Rosie's Diner Was More Than Just Food.......

Yesterday, on our trip 'cross the MS River Bridge to check out Helena, AR we had a wonderful unplanned experience.

We were looking for food - fast food, any food. We never saw a McDonald's, Burger King, Popeyes, nothing but I did manage to encourage Mike to continue in a direction that he really didn't want to go. (The River Bridge, back to MS, was the "other" way.)

Suddenly, around a curve, sat a small local restaurant. I convinced Mike

that we should stop. It said, "Rosie's Diner" and "Soul Food." (I had to 'splain to MIke what Soul Food was - and after my explanation, he had a strange look on his "I don't know if I want to stop or not," face. We did.)

We ordered what Mike said was the best Pulled Pork Sandwich he had ever had. They were cooking it, right there, in the little wooden shed out to the side.....where black smoke was just rolling from the roof and windows. OMGosh, I'm hungry for another one....but no, not getting out in this.....okay, not talking about that, again.

Now, Mike just has to open his mouth and people start asking, "Where you frum?"

Mike began a conversation with a man that we later learned was named Johnny White. Johnny had been a Psychotherapist (maybe he thought

we needed help), but was now retired. He offered to give us a tour of Helena.....and what a tour it was!! The display, in Freedom Park and everywhere, was amazing.

Our friends, Larry and Jamie Robinson, need to make a trip to Helena to see the Confederate Cemetery that sits at the top of Maple Hill Cemetery. The cemetery isn't easy to find - in fact, I'm not sure we could have gotten there without help. Down below the White Confederate Cemetery, beyond the cyclone fence down under the huge hill, sits Magnolia Cemetery where the Black Confederate Soldiers are buried.

It had begun to get late, so there wasn't much time for picture taking. That was okay, we now knew where it was and there could be more trips to Maple Hill, Confederate, St. Mary's Catholic, the Jewish Cemetery and Magnolia Cemetery for picture taking.

God works in mysterious ways - I know this from all the good things that have happened, in my life. Yesterday, a small local diner with good food introduced us to the kindest gentleman, ever. He was very proud of his city even though it needs some upkeep.

Thank you, Rosie's Diner for more than just food and thank you, Johnny White, for a great afternoon tour. #soulfood #JohnnyWhiteHelenaAR, #confederatecemetery, #maplehillcemetery #magnoliacemetery

Gretna Green or The Marriage Mill.......

I had just taken over driving (Mike usually does the driving, but the sun had made him sleepy) when I saw the Exit sign for Kahoka, MO. I said to him (who had already dozed off), "I really want to see this place."

Mike is "easy"......so he said, "I don't care, go ahead."  It was a good thing, because I had already gotten off at the exit!

Now, the reason I wanted to see this little town, which was about 10 miles off our route was because, in 1932, his parents had come here to get married. I had always wondered "why?"

We drove the 10 or so miles to Kahoka, which is the county seat of Clark County. It's the first courthouse in northeastern Missouri, just south of the Iowa border.

Back in 1932, there was no waiting period, no doctor's exam, nothing needed to get a Marriage License. This was the "Marriage Capital" of the Midwest. People came from Iowa, from Illinois, from wherever to get married in Kahoka, MO. It was the "Gretna Green" in this section of the US. (Gretna Green - taken from Scotland - is a term used to signify towns where one can get married almost immediately.)

Today, we stopped at the Kahoka Library to ask questions and the librarian told us that, back in the day, there were "shacks" all along the street where Justices of the Peace set up shop and performed marriages.
It was a "Marriage Mill."

Nothing was required to get a license (no name, rank or serial number) ,and get married and it could be done within a matter of minutes, by a Justice of the Peace for just $1.00.

Mike grew up in Hillsboro, Henry County, Iowa - not far from the Missouri border, and remembers when people would talk about "going to Kahoka" to get married, because it was so easy. That isn't the case, today. There is now a waiting period so times have changed.

We have a copy of Mike's parent's Marriage License....which was witnessed by his aunt (father's sister) and her husband. However, I still want to get into those courthouse records and see who else, in his family (I'm working on his Family Tree) might have slipped off to Kahoka!!

BTW, Mike's grandfather who was the Physician in Hillsboro was admantly against the marriage of his daughter to Mike's father!! And that.....is probably why.....they went to Kahoka!!!
#GretnaGreen #MarriageMill #KahokaMO