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Pike County,
Missouri
Settlers
came to
Pike
County in the 1800s, in the days of
the Louisiana Purchase. Before, then after the
war of 1812, they built the towns of
Clarksville and Louisiana along the banks of
the Mississippi. Those two towns, along with
Bowling Green – the county seat, named after
Bowling Green, Kentucky – are today the
three largest in the county. Other cities:
Annada, Ashburn, Curryville, Eolia, Frankford,
Paynesville and Tarrants.
The county is famously rich in American
history. Cemeteries bear witness to the
tragedies of the Civil War; churches are
architectural gems. St. Johns Episcopal Church
built near Eolia in 1854 is the oldest
Episcopal Church west of the Mississippi, and
is listed on the National Register of
Historical Places.
Natural beauty abounds throughout the county,
especially along the Mississippi, which
borders the county’s eastern side. View bald
eagles at Lock & Dam #24 in Clarksville,
and other waterfowl at Clarence Cannon Nat’l
Wildlife Refuge. Other wildlife areas: The
Dupont Reservation Conservation Area, for
camping and fishing; Edward Anderson Wildlife
Area, for camping; Ranacker Wildlife Area, and
the Ted Shanks Wildlife Area, where there are
wetlands, waterfowl, camping and fishing.
Pike County also boasts several scenic
highways and byways. The Little Dixie Highway
of the Great River Road, a nationally
designated scenic byway, stretches 30 miles,
from Clarksville to the county line. Another
scenic byway roams from Route W in Clarksville
to U.S. Highway 61.
For art fans, there’s the twice yearly
Provenance Studio Tour. Local artisans and
artists in Clarksville, Louisiana, Bowling
Green, and Hannibal join together and produce
“50 miles of art” along the Mississippi
Great River Road, open to the public the first
weekend of November and the fourth weekend of
April.
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