Nevada, MO has everything I am looking for in a small town – liveliness, old buildings, murals and a county courthouse. In accordance with a Missouri State custom, Nevada is not pronounced the way it’s spelled; addressing it as anything but Ne-vay-duh  will expose you as an outsider.

We made a stop in Nevada on the way to Bentonville, AR, because we were getting bored on a long stretch of the newly-minted I-49. The only entertainment on the previous 80 or so miles was provided by a trailer home flying a banner with a picture of an automatic rifle and the words “Come and get it!”. Ain’t nobody got time for that! 

At the first glance, parts of town looked abandoned.

But then one gun shop to another….

…it gets better and better.

Then you see a mural…

…then another…

…and you know it was worth getting off the highway.

Old movie theater looks presentable…

…although it doesn’t look like it’s used for the original purpose any longer.

The Town Square is anchored by the Vernon County Courthouse…

…and looked very busy on a cold Tuesday afternoon.

The word is that the Bushwhacker Museum is worth a visit, but we had to move on to the next stop which turned out to be the creepiest place I’ve ever visited.