Joplin

Joplin welcomes you! Enjoy your time in Joplin at one of our area attractions. I’ll be happy to arrange admission and directions for you during your stay.

Joplin Farmers Market
Phone: (417-625-4750

Vegetables, meat and fruit vendors sell their wares at this summer market held on Wednesdays and Saturdays in the downtown area.

66 Drive-In Theatre
Phone: (417) 359-5959

The last one of six drive-in theatres named after the Mother Road. Open weekends April through September, this drive-in specializes in family-friendly movies, with no R-rated movies ever shown.

Candy House Gourmet Chocolates
Phone: (417) 624-1515

In 1970, an old rock tavern in the Ozarks, just south of Joplin, was transformed into a quaint little candy shop. Today, the Candy House has two Joplin locations and is known by customers worldwide for wonderful hand-dipped chocolates, English toffee, caramel pecan treats, and other sweet delights.

See the original Candy House two miles south of Joplin on Highway 86 (Joplin Main St.) or visit the Candy House Chocolate Factory located in downtown Joplin at 510 S. Kentucky. With windows for watching the candy makers in action, this 8,400-square-foot facility includes a large retail showroom with all the yummy Candy House products. Open daily, both locations feature free samples, a large sugar-free selection, and in-store specials.

Cunningham Aquatic Center
Phone: (417) 623-9527

Link: Website

This Aquatic Center, located at 26th and Maiden Lane, has zero-depth entry, spray playgrounds, lily pad walks, and plenty of shade structures.

Ewert Aquatic Center
Phone: (417) 623-3286

This Aquatic Center, located at 5th and Pool streets, has zero-depth entry, spray playgrounds, lily pad walks, plenty of shade structures, a large water slide, and four waterslide flumes.

Four Seasons Sports Complex
Phone: (417) 624-5237

Four Seasons has been hosting state, regional, divisional, and national invitational baseball and softball tournaments as well as basketball, volleyball, soccer, tennis, and other competitions for over 20 years. The indoor and outdoor complex includes five softball fields, a 21,000-square foot air dome, 4,000 square foot clubhouse and batting cages. Located at .

George Washington Carver national park
Phone: (417) 325-4151

This 240-acre national park is the birthplace and childhood home of George Washington Carver, the famous black agronomist, educator, and humanitarian. The park consists of the Visitor Center which includes a museum, theater, discovery center area and gift shop; the 1881 Historic Moses Carver house; Carver cemetary; and a 3/4 mile nature trail. Guided tours are offered daily and the nature trail is partially handicapped accessible.

Precious Moments Chapel & Gardens
Carthage, MO 64801
417-358-7599

Precious Moments artist and creator Samuel J. Butcher opened the Precious Moments Chapel in 1989 as a thanksgiving to God for the blessings in his life. The chapel features 84 hand-painted murals and 30 stained-glass windows done in Precious Moments art based on stories from the Bible. Free guided tours of the chapel are available daily except on major holidays.

Range Line Golf Course
Phone: (417) 624-0400

Public Golf Course. Nine holes; 1,753 yards; par 30.

Route 66 Carousel Park
Phone: (417) 626-7710

The park provides family entertainment for all ages with 36 holes of mini-golf, go-karts, arcade, amusement rides, batting cages, bumper boats, jumping pillow, and much more.

Sandstone Gardens
Phone: (417) 206-6305

The premier home and garden shopping destination in the Midwest, Sandstone Gardens will amaze decorating enthusiasts with even the most discriminating tastes. Guests can wander among handmade Euro-stone collections and botanicals, explore the 38,000 square foot home interiors gallery, or enjoy an exquisite meal at the Sandstone Bistro.

Schifferdecker Golf Course
Phone: (417) 624-3553

This 18-hole public golf course is located in Joplin’s historic Schifferdecker Park. 6,123 yards, par 71.

Shifferdecker Park

Joplin’s oldest park, Schifferdecker boasts multiple picnic pavilions, a swimming pool, walking trails, 18-hole public golf course, skateboard ramp, and is home to the Joplin Museum Complex.

Spiva Center for the Arts
Phone: (417) 623-0183

George A. Spiva believed opportunities in the arts should be available to everyone. The exhibition, education, and cultural center named in his honor is located at Third and Wall in the heart of downtown Joplin. It’s a place to see art, to learn about art, to create art, to collect art. It’s a place to be inspired, a place to feel at home.

Founded in 1947, the center is home to PhotoSpiva, the oldest continuous photography competition in the United States. Rotating exhibits throughout the center showcase local and regional talent as well as national and international artists and feature a variety of mediums.

Spook Light
Phone: (800) 657-2534

The fabled Spook Light has been appearing in the night sky on a country road known as Devil’s Promenade only a few miles outside of Joplin for more than a century. Regarded as Missouri’s most famous ghostly manifestation, the first sighting was recorded back in 1886. The illumination is mobile and has shown itself in the colors of white, yellow, orange, and red.

Early settlers actually left the area in terror because of the giant ball of light bouncing over hills and across fields. Many legends and ghost stories surround the Spook Light, including tales of the light being the lantern of a miner searching for his lost children.

Directions to the Spook Light: From I-44 take exit 4 – HWY 86 South. Follow approx six miles to junction Route BB. Turn right on BB Hwy and follow the road until it ends. Turn right again, go one mile, turn left on E50 Road also known as Spooklight Road. Approx one and a half to two miles is the darkest and best place to wait.

Stained Glass Theatre
Phone: (417) 624-1982

Stained Glass Theatre is a full-time, nonprofit Christian theater committed to “Serving Christ Through the Arts.”

Thomas Hart Benton Mural
Phone: (417) 625-4789

On permanent display in Joplin City Hall, “Joplin At The Turn Of The Century, 1896-1906” is the famous artist’s only autobiographical work and certainly one of his finest creations. Dedicated on Joplin’s 100th birthday in 1973, the stunning work depicts early Joplin and its mining history.

Accompanying the mural is the fascinating “Evolution Of A Mural,” a display documenting the development of the piece and Benton’s thought process behind the creation of his final mural. It includes the artist’s rough sketches and drawings of the monumental work in progress.

The exhibit is free and open to the public Monday through Friday, 8:00 am – 5:00 pm and by appointment on weekends.

Walter Woods Conservation Area
Phone: (417) 629-3433

This 68-acre natural area features a meeting lodge, several ponds, trail system, a freshwater spring and offering a great environment for nature study, bird watching, outdoor photography, and hiking.

Wildcat Glades Conservation & Audubon Center
Phone: (417) 623-2211

Wildcat Glades Conservation & Audubon Center, located in Wildcat Park, is adjacent to some of the last remaining chert glades, a globally unique habitat found only in this area and the biologically rich Shoal Creek, an important place for migratory birds and other wildlife. The Audubon Center highlights include a 1,300-gallon aquarium and Ozark stream; a large terrarium complex with glade species including collard lizards, snakes and tarantulas; a wildlife viewing area for visitors to see animals in their natural habitat; over five miles of trail systems with five outdoor learning stations and three indoor classrooms.