Did you ever wonder how Branson, Missouri became such a big tourist attraction?

By David McClelland

We returned from our first visit to Branson and I was amazed by the town and its many attractions. Branson is in the Ozark Mountains and is a 14-hour drive from Oakland County. I recommend flying. The Branson airport is just 6 miles from Branson.

Branson today is known as the "live music capital of the world," and it has a rich history dating back to the early 1800's. Starting with a small store at a riverboat stop on the White River, the city now boasts over 40 theaters with over 60,000 live theater seats and more than 70 live theater shows, over 200 lodging facilities with over 23,000 rooms, 5,000 camp spaces, over 350 restaurants, 3 lakes, 9 golf courses, over 200 retail outlets, caves and numerous other attractions for year-round entertainment for all.

In 1882, Rueben Branson opened a general store. His store also became the Post Office, listed as the Branson, Missouri Post Office, obviously named after Rueben Branson. Settlers began to move to the Ozarks for the promise of free land and the area was homesteaded on 160 acres. In 1907, "Shepard of the Hills", a book by Howard Bell Wright, was published and became a nationwide best seller. It depicts a mostly fictional account of mountain folklore. Overnight, tourists from across the country began coming to Shepard of the Hills country and tourism was born.

Branson was incorporated on April 1, 1912 with 1200 residents and the idea of Branson as a resort began to take root. In 1959, the first live outdoor show, The Baldknobbers Hillbilly Jamboree Show, opened. This show took its name from a civil war vigilante group, The Baldknobbers, which roamed the area making its own justice. In 1967, the Presley family opened the first live theater on the Route 76 "Strip" and, gradually, show- after-show relocated from other towns to Branson. Most located on the "Strip."

In the 1990's, news organizations began to "discover" Branson. In 1997, Time magazine wrote its Branson "discovery" story. This was followed shortly by stories in People magazine, The Los Angeles Times , The Wall Street Journal and by the Sixty Minutes television show. They all did major stories on Branson. Part of what they said was that Branson then had more live theater seats than Broadway in its 22 theaters and also had a host of impressive headliners. In 1992, Mel Tillis and Andy Williams each opened their own theaters there. In 1995, The Dixie Stampede and The Showboat Branson Belle, a river cruise boat, opened dinner theaters. In 1997, The Shepard of the Hills became the most performed outdoor drama with its 5,000th performance.

We ate dinner at Andy Williams Moon River Grill, which we found to be quite popular and a great place to dine. 21 of Andy's gold record albums are displayed above the bar.
We had a wonderful piano player who sang many of Andy's greatest hits while we enjoyed delicious meals and good service. We recommend dining there.

Every year holds new surprises for the residents and guests of Branson. If you are considering a visit to Branson, check out their web sites first to decide where to stay and what shows to see. My guess is that you will enjoy your time there as much as we did.