We left the campground at Danville in the middle of the morning. We only had about 160 miles to go to Independence so we had an easy travel day as far as mileage was concerned. We encountered some construction which, of course, slowed us. We arrived at The Campus RV Park in Independence after taking a 45-minute break at a rest area.
One of the nice things about travel by motorhome is being able to stop and still have your home nearby. When traveling, we have no need of public facilities. Fuel pumps? Yes. The rest of what goes with a travel center? No. In fact, one of the big deals to come along since we began RVing is the ability to pay for diesel at the pump. While auto drivers have been used to that for a long time, it was a recent development for the truck lanes at a fueling center.
Once at Independence we went directly to our campsite. As it turns out, the former Reorganized Latter Day Saints operate the campground in conjunction with their Family Life Center. In the late 90’s the denomination changed its name to Community of Christ.
After hooking up the electric (shore power), we took off for downtown Independence and the Truman Visitor Center which is housed in the old Fire House No. 1. Another spot to visit in downtown was Clinton's, a former drug store and soda fountain where Harry Truman once worked. Today it remains in business as an ice cream and soda shop.
The Three Tails mural on a side street in downtown Independence.
It shows the significant part the town served as the starting point
for the Santa Fe, California, and Oregon Trails.
Anyone for ice cream? This is a photo of the Truman special at
Clinton's Soda Fountain.
On the square in Independence.
The photo spot in the visitor center. Here one can view
a short film and get tickets for a tour of the Truman home.
We ended our afternoon of touring around at the Independence Visitor Center which is operated by the Mormons. This particular center tells the history of Mormons when they first came to Independence. Two years after their arrival they were chased away by a mob of unruly people who also burned their houses, businesses and buildings. Typical of Mormon visitor centers, we were met by friendly guides who led our personalized tour of the facility.
The Independence Visitor Center has a beautifully landscaped lawn and garden.
On prominent display at Mormon visitor centers is a large statue of Jesus,
the Christus Statue. (The one in Salt Lake City is twice the size of this one).
A mormon homestead in period depiction.
A feature of the tour is a story related to the printing of the book of
Doctrines and Covenants which was destroyed by mob action while
chasing Mormon believers from independence.
One of the oddities of Independence is that the headquarters of the Community of Christ is here on land originally owned by Joseph Smith and the Latter Day Saints. The temple, across the street from the Independence Visitor Center, can obviously be seen from the surrounding area.
This image should be obvious as to what it is. The theme of the spiral
reaching heavenward is also carried out in the interior.
The ceiling spirals upwardly with the windows of the spire
allowing light into the interior.
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