May 12, Perry MO and Perry, IL

Our favorite part of this trip has been in person interactions with people who call these small towns home. This started in back in Perry, GA at the wonderful Perfect Pear, where we met Megan Brent.

Today we had the pleasure of spending about 45 minutes in the company of a gentleman named Ronald Leake, at the Ralls County, Missouri Historical Society office on Main Street in Perry, MO. I had contacted him to tell him we wanted to make a donation to his organization, and when I called today he invited us to come over and see their collection. Right after we parked the R.V. we heard a loud siren, and I thought to myself- is that a tornado alarm? And maybe it does double as that, but for the past 76 years every day, at 7 a.m., noon and 7 p.m. the siren goes off downtown in Downtown Perry, MO. It was loud enough that I covered my ears, and a local chuckled to me later, asking if I was scared! Maybe a little.

Anyway, back to the visit with Mr. Leake. The collection curated by the historical society is impressive. Perry, MO is part of the greater Hannibal, MO area. Who came from Hannibal, MO? Samuel Clemens you say? Yes, Mark Twain was born nearby so there were quite a few knick knacks depicting Twain, including this mural on the wall:

I wish we had this as our solid waste company:

We found out that this Perry was not named for Commander Oliver Hazard Perry as so many others were, but for one of the first residents, named William Perry Crostwaite. The town was established in 1866, and has had a post office operating there since that year!

I noticed some caps in the Historical Society that said “Perry 150 year anniversary”, and inquired if we could buy one. We were pleased to hear that one could be purchased for $10. I ran out to the r.v. and grabbed a hat and t-shirt for Mr. Leake, and when we returned he said he had another cap for us, with the Perry Carousel on it! And since we had made a donation we got it for free! And then he scooped up some pins that said “Perry” on them and gave us those too!

I did not have any contacts on the ground in Perry, IL so we walked around a little and went into the post office, and found some blank postcards. We were able to get them postmarked Perry, IL.  And again I elicited a chuckle when I told our story. I guess that will be the standard response to two Californians traveling small town America in search of Perry.

The outskirts of Perry, IL had this beautiful house with nice ornamentation.

The ubiquitous photo as we approached Perry, IL:

And a nearby town named Griggsville had this mural tribute to purple martins, a swallow who prodigiously eats mosquitos.

They also erected many birdhouses in town, including this tower of martin houses:

No Perry towns tomorrow, as we move into Iowa, and head north toward Wisconsin.