No One Wants to Leave

Sedalia, Missouri
Missouri State Fairgrounds

It's amazing how many rigs are still at the fairgrounds. The last of the golf carts have been rounded up.

Here's some of the rally supplies waiting to be loaded into the truck that will go back to Livingston, Texas.





Jan Kelpe called and suggested that we go early for the Scott Joplin Ragtime Festival as the forecast was for hot temperatures.  Well not as hot as Arizona, but hot for this area.  

You might think the railroad made Sedalia famous, but according to the residents of Sedalia, it was Scott Joplin.  Scott signed a contract which gave John Stark the right to publish "The Maple Leaf Rag".  It enabled him to be able to make over a million copies.  Sedalia's slogan is "a place where America's music began".  Joplin became king of ragtime.  Can you imagine a black piano player trying to break through the music industry?  Most people that played the piano did it in a brothel or bar.  

I was talking to a local resident and he said the event used to be much larger but most of the musicians have died.  This is an international event with musicians coming from afar.  

We walked to the first tent and listened to the music.  There was a schedule of the different musicians and where they were playing but truthfully, Bill and I didn't recognize any of the names.  My grandmother could play the rags and I thought she was good, but there was no comparison of these international musicians.    

The music was wonderful and we especially enjoyed the duet.

Walking around to the different venues gave us a chance to walk through the historic districts.

Isn't this a beautiful building that is being restored?

It looks like this car fit right into the Joplin time period.

I think Paul really wanted to take it for a spin.

The car was parked outside the Hotel Bothwell.  The sign on the piano in the lobby said to feel free to play it.

On this site in 1934, Harry Truman learned he was selected to be a candidate for the US Senate.  

Here's a few facts about the Hotel Bothwell.  At a cost of $400,000 it was completed in 1927.  Betty Davis dined in the Palm Room in 1942.  In 1959 Clint Eastwood & Eric Fleming promoted the TV series, Rawhide.  1998 the hotel was sold to Furnell Cos. and they restored it.

Here's another tent that was set up for the musicians.  I liked the music better from the bigger tent.  Do you think the size of the tent represented the more famous musicians?  







I wasn't surprised to find this mural of Scott Joplin on a building.

We were thankful to find a place to sit in the shade and listen to the music.

Bill and Jan Kelpe had attended a class at the Escapade about the red light district in Sedalia.  One of the brothel buildings was listed on the National Registry of Historic Buildings.  We walked down to see it, but they didn't have a plaque.  The person who rents the building came out and talked with us about it.  

The four of us went to the Country Kitchen for dinner and they still honored the 20% discount for Escapees. 

 A little while later there was a knock on the door.  It was Mary Olson with her grand daughter, Sarah.  When we attended the 56th Escapade in Vermont we met Sarah.  She spent a lot of time in the Volunteer Booth with us.  She had a nail kit and did my nails.  I was the only attendee with all different colored nails.


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