Missouri Main Street Connection Inc. (MMSC) partnered with the Missouri Humanities Council and the National Endowment for Humanities through ARPA in awarding $5,000 grants to 12 communities selected through a competitive process to fund projects focused on strengthening heritage and cultural tourism in rural Missouri. The grant helped each community implement a project and market itself to prospective visitors. These heritage tourism projects gave added value to the economies in each community through a range of projects from murals to walking tours to new monuments and building plaques that all highlight each respective community’s history for residents and visitors. One of the Marketing Heritage & Cultural Tourism grants was awarded to Cameron Main Street in March of 2022 with completion of the project in October of 2022.

Cameron Main Street is the Main Street program for Cameron, Missouri, located in the northwest part of the state on the outskirts of the Kansas City Metropolitan area. Cameron is a community of just over 8,000 people as of 2020, whose cultural tourism attractions revolve around the downtown commercial district’s reason for existing, the railroad. The City of Cameron was founded by the railroads, the main form of long-distance transportation back in the day, with many fascinating railroad stories from those early days of Cameron. 

Cameron Main Street was the lead organization in a group of three nonprofit organizations, including the Cameron Historical Society and Cameron Municipal Band, that leveraged funding from Missouri Main Street Connection’s Marketing Heritage & Cultural Tourism grant to create programing on Thursdays throughout the summer of 2022 in underutilized areas of their downtown—including the Historic Depot Museum, two public parks, and the downtown buildings themselves—to reignite people’s interest in Cameron, Missouri. Gina Reed said they “[created] a day-long tour of history, music, and shopping that keeps money at home and doesn’t take much gas.” A guided tour of the Historic Depot Museum and a self-guided tour of the downtown using a brochure created by Cameron Main Street members took place on the 10 Thursdays throughout the summer during the free 10-concert series performed by the Cameron Municipal Band. The activities were promoted by Cameron Main Street for people to plan day trips to Cameron. These activities tapped into and shared the local traditions, history, and heritage that make Cameron a great place to visit.

The first thing visitors could do in 2022’s Summer Thursday’s was the guided tour of the Historic Depot Museum. Here docent Susan Smith gave visitors a look at artifacts and memorabilia of Cameron’s past as a railroad town including a genuine train whistle, the restored ticket booth and waiting room, and other objects which was the first-time seeing train memorabilia for several young visitors. Gina commented that one of the big draws they were trying to market was the “huge romance of the American railroad system that can be felt even today, decades after the last train rolled through town,” which visitors could participate in by viewing and waving from the platform at the two train cars that are located on the original railroad bed.

The self-guided tour of downtown shared the fantastic architectural features of the buildings in downtown Cameron such as detailed brickwork, plasterwork, moldings, woodwork, hardwood floors, and glass showcase windows with visitors. From the intricate brickwork on 120-year-old buildings in the original business district on Third Street, the original Cameron Hotel, and the huge tree at the corner of Third and Cherry planted in honor of the railroad employees who died while on duty moving passengers and freight around the nation, the self-guided tour was designed to show off the artistry of work from the past decades and the community in hope of cultivating an appreciation for these things in the new generation so they would find it worth saving.

The free 10-concert series was performed by the Cameron Municipal Band. They have a long history with Cameron and performing in the town square, McCorkle Park. How long of a history you ask? Just a 150-year tradition, that’s all! They are known throughout the area for their popular Patriotic concert and their Heritage concert as well. They even had free ice cream which was a nice cold treat for visitors to beat the summer heat.

Gina Reed reflects on those evenings following the festivities of the tours and concert as watching “tired but satisfied tourists [walking] east on Third Street, lit by Victorian-style streetlights, back to their cars or perhaps to their homes.” Cameron was built on the grid system so it’s very walkable town despite being founded in 1855. With the success of the efforts of Cameron Main Street, locals and visitors got to experience the convergence of the past and present. The downtown district served its original purpose, like it did for those in the past, as patrons enjoyed being out and about while enjoying life. Gina reminisces, “[The] streets are lined with houses with front porches, and if you listen closely, you can hear spoons clinking in tall glasses of sweet tea, and neighbors greeting passers-by.  In some ways, Cameron is a typical small town, but in many ways, it is the BEST small town.

Missouri Main Street Connection awarded the Marketing Heritage & Cultural Tourism Grants in partnership with the Missouri Humanities Council and the National Endowment for Humanities through the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA).

Missouri Main Street Connection Inc. (MMSC) partnered with the Missouri Humanities Council and the National Endowment for Humanities through ARPA in awarding $5,000 grants to 12 communities selected through a competitive process to fund projects focused on strengthening heritage and cultural tourism in rural Missouri. The grant helped each community implement a project and market itself to prospective visitors. These heritage tourism projects gave added value to the economies in each community through a range of projects from murals to walking tours to new monuments and building plaques that all highlight each respective community’s history for residents and visitors. One of the Marketing Heritage and Cultural Tourism grants was awarded to Campbell Main Street in March of 2022 with completion of the project in October of 2022.

Campbell Main Street is the Main Street organization for Campbell, Missouri. Campbell, like many Missouri communities, has unique heritage and traditions that are special to its close-knit community. As part of their community culture, alumni and locals participate in the Campbell High School Annual Alumni Reunion. Campbell Main Street created a festival to correspond with the Annual Alumni Reunion in 2021 with a huge turnout and renewed interest in returning to Campbell for future reunions. 2022 marked the second year for the Campbell Main Street Festival and Campbell Main Street wanted to continue growing what they offered the community and see the recorded sales at downtown businesses, vendors, and food trucks continue to grow at the event.

Through the Marketing Heritage & Cultural Tourism grant the festival, now named Campbell Main Street Festival: Cotton & Camels, included a petting zoo with a live camel, antique and vintage cars, a shuttle, and a display featuring the history of the cotton harvest in Campbell. Why was a live camel important to the event? Well, the camel is the mascot of the Campbell High School that is a main component of the festival as the number of alumni attending increased greatly for 2022. Community feedback was positive as attendees enjoyed the food trucks while alumni loved the cotton exhibit and the live camel. On top of the planned activities by Campbell Main Street, one downtown business held their grand opening during the event.

Leading up to the Campbell Main Street Festival: Cotton & Camels, board members and volunteers of Campbell Main Street were hard at work preparing all the festivities and amenities that would be a part of the event. The whole downtown and surrounding area transformed with fall décor and cotton. Over 300 volunteer hours were contributed in several ways from planting, watering, and caring for planters around town that included cotton seed to reaching out and coordinating with partners and vendors. As a result of the efforts Campbell Main Street Executive Director Jackie Pearson stated, “35 downtown business participated in the festival.”

Through the Campbell Main Street Festival: Cotton and Camels, Campbell Main Street returned to their heritage while also continuing to implement their current Main Street’s family-focused Transformation Strategy.

Missouri Main Street Connection awarded the Marketing Heritage & Cultural Tourism Grants in partnership with the Missouri Humanities Council and the National Endowment for Humanities through the American Rescue Plan Act.

Missouri Main Street Connection Inc. (MMSC) partnered with the Missouri Humanities Council and the National Endowment for Humanities through ARPA in awarding $5,000 grants to 12 selected communities through a competitive process to fund projects focused on strengthening heritage and cultural tourism in rural Missouri. The grant helped each community implement a project and market itself to prospective visitors. These heritage tourism projects gave added value to the economies in each community through a range of projects from murals to walking tours to new monuments and building plaques that all highlight each respective community’s history for residents and visitors. One of the Marketing Heritage and Cultural Tourism grants was awarded to Warrensburg Main Street in March of 2022 with the project being completed in October of 2022.

Warrensburg Main Street is the Main Street organization for Warrensburg, Missouri. They are no stranger to the hard work of Main Street as they have found creative solutions to revitalize the heart of their community, the downtown, since the late 1970’s when a group of visionary business and civic leaders formed the organization. The most recent project implemented to promote their downtown is the “Stories of Downtown” historic walking tour highlighting their historic buildings in the historic commercial district made possible through funding Warrensburg Main Street received from MMSC's Marketing Heritage and Cultural Tourism grant.

“Stories of Downtown” blends the virtual world with the real-world using plaques, QR codes, and information printed on the plaque and hosted on their website highlighting over 50 buildings around the downtown district. The plaques are on buildings selected for this historic tour spread throughout the district. The plaques have the address, year the building was built, and a brief description or other important facts about the building style.  The QR code is on the plaque itself and takes the participant to the Warrensburg Main Street website where there is a landing page with comprehensive descriptions of each building as well as pictures of the building from past and present. Warrensburg’s ambitious goal of creating this intensive and immersive project were made possible through its incredible use of community partners that include a variety of community organizations, local groups, and the University of Central Missouri.

The design, content, and production work to implement this project took a collaboration with several local partners. Design and content were the first components Warrensburg Main Street addressed by working closely with Johnson County Historical Society, Warrensburg Preservation Commission, and the technical writing class at the University of Central Missouri.  First, during several workshops and brainstorming sessions, students in the University of Central Missouri’s technical writing class developed the content and path of the historic walking tour including what information they researched and created would go on the plaque and on the website as well as which buildings in the district along Pine and Holden Street would get plaques, as they could not at this stage add 50 plaques.  After this step, the Johnson County Historical Society assisted Warrensburg Main Street at selecting the buildings along Pine and Holden Street with significant and noteworthy history that would benefit the most from having a plaque. This collaboration gave each participating group a new way for visitors and locals to engage with downtown and its history, but also gave them a chance to learn about each other.  Other local partners like a marketing company, local photographer, and local printing company were utilized to produce the plaques and webpages that would present and hold the information created and photos taken.

From start to finish the “Stories of Downtown” historic walking tour project was a community project as various partnerships with other community organizations, schools, and local groups made this project a reality. Now that the “Stories of Downtown” historic walking tour is in place, it offers Warrensburg Main Street a way to promote their historic district all year long through a virtual activity that participants can engage with on their own time.  Warrensburg Main Street, Warrensburg Convention and Visitor Bureau, and other community partners are excited to include the walking tour in their 2023 event programing including Historic Preservation Month, University of Central Missouri Family Weekend, and Warrensburg Chamber of Commerce mobile app.

Missouri Main Street Connection awarded the Marketing Heritage & Cultural Tourism Grants in partnership with the Missouri Humanities Council and the National Endowment for Humanities through the American Rescue Plan Act.

Missouri Main Street Connection Inc. (MMSC) partnered with the Missouri Humanities Council and the National Endowment for Humanities through ARPA in awarding $5,000 grants to 12 selected communities through a competitive process to fund projects focused on strengthening heritage and cultural tourism in rural Missouri. The grant helped each community implement a project and market itself to prospective visitors. These heritage tourism projects gave added value to the economies in each community through a range of projects from murals to walking tours to new monuments and building plaques that all highlight each respective community’s history for residents and visitors. One of the Marketing Heritage and Cultural Tourism grants was awarded to Canton Main Street Association in March of 2022 with the project being completed in October of 2022.

Canton Main Street is the Main Street program for Canton, Missouri, which is a community of almost 3,000 people (as of the 2020 census). They received a Community Master Plan from Missouri Main Street Connection in 2021 after working to develop the plan with the Canton Main Street Association, City of Canton, and community partners. A part of this master plan was a wayfinding community gateway monument that captured the iconic imagery of the community and would be clearly visible from highway 61, because their current signage wasn’t effectively drawing in visitors.  The concept for the new community gateway monument included a large “C” that would measure approximately 14 feet high by 16 feet wide at the top of a core-ten steel sculptural component composed of two-dimensional images of natural elements of the Mississippi River, especially pelicans, which is exotic for the Midwest but an identified icon in the city’s branding. 

Implementing a gateway monument of this scale is beneficial as it attracts traveler’s attention and is the visual beginning of the storytelling elements Canton Main Street Association has for their district that convey its history and heritage which has been shaped by the Mississippi River. Being on the Mississippi, with its rich diversity of wildlife that can be enjoyed, has led Canton to be the spot for unique river camping, river walks, bird watching, Blue Catfish fishing tournaments, and a downtown river community to explore. Though it is costly, Canton Main Street Association utilized the Marketing Heritage and Cultural Tourism grant to begin the process of actualizing their gateway concept through getting preliminary technical engineering designs created and applying for permits and permission work with the city.

The Canton Main Street Association board and volunteers have worked diligently over the grant period to designate a location, secure necessary permits and permissions from the city and other entities like the Missouri Department of Transportation, and work with an engineering company to complete the technical engineering study. They are now beginning to raise funds that will pay for the installation of the gateway monument through local campaigns. If you would like to support the Main Street Canton Association with the last stage of this project funding and installation contact them on their Facebook page. 

Missouri Main Street Connection awarded the Marketing Heritage & Cultural Tourism Grants in partnership with the Missouri Humanities Council and the National Endowment for Humanities through the American Rescue Plan Act.

Missouri Main Street Connection (MMSC) visited Missouri’s state capital, Jefferson City, on January 24th with local Main Street program executive directors, board members, and city officials for the annual “Power of Main Street.” This annual visit to the capitol is a time where state legislators hear what is happening in their congressional district as local Main Street programs share the impact they are having in their downtowns and their revitalization success through the Main Street Approach™.

As our Board President Bob Lewis says, “The world belongs to those who show up,” and that is exactly what Missouri’s Main Streets did. Over 30 delegates from across the state arrived in Jefferson City to meet with their state legislators and pass out educational materials about the “Power of Main Street.” This day of educational advocacy is important for the over 50 Main Street programs in Missouri as it helps legislators understand the impact these programs have at the local level with business and job recruitment and retention, resiliency through the pandemic, and private and public investment in their district.

Warrensburg Main Street got the prize for the earliest meeting with a legislator as they started in the morning meeting with Representative Dan Houx, Representative Rodger Reedy, and Senator Rick Brattin with MMSC staff Keith Winge.  Jill commented;

“We love having the opportunity to talk with our [legislators] about the benefits of having Main Street communities throughout Missouri. We also did a little bragging on the many successes Downtown Warrensburg has seen over the past few years thanks to the resources our state agency provides to us.”

Over the past five years, Warrensburg Main Street worked to provide resources for online networking, online training, grant resources, and digital promotions to their small businesses during the unprecedented time.

Pictured Above: (Left to Right) Jamie DeBacker(Warrensburg Main Street), Jill Purvis (Warrensburg Main Street), Representative Rodger Reedy, and Keith Winger (MMSC).

One of the early afternoon meetings was between Downtown Joplin Alliance (DJA) and Senator Jill Carter. Lori Haun and Lindsay Gagnon shared with the Senator the many accomplishments the DJA achieved over the past five years despite the economic turmoil including 75 new businesses, more than 60 apartment units in beautifully renovated historic buildings, the opening of the Cornell Complex, and expanding their Empire Market. They also talked about current ongoing projects like the restoration of the Olivia building and the work they are starting with the Union Depot, including upcoming input sessions. Senator Jill Carter expressed her interest in coming to the input session for the Depot and, if her schedule allows, will drop in. Without these in-person meetings with legislators these personal invites and connections couldn’t be made which will continue to support the success going on in Joplin and across the state in other Main Street districts.

Pictured Above: (Left to Right) Katelyn Brotherton (MMSC), Lindsay Gagnon (Downtown Joplin Alliance), Senator Jill Carter, and Lori Haun (Downtown Joplin Alliance).

Some of our local Main Street programs have personal connections with their legislators so their meetings are more casual but still informative on the impact and importance of the Main Street Approach™ in the success of downtowns across Missouri. Alyssa Sanders with Smithville Main Street is very familiar with her representative, Representative Josh Hurlburt who is in touch with what is going on in Smithville through Smithville Main Street.

Pictured Above: (Left to Right) Alyssa Sanders (Smithville Main Street) and Representative Josh Hurlbert.

Another strong relationship between Main Street program and legislator is found with Downtown Washington Inc. and newly elected Representative Kyle Marquart. Tyler King and Downtown Washington had a strong relationship with Kyle Marquart as a local Washington citizen. Not every community member will eventually become an elected official at the state level, or even city level, but it is through the grass-roots efforts of the Main Street Approach™ that relationships and connection with community members will lead local Main Street organizations to successful preservation-based economic development. That is why forming relationships with your community at every level including local community member, city official, state official, and beyond is so important as you never know how the connections you form with people will impact the work your organization can accomplish in revitalizing your downtown and forging a bright future.

Pictured Above: (Left to Right) Cassidy Desmond (Downtown Washington), Representative Kyle Marquart, and Tyler King (Downtown Washington).

Each meeting with state legislators is as unique as each community and its representatives are different from another. That is why it is important to visit with state legislators and get to know them and most importantly let them get to know you and your organization. The delegates from Pacific Partnership, which included Sam Dean, Amanda Nemeth, Erik Goebel, and Christine Slusser, got to know Senator Ben Brown more as they found a picture in his office of his kids at BIGFOOT 4X4 which is a destination in Pacific, Missouri.

Pictured Above:  Senator Ben Brown.

Several Main Street communities are within the same congressional district and share legislators so they visited with them together.  Uptown Jackson Revitalization Organization and Old Town Cape met with Senator Holly Thompson Rehder, Chillicothe Main Street, Brookfield Main Street, and Downtown Marceline Foundation met with Senator Rusty Black, and Historic Downtown Liberty, Inc, Fayette Main Street, and Smithville Main Street met with Senator Denny Hoskins. Each of these local programs are at different levels within Missouri Main Street Connection but all share the desire to continue to improve implementing preservation-based downtown revitalization and see their downtowns grow and were able to share how Main Street is making a large impact in their legislator’s districts.

Pictured Above: (Left to Right) Gayla Roten (MMSC), Janna Clifton (Uptown Jackson), Senator Holly Thompson Rehder, Dr. Steven Hoffman (Old Town Cape & MMSC), and Bob Lewis (MMSC).

Pictured Above: (Left to Right) Bob Lewis (MMSC), Michael Olinger (Downtown Marceline), Senator Rusty Black, Tomie Walker (Chillicothe Main Street), Dave Tavres (Downtown Marceline), Gayla Roten (MMSC), and Cheyenne Graff (Brookfield Main Street).

Pictured Above: (Left to Right) Keith Winge (MMSC), Danelle O'Connell (Historic Downtown Liberty), Senator Denny Hoskins, Deanna Cooper (Fayette Main Street), Corinna Lucas (Historic Downtown Liberty), Alyssa Sanders (Smithville Main Street), and Bill Emmons (MMSC).

Despite the uncertainty of the incoming winter weather, just like how Main Street thrived during the economic turmoil from the pandemic, “The Power of Main Street” Capitol Day was a success. Our staff heard many good things from the legislators as we accompanied the local Main Street program delegates. 

Missouri Main Street Connection Inc. (MMSC) partnered with the Missouri Humanities Council and the National Endowment for Humanities through ARPA in awarding $5,000 grants to 12 selected communities through a competitive process to fund projects focused on strengthening heritage and cultural tourism in rural Missouri. The grant helped each community implement a project and market itself to prospective visitors. These heritage tourism projects gave added value to the economies in each community through a range of projects from murals to walking tours to new monuments and building plaques that all highlight each respective community’s history for residents and visitors. One of the Marketing Heritage and Cultural Tourism grants was awarded to Glasgow Main Street in March of 2022 with the project being completed in October of 2022.

Glasgow, Missouri sits on the Missouri River with a population of about 1,200 people. This small town is a close-knit community, like many small rural communities across the state, where everyone knows each other. It is this atmosphere that Glasgow Main Street Association says creates a “warm, inviting place to visit.” Glasgow Main Street Association used the grant to capture aspects of its district’s culture, heritage, historical highlights, and modern-day staples through two murals completed by Peggy Guest and Company, also known as Guest Design Studio.

The first mural commissioned was a block letter mural of the town’s name surrounded by local architecture and historical landmarks along the river. Farm land, a railroad bridge, a train, and a barge going up the riverfront are all depicted surrounding “GLASGOW’. This is the first thing visitors see as they enter the district. The mural is secured to the side of a building using removable board canvases, which allowed the mural to be worked on in the artist’s studio instead of on a lift. Additionally, Glasgow Main Street Association has the ability to remove the mural during any future architectural and preservation updates to the building.

The second mural is located in downtown Glasgow’s pocket park as a photo wall invoking visitors to stop and try to catch the fish. The giant fish in the pocket park emphasizes the outdoor nature of this community and love of the outdoors.

The beautification achievement made by the Glasgow Main Street Association through the addition of these two murals to their downtown is sure to excite and leave a lasting impression on everyone who comes to visit the City of Glasgow. Drawing people to downtown allows visitors to shop the different storefronts, eat at the restaurants, and take a keepsake home to remember their time in the beautiful, quaint little town of Glasgow. These two murals are the newest additions to the district’s showcase which is made up of over 52 stops for visitors and tourists to visit that include historic sites with historical place markers and plaques noting the important dates and locations going back to the 1800’s. Through this, visitors can see a picture of the historical layout of the city and growth that made the City of Glasgow what it is today.

Missouri Main Street Connection awarded the Marketing Heritage & Cultural Tourism Grants in partnership with the Missouri Humanities Council and the National Endowment for Humanities through the American Rescue Plan Act.

Missouri Main Street Connection Inc. (MMSC) partnered with the Missouri Humanities Council in awarding $5,000 grants to 12 selected communities through a competitive process to fund projects focused on strengthening heritage and cultural tourism in rural Missouri. The grant helped each community implement a project and market itself to prospective visitors. These projects added heritage tourism to the economies in each community through a range of projects from murals to walking tours to new monuments and building plaques that all highlight each respective community’s history for residents and visitors. One of the Marketing Heritage and Cultural Tourism grants was awarded to Vision Carthage in March of 2022 with the project completed in October of 2022.

Vision Carthage is the Main Street organization for Carthage, Missouri. They are one of several Main Streets in Missouri whose communities are the county seat and has their Courthouse Square as a part of their district. The Jasper County courthouse sits in the heart of Carthage’s historic downtown district with beautiful architectural detail making it a crown jewel for the community. It is this historic courthouse that provides visitors sidewalks to walk around with the best view of the district and all the change that has occurred over the decades.

The “Downtown Historic District Walking Tour” guide book was imagined to focus on Carthage’s historical significance, unique architectural structures, and its heritage and cultural significance from maple leaves and Route 66 to its courthouse and, most notably, Carthage limestone. Abi Alamdinger shared about the significance of Carthage limestone and its role in Missouri that gained it recognition, “Carthage became known for limestone which was polished into Carthage marble and used in the interiors and exteriors of buildings, including the State Capitol.”

Using the “Downtown Historic District Walking Tour” guide book, visitors are invited to ‘take a step back in time’ around the square plus additional buildings of interest outside the Square proper. Within the guide book, visitors will find historical details of the buildings surrounding the courthouse which were curated from historic sources from the Carthage Public Library by Vision Carthage’s promotion committee. Each page contains a picture professionally taken of the building between June and September of 2022 as well as any relevant historic photographs.

The stories of how Carthage has changed over time are now accessible to more people that visit Carthage for the day, or longer, and learn about this rural city. One interesting part about the districts presented in the guide book is the reason why so many of Carthage’s buildings are brick or stone. The guide describes the historic background of this phenomenon as, “During the early years, much was lost due to fire…As buildings were being rebuilt it was strongly urged that they be built out of brick or stone to alleviate the fire hazard.” There are over 30 different building highlights for you to discover through the guide book when you visit Carthage.

It wouldn’t be a trip to Main Street without checking out the current businesses inside these historic buildings. The impact of the walking tour is that it draws people in who are heritage tourists or life-long learners. While they explore and learn, they also shop and eat supporting the local economy.

Next time you are in Carthage bring your own copy of the “Downtown Historic District Walking Tour” by printing it from VisionCarthage.org or ExperienceCarthageMO.com. You can pick up a printed copy in the district to guide your walk around the courthouse.

Missouri Main Street Connection awarded the Marketing Heritage & Cultural Tourism Grants in partnership with the Missouri Humanities Council and the National Endowment for Humanities through the American Rescue Plan Act.

Missouri Main Street Connection Inc. (MMSC) partnered with the Missouri Humanities Council in awarding $5,000 grants to 12 selected communities through a competitive process to fund projects focused on strengthening heritage and cultural tourism in rural Missouri. The Marketing Heritage and Cultural Tourism grant was awarded to recipients in March of 2022. Historic Downtown Liberty, Inc., (HLDI) an Accredited Main Street program, was awarded one of the grants. This grant allowed them to focus on their historic assets and market themselves to prospective visitors to increase heritage tourism in their economy.

Historic Downtown Liberty, Inc. is located in Liberty, Missouri which is a community that could be accurately described as having a strong sense of history. Liberty was incorporated in 1829, making it the second oldest incorporated town west of the Mississippi River. It has seen several notable historic events such as the first daylight, peacetime bank robbery and is home to five local historic districts as well as seven districts and seven individual properties on the National Register of Historic Places. In addition, Liberty boasts a downtown historic Square and many notable historic sites of interest in the surrounding area. Additionally, it was designated by the White House as a Preserving America community in 2007, as a way to encourage and support the preservation and promotion of America’s cultural and natural heritage.

The Marketing Heritage and Cultural Tourism grant provided the funds for Historic Downtown Liberty, Inc. to focus on promoting two of their many historic assets which experienced decline in visitors due to the pandemic. The first is the Clay County Museum that hosts rotating galleries of various historical artifacts relating to Clay County, Missouri as a way to invite people to honor the past, live in the present, and prepare for the future. Additionally, the Jessie James Bank Museum showcases the bank where the first daylight, peacetime bank robbery took place in 1866. The museum immerses guest in the story of the robbery with the help of period furnishings throughout.

Each museum had promotional marketing campaigns launched over the summer of 2022 by Historic Downtown Liberty, Inc. and its project partners to bring awareness and increase foot traffic to them and the district, primarily featuring photographs of the museums, points of interest, and information about each museum. Traditional and modern promotion channels distributed information to draw people to these sites and inviting them to stay and linger.

Brochures were stocked at each museum including HDLI brochures featuring a map of sites to visit, shops, and restaurants. Additional educational brochures were also included for other local attractions like the African American Legacy, Sculpture Walking Tour, and Historical Walking Tour. On social media, content focused on promoting local day-trippers and overnight stays.

Missouri Main Street Connection awarded the Marketing Heritage & Cultural Tourism Grants in partnership with the Missouri Humanities Council and the National Endowment for Humanities through the American Rescue Plan Act.

Progress is a big deal in Main Street from the first façade renovation and new businesses opening downtown to being recognized for your local Main Street organization’s preservation-based economic development efforts. This year, two local Main Street organizations have been recognized for their accomplishments in implementing the Main Street Approach™ through progressing to the next tier in the Missouri Main Street Connection (MMSC) tier system. MMSC is proud to recognize Downtown Joplin Alliance and Uptown Jackson Revitalization Organization for their achievement of Accredited and Associate tier placement respectively.

The Downtown Joplin Alliance achieved national and state accreditation from both Main Street America (MSA) and MMSC. Accreditation is the highest level a Main Street program can achieve and indicates that Downtown Joplin Alliance is exceeding in implementing the Main Street criteria impacting their local district in big ways. The National and State designation of accreditation came after Norma Ramirez de Miess, MSA, and Keith Winge, MMSC, completed an on-site review of the organization’s implementation of the Main Street criteria. Reaching this benchmark does not mean revitalization ends as it is equally important to maintain the accreditation status once earned.

In 2021, Downtown Joplin Alliance, through their program’s strong historic preservation ethic, active Board of Directors and committees, as well as other technical aspects that help the program function at a high-level, saw public and private investment of over $45 million in the historic district from 36 projects. The district saw a net gain of 19 new business and 54 new jobs. Additionally, volunteers for Downtown Joplin Alliance donated 1,425 hours of their time. Downtown Joplin Alliance celebrated this accomplishment with a cake from the City of Joplin and said,

“This would not have been reached without our staff, our board, our committee members, our other fabulous volunteers, and all of our fantastic partners, such as Joplin City Government, the Joplin Area Chamber of Commerce, and Connect2Culture amongst many others.”

The Uptown Jackson Revitalization Organization was selected as a new Associate tiered Main Street program with Missouri Main Street Connection (MMSC) following a program review by MMSC.  Associate designation is recognized by MMSC as a way to distinguish communities that are working toward being recognized as a national and state Accredited Main Street program.  As a stepping stone on the path to full accreditation, this benchmark highlights communities that are seeing an increase in the economic value of the downtown and is making progress to achieve an active and vibrant downtown revitalization organization.

During 2021, Uptown Jackson Revitalization Organization continued to implement historic preservation-based economic development in uptown Jackson that cultivated $461,382 total investment in downtown, 22 net new jobs, and 2,272 volunteer hours. Their impact has created a place for people to gather, live, and work in uptown Jackson

You can read the press releases written by MMSC staff through the link below:

www.momainstreet.org/press-releases/

The Main Street Approach™ is a time-tested economic development and historic preservation-based approach utilized successfully over the past 40+ years by over 40 coordinating programs and 1,200 neighborhoods and communities nationally. Missouri Main Street Connection’s program’s purpose is to implement this approach in creating vibrant communities across the state. The current Main Street criteria that is used to gauge the effectiveness of how a Main Street Program in implementing the Main Street Approach™ is based on over 40 years of successful downtown revitalization and demonstrates that empowering individuals to develop their downtown motivates high achievement, creates a place people will want to live, work and invest, and makes our state economically stronger. The goal of the National Main Street Center and Missouri Main Street Connection is to encourage preservation-based economic development through the Main Street Approach™.

Missouri Main Street Connection Inc. (MMSC) partnered with the Missouri Humanities Council in awarding $5,000 grants to 12 selected communities through a competitive process to fund projects focused on strengthening heritage and cultural tourism in rural Missouri. The grant helped each community implement a project and market itself to prospective visitors. These projects added heritage tourism to the economies in each community through a range of projects from murals to walking tours to new monuments and building plaques that all highlight each respective community’s history for residents and visitors. One of the Marketing Heritage and Cultural Tourism grant was awarded to Charleston Revitalization Movement (CHARM) in March of 2022 with the project completed in September of 2022.

Charleston Revitalization Movement (CHARM) is a newer Main Street community in the Community Empowerment Grant program but their history and local significance runs deep. From being the lifelong residence of the 46th Governor of Missouri, Warren E. Hearnes, who was the first person in Missouri history to serve in all three branches of the state government to their high school basketball team’s, the Bluejay, twelve state championship titles, the community has a variety of heritage and history to celebrate. It is this deep, rich history that would be on display with a 24’ mural in a welcoming pocket park following the transformation of an overgrown vacant lot left after a building was removed.  

Charleston Revitalization Movement’s (CHARM) overall project is broken up into two phases with phase one being the mural and intial development of the pocket park. During phase one, the first step was to address the condition of the space for the pocket park by removing a tree and overgrown brush and poison ivy.

After clearing the lot, the concrete pad of the old building was exposed allowing for CHARM to preserve it with safety modifications for its new use. As the work was being done on this project CHARM said,

“On more than one occasion, visitors to the area stopped by to see what was taking place as well as offer encouraging words of how much they enjoy visiting our town and how beautiful the architecture and the atmosphere is.”

Next, a 10’ concrete ramp was installed for ADA accessibility and benches placed for locals and visitors to enjoy. The mural was then installed in the park. It is a digitized collage of artwork from three local artist that is printed on weatherproof materials depicting the Mississippi County Courthouse surrounded by beautiful dogwoods and azaleas, the Old Train Depot, a farming scene, a tribute to Charleston High School’s Bluejay Basketball team, and a portrait of Governor Warren E. Hearnes. Lastly, CHARM brought in planters and botanicals to spruce up and soften the space with nature and greenery.

The Marketing Heritage and Cultural Tourism grant has mobilized Charleston Revitalization Movement (CHARM) into action to address a void in their community and by doing so created the perfect environment for people to come together as CHARM wrote in their final report,

“This project has allowed local organizations and city leaders to join forces for the common good of the community. Local business owners have pitched in and contributed in-kind donations of their employee’s labor to help get the larger tasks completed. The community is pulling together and healing from the impact of the past few years.”

With the collaboration between CHARM board members and volunteers as well as Charleston community members in transforming the overgrown property, this space will be able to be used by the community for years to come. The excitement from the development of this space in Charleston has created a buzz for the locals and has sparked excitement in the community resulting in “people signing up to get involved in not only this project but future projects as well.”

Now that phase one has been completed, Charleston Revitalization Movement (CHARM) is waiting for the winter season to pass before moving forward with phase two which will include an elaborate selection of botanicals planted for year-round enjoyment. They also planned to bring additional enhancements to the pocket park in the spring of 2023 for the annual Dogwood-Azalea Festival in April. CHARM had heard many visitors express that they plan to return to see the finished project. Now that the pocket park and mural are ready to greet visitors, CHARM will share their story online to bring back visitors who saw this project in the works as well as new visitors to see what is unique and special about this town and its Main Street.

Missouri Main Street Connection awarded the Marketing Heritage & Cultural Tourism Grants in partnership with the Missouri Humanities Council and the National Endowment for Humanities through the American Rescue Plan Act.