Visitors Guide to Bootheel, Missouri
Higgerson School Historic Site
New Madrid, MO
The Missouri Bootheel is the southeastern most part of the state of Missouri, extending south of 36°30’ north latitude that forms the boundary between Missouri and the rest of Arkansas. The area gets its name because its shape in relation to the rest of the state resembles the heel of a boot. While much of southeastern Missouri lowlands extending as far north as Cape Girardeau considers itself to be in the Bootheel region, the county of Pemiscot and portions of Dunklin and New Madrid counties are the only counties that lie in the area that forms the Bootheel shape.
Morris State Park
Campbell, MO
Explore these communities of the Bootheel Region of Missouri along the Great River Road
New Madrid Riverfront
New Madrid, Missouri
New Madrid, New Madrid County
New Madrid sits along the banks of the Mississippi River at the north end of a horseshoe bend in the Mississippi River. The community is one of the first American settlements west of the Mississippi and boasts a rich and colorful history. New Madrid is best known as the namesake of the strongest earthquake in recorded history. Two quakes struck the region on December 16, 1811, with a speculated magnitude of 8+ on the Richter scale. New Madrid was the site of an extended battle in the Civil War for control of the Mississippi River in 1862. The history of New Madrid can be explored at the New Madrid Historical Museum in the downtown district. The town is now protected from the Mississippi River by a system of levees. The levee just south of the downtown area provides scenic views of the Mississippi River as well as recreational opportunities. Nearby is the Hart-Stepp House Art Gallery, housed in the oldest home in New Madrid, and featuring the work the area's most talented artists.
Dunklin County Museum
Dunklin, Missouri
Kennett, Dunklin County
Kennett is the largest town and commercial hub of the Bootheel Region of Southeast Missouri. In 1862, during the Civil War, Dunklin County adopted a resolution to secede from the Union. The county became known as the "Independent State of Dunklin." Up until that time Kennett had been steadily growing. When the war ended, however, the town lay in ruins and Kennett had to be almost entirely rebuilt. Economic recovery didn’t start until the arrival of the railroad and the beginning of the Little River Drainage District around the turn of the 20th century. The project, finished in 1927, created dikes, dams, and levees that turned 2 million acres into fertile farmland suitable for growing soybeans, wheat, corn, rice, and cotton. Portions of the virgin swamps and bottomland forests have been preserved in the area at several wildlife areas where the remaining cypress-tupelo swamps, open marshes, flooded timberland and flooded rice fields attract waterfowl that migrate along the Mississippi River Flyway.
Statue of Liberty replica
Malden, Missouri
Malden, Dunklin County
Malden is located in northern Dunklin County on a sand ridge between the lowlands of New Madrid County and the foothills of the Ozarks Mountains. Early settlers to the area engaged in hunting and trapping with few farms along the ridge. The town was incorporated in 1878 and became a city in 1889. Visitors interested in Malden’s history will find plenty of information at the Malden Historical Museum. Malden became an integral part of World War II and the Korean War. In 1942 the War Department constructed the Malden Army Airfield which provided a basic aviation training course. Visitors wishing to explore this aspect of Malden’s history can visit the Malden Army Airfield Preservation Society located in the town’s airport. Malden’s newest attraction is the Bootheel Youth Museum which features 22,000 square feet of hands-on exhibits for kids of all ages that explore the worlds of history, math, science, human relations, natural resources and the arts. Located west of town is Morris State Park situated on Crowley’s Ridge.
