Friday, September 24, 2010

The Waterfront Murals Of Cape Girardeau, MO.

Cape Girardeau_ MO -
Nashville, TN to Cape Girardeau, MO On our way to St. Louis, MO, we decided to make a little detour to Cape Girardeau, located on the Mississippi, for a little sightseeing (for me) and lunch. Cape Girardeau is named after Jean Baptiste Girardot who established a trading post here in 1733. It was settled by Spanish immigrants who were drawn to the area by Spain's offer of inexpensive, tax exempt land. Flourishing river trade characterized the town before the Civil War and Cape Girardeau experienced an industrial resurgence in the 1880's with the establishment of new railroad lines. The Mississippi River Tales Mural, located on the city's downtown floodwall, reflects the area;s deep appreciation of its history. While I took in the 1100-foot long Mural in 96 degree heat, featuring 24 panels depicting scenes from Cape Girardeau's history and its connection with the Mississippi River and depictions of famous Missourians, Mr. Hawthorne stayed in the air conditioned comfort of his truck. The murals illustrate the history of the area, beginning with the Native Americans who inhabited the area between 900 and 1200 AD. Each panel tells a story.
Enjoy.
When I started shooting, I saw this fellow coming up from the river with a catfish he'd just caught. He was happy to pose for me.
Bridge to Illinois.
Notice the high-water marks.
I never knew all these people were Missourians.
Downtown.
I have a question: If the town is named after Jean Baptiste Girardot, then why didn't the spell it Cape Girardot instead of Girardeau? After thinking about this, I figgered it was probably so people wouldn't mispronounce it like "dot" instead of "dough," but if you didn't know the French "dot" is pronounced "dough," then would you know the French "eau" isn't pronounced "eww?" While I took in the 1100-foot long, 15-foot high downtown floodwall covering nearly 18,000 square feet, featuring 24 panels depicting scenes from Cape Girardeau's history and its connection with the Mississippi River and depictions of famous Missourians in 96 degree heat, Mr. Hawthorne had found a place for lunch from the cool comfort of his truck. While I'd been shooting the pictures, he'd espied a Sysco (restaurant supply) employee and asked him for a good place to eat. Mr. Sysco recommended Broussard's Cajun Cuisine. Off to lunch at Broussard's in Cape Girardeau.

2 comments:

Marilyn said...

Rosie, I must commend you. When traveling with Mr. P., I must be content with taking pics from a moving vehicle. Mr. P. doesn't stop the car for such nonsense as picture taking. You have a gem in Mr. H. And he is willing to try different foods to boot.

Rosie Hawthorne said...

Mr. H. will eat anything.