The Final Word – Grundy County And Beyond

by Diane Lowrey
With our recreational choices fairly limited due to COVID-19, my husband, Stan, and I have had to be fairly creative when it comes to finding “fun” activities that are not related to housework, yardwork, etc. As the Republican-Times is classified as an essential business, I still go to work and see people. However, my retired husband is at home all day by himself. So when I get home, Stan is ready to “get out and see something.” With low gas prices and the spring-like weather, we have started taking nightly rides through the countryside.
Stan loves old barns and old houses, so the idea of an evening drive made perfect sense. The rural areas are a haven of dilapidated structures and north Missouri certainly has its share. We began our travels to places we were familiar with – driving through Crowder Park and the back roads to the Poosey Conservation Area, where we could get out, stretch our legs and do a little walking while still maintaining the social distancing rules.
After a couple of trips to both sites, we decided to expand our driving area to other parts of the county as well as into adjoining counties. We don’t follow a map – we just start driving and head down a road that looks interesting.
Our first “long trip” took us north into the Forks of the River, eventually leading us to Mercer County, where we made stops in Modena and Mill Grove. I shared with Stan the stories about the Indians that made their home along the river at Mill Grove in the early 1990s, when attempts were being made to put a landfill in that area. The site where the encampment was located is now all grown over with brush and unless you knew about that specific event, it would be hard to imagine anyone having spent much time there, let alone living there for several months. Stan, in turn, shared the story of how his family came to north Missouri – traveling on the train from the eastern United States and ending up at Mill Grove because that’s where their money ran out.
One of our trips led us to Laredo and the dozens of old cars, trucks and buses that now sit along side the road downtown. They were once housed in the old McClain Motor Co. building, which has fallen in. The vehicles were used in movies and owned by a California man, who rented their building for storage. I remember trying to get permission many years ago to do a story about the vehicles, but the owner didn’t want anyone to know they were there (it was actually the worst kept secret in Laredo). Now they are sitting out in the open, rusting away – although the day we were there several still looked to be in pretty good shape and vandals seem to have left them alone as many still had their hood ornaments. My favorite is a black two-door 1937 LaSalle with the LaS signature on the hubcaps. Pretty cool car I must say.
Our trips have also taken us to old churches and cemeteries (some on main roads, some out in the middle of nowhere); a house that looks like something out of Architectural Digest (next to a dairy farm) with winding concrete stairs; farms that look like compounds (complete with a family lake house); and bridges that looked like they couldn’t even hold a bicycle (we made it over them all). And I didn’t realize that the Amish, German Baptists and Hutterites had farms in so many different parts of Grundy, Mercer, Daviess and Harrison counties (we saw lots of horses and buggies).
So if you are looking for something different to do to get out of the house without breaking the social distancing rules, I would suggest taking an evening ride. You can see a lot of cool things along the way, get some fresh air and stay safe.
You’ll have a great time.