#227: Head's General Store/St. Albans

I have never heard of St. Albans until this year. After visiting the community I figured this looked like a rich person's getaway place. When going into the village, there are unique-looking homes and buildings and a golf course, so it gave me that impression. Maybe so. However, St. Albans is not an incorporated community.

The Lewis and Clark expedition made a stop close to present day St. Albans in 1804. It is said that General Lewis nearly slipped and fell down a cliff, but was quick to react and saved himself. St. Albans was first settled in 1834 (back when it was first called 'Tavern Creek' because it was near Tavern Rock Cave). Germans decided to make a home here due to its closeness to the Missouri River. It was finally named St. Albans in 1837. The general store was built in 1893 for the people of the village to get their goods. It still stands today, and it was nearly destroyed by flood waters, notably the Great Flood of '93. The river was at one time across from the store, but it was moved and redug by workers. A lake sits there now.

Head's General Store was originally known as 'the St. Albans General Store', but was renamed after a longtime owner, Mae Pfeiffer Head, whose family bought it in 1915. She passed away in 2004. There are many other historical places in St. Albans, such as the Post Office next door to the store, and the Studio Inn, which was built by Theodore Link (who designed Union Station).

Head's General Store

A nice, closer look at the entrance with the cake in front

Shameless Budweiser plug

This cake seems to focus a lot about coffee. So it looks like this one is already a favorite for coffee-lovers! Unfortunately I don't drink coffee since its bad on my stomach.

Top of the cake. Cute, huh?

Left side of the cake

Back side of the cake

Right side of the cake

Unfortunately there is no official website that exists for this location; however, you can access its National Register of Historic Places registration form here.

3516 St. Alban's Road, ST. ALBANS, MO, 63073
Cake artist: Don Christeson

#224: Franklin County Courthouse

I'm not sure what to put here since it's pretty much self-explanatory...but I'll start by saying - Franklin County was named after one of the country's founding fathers, Benjamin Franklin. There is a unique statue of Franklin outside the courthouse (see below). The county was established in 1818. The county itself is one of the largest in the St. Louis area, let alone Missouri.


As for the city of Union, it was established in 1825 and the court was met for the first time two years after. Franklin County has had four courthouses. The current one was built in 1923, as it replaced a log-cabin type of building that was built in 1849. In 1969, the courthouse was robbed as the criminals bombed parts of the place; it was renovated the following year.

Union, MO's welcome sign

Front of the courthouse

Here's lookin' at you kid

You can come sit with me if you want, I don't mind

The cake

Franklin County, MO Official website

15 S. Church, UNION, MO, 63084
Cake artist: Paul LeFlam

#223: Meramec Caverns

Ah yes...the HOLY GRAIL of them all! At least to me, that is. This was the farthest away of all the cakes from me. Actually, I'm probably speaking for most Illinois cake-hunters. While all Missourians complain about going to Carlyle and Greenville, we Illinoisans have to drive all the way to the caverns, so there!

Some facts about the caverns:

• The caverns are believed to have existed for over 400 million years.
• In the 1950s and 60s, movies and TV shows were shot in the caves, most notably Lassie.
• Legend has it that outlaw Jesse James and his gang hid here during the 1870s. No evidence is shown...yet
• Kate Smith once sang inside the 'theater' part of the caves
• In 1935, Meramec Caverns was opened by Lester Dill, who discovered the current 4.6 miles of caves that were found.
• The most visited cave in the state of Missouri, with 150,000 visitors yearly

Here's the greetings sign:

It was well worth the nearly 80 mile drive from where I live. 

Here's a little look inside the caverns:

Neon sign, located at the entrance to the cave

This is a shot of a Lassie photo, near the place where the Lassie TV series was filmed

This was taken inside their 'theater area'

And, since I drove this far (again, the farthest for any cake), I actually hugged the darn thing! Then I took a moment to recognize what it stood for. This is a cake that represents Route 66 (one of two Route 66-themed cakes painted by Rich Brooks).

Left side of the cake

Back side of the cake

Right side of the cake

NOW: The cake was removed in January 2015. Its whereabouts are unknown at the moment.

Wikipedia link
Official website

1135 Route W, SULLIVAN, MO, 63079
Cake artist: Rich Brooks

#222: Black Madonna Shrine and Grottos

One of the most 'far out there' places lies outside the historic Route 66 community of Pacific, Missouri. I had to drive nearly 15 miles from I-44. But it was worth the drive to explore this unique outdoor gallery. If you're in for something breathtaking and a bit offbeat, this is for you.

When you look around the place, you can't help but notice several rock sculptures and grottos. And now here's the kicker: it was all put together by one man. That person was Brother Bronislaus, who was a single Franciscan monk from Poland. He did all this in more than 20 years. 100 years ago it was all forestry and woods. It was all torn down and by 1938 Bronislaus went to work and used the tiff rock to create his masterpieces.

I took several photos while I was there, but here are some:

The Shrine Chapel

The entrance sign

The cake,

UPDATE: The cake is reportedly still there as of 1/25/2016. It was reportedly removed for awhile in 2015, but brought back in public view.

Wikipedia link
Official website

100 Saint Joseph's Hill Road, PACIFIC, MO, 63069
Cake artist: Craig Downs  (he also decorated the Fort San Carlos/Ballpark Hilton cake)

#202: Washington Historical Society

The second stop on my 'Missouri River'-side tour happened to be just on the other side of my intended destination. Only reason I stopped was because it was only a few miles out of the way from MO Hwy. 94.

Northbound MO Hwy. 47 about to cross the Missouri River

Washington, Missouri is a Missouri River town. And believe me, they'll let you know! They also have the distinction of being the 'corncob pipe capital of the world'. Sounds crazy, right? A lot of things in Missouri (especially in St. Louis) are named after Thomas Jefferson, the country's third President. Washington is, of course, named after our First Prez.

A George Washington bust that sits outside the county's courthouse

It was first settled under Spanish control, but then Americans took control of it eventually. In 1799, Daniel Boone and his followers settled there. The town is very rich in history of its development, as well as its production and economy. It was at one time, a center for railroad and transportation industry. Washington has an amazing 445 buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is also the hometown of prominent soap actor Jack Wagner, who has had a long career in that television genre. Wagner also scored a hit single, 'All I Need', which hit #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1985.

The sign

Inside part of the museum. Gotta love the honesty: 'The river is why we're here'

The cake looks like it focuses on grapes, which lead to wine! Washington sits on the other side of Missouri wine country. For more details, see cake #203.

Left side of the cake

Right side of the cake

As always the case, I randomly strolled into the museum. And boy, I'm glad I did! I learned a lot more than I did before I went in. I didn't know Harry Truman and Dwight Eisenhower campaigned for President in Washington. It has a lot of great artifacts, plus plenty of history lessons spanning from different time periods. The Washington Historical Society was established in 1859. It houses the Four Rivers Genealogical Society.

Washington Historical Society on FB
Official website

113 East 4th St., WASHINGTON, MO, 63090
Cake artist: Gina Harmon