s just fun to get in the car and drive. If you’re thinking of heading to Lebanon, do it. Here’s a little driving tour based on Route 66 sites that I put together that you could do any time of the year. Feel free to hop out once in a while, too.
I based this idea for a driving tour off the book I purchased at the Kinderhook Treasures gift shop associated with the Route 66 Museum, located in the Lebanon-Laclede County Library. If you’re so inclined, you may want to start here. You may want to take a little side trip through the museum (free, with donations, of course) and check out the guest book at the entrance. When I was there, in late November, people from California, Florida, Taiwan and Beijing had signed the book!
As I mentioned, I bought “Route 66 in the Missouri Ozarks,” a book full of postcard images from the past. I flipped to Laclede County for references, and got started.
I also bought some locally made Alpaca fingerless gloves for Christmas presents and a book for my husband’s birthday. There are plenty of locally made artworks, pottery, crafts and reference books, located throughout this unique store. And, there’s no sales tax!
Route 66 Lebanon MO Driving Tour 2023
Before you get going though, another good place to stop is the Lebanon tourism office for brochures and maps. It’s located at 500 E. Elm Street. My friend, Rebecca Rupard, is the tourism director and I am always so impressed by what’s going on in this town – for example, the recent UTV parade, which featured at least 118 decorated UTVs, and the special event the town hosts at the Cowan Civic Center for soldiers from Ft. Leonard Wood who won’t be going home this Christmas. All good stuff.
If you’re over by the Cowan Civic Center, you may as well start your tour in this area. There are two places close by. First, there’s a little package store across the street and to the left of the Center. It was one of three service stations owned and operated by O.E. Carter and Ed Lawson. It opened in 1935 and still sits on the corner of Route 66 and Washington Street. In 1971, Dean Elmore moved his Orchard Hills Package Store to this location. It’s exciting to see the bones of the old building and to know it’s still in use today.
Next, turn left and head down the road from the package store to see a 14-room home once owned by William and Ethel Lenz, who turned it into a tourist home in 1932. It was an upscale B&B for those who did not want to stay in the local motels or tourist camps. They called it the “Lenz HoMoTel” and operated it until 1975. The house took a break from overnight visitors until 2018, when it was restored. Today, it still functions as a B&B, known as The Manor House Inn. They dubbed it “a Route 66 retreat.” The address is 505 East Elm Street.
If you’d like to see a famous motel, drive next over to the Munger Moss Motel, located at 1336 East Route 66. Before becoming a motel, it served as the Chicken Shanty Café in 1945, owned by Jessie and Pete Hudson. They changed the name to Munger Moss Barbecue and opened a motel of the same name in 1946 – the Munger Moss Motel. Bob and Ramona Lehman bought the motel in 1971. Ramona recently passed away and her daughters own it now.
You can still stay there, or rent a small suite in the back. In fact, I stayed there overnight several years ago, and I still remember it as being special (with all the places I’ve stayed in my life, that’s saying something) for its history. The grounds exhibit interesting signage, but none is as fabulous as the neon sign out front – an icon for travelers on old Route 66. There’s even a small gift shop inside the reception area, and they found me a fridge magnet!
While you’re in this area, you might look across the street from the Munger Moss, for what’s left of the Forest Manor Hotel – just an old sign. At this site, several cabins, the “Green Gables Court Motel,” once stood. Elsie and Lee Kimes bought this business in 1941. All the cabins had attached garages and indoor plumbing. It later changed to be the Forest Manor Hotel. Everything is gone, except for the old sign.
Heading back toward the center of town (and you’ve passed it on your way out to Munger Moss) is Wrink’s Market. Its address is 135 Wrinkle Avenue, but you’ll see if from Route 66. G.E. and Laura Wrinkle ran the Jefferson Hotel and Café in Lebanon back in 1929. G.E. started a new two-story restaurant/hotel at the site of the present day market in 1946, but became sick and couldn’t finish it. His son, Glenn, turned the one-story building into Wrink’s Market, a neighborhood grocery store. Supposedly, he was quite a character, and this quality helped to popularize the small store. His granddaughter, Katie Hapner, said in an interview for KY3 News, “He had this wonderful personality and this terrific laugh. He was the attraction!” His son, Terry, ran the store from 2007 on and today, Katie runs the store and a deli – called “The Vintage Cowgirl” – and welcomes Route 66 enthusiasts from around the world.
Working through the book, and several of the places are no longer around, I found a reference to Camp Joy, which was located on the outskirts of Lebanon back in the heyday of Rt. 66 and served tourists from 1927 to the 1970s. My compatriot in the blogging world, “Ozark Alive’s” Kaitlyn McConnell, wrote a comprehensive history of the camp. It was a tourist camp owned by one family, the Spears, and visited by many families throughout the years. Some of its more notorious guests included Pretty Boy Floyd and Bonnie and Clyde. History records that Bonnie and Clyde left the camp about an hour before the law appeared; otherwise, Camp Joy might have had a few bullet holes in its cabins’ walls. Meanwhile, most of the camp’s cabins are gone, except for the one located in Boswell Park.
The Lebanon-Laclede County Route 66 Society moved the last remaining cabin from Camp Joy to the park in 2019, and then restored it. It is open during festivals and special times of the year.
The park also displays three wall murals next to the parking area near Camp Joy. The murals reflect Lebanon’s part in the journey of Route 66, which ran through the city from 1926 to 1957. Designed by Paul Whitehill from Joplin, the murals stand 20 feet wide and 10 feet tall. They are constructed of painted tiles, and are eye-catching up close and from a distance. The first mural was unveiled in 2018.
Finally, if you are so inclined, head to the downtown area to view the thriving collection of businesses on the main drag, as well as the brand new set of arches, installed this year. Rebecca Rupard said, “The Downtown Arches are a wonderful addition to our revitalized Downtown Lebanon Business District. They make certain that passers-by recognize that this is a vibrant area with restaurants and retail businesses, that are worthy of stopping and exploring. The Downtown Business District keeps the exciting progress moving forward, in partnership with the Missouri Main Street Connection and the City of Lebanon, by offering façade grants and guidance on making certain our Downtown’s growth, history, and overall attractiveness appeal to locals and visitors alike. We’re thankful to have the beautiful arches in place, they are certainly the gateway to one of our best assets in Lebanon.”
Find even more things to do at the Visit Lebanon website.
