On the Road Again

My wife and I took a road trip to Independence, Missouri yesterday.  The purpose was two-fold.  We wanted to visit the Truman Library and Truman Home AND we wanted to save some money.  Last December, Congress voted to increase the cost of a National Parks Golden Age Lifetime Pass for persons age 62 and up from $10 to $80.  The increase takes effect on August 28, 2017, though some websites I've seen say the increase is effective August 1, 2017.  The Passes can be purchased at Federal Recreation Sites. Here is pass info and a link to a pdf listing the sites where you can purchase the pass (Note: there are none around Jeff City, though Springfieldian's need only go to Wilson's Creek National Battlefield):

National Parks Pass Info

Though I have a pass, my wife did not, nor did our neighbors, Bill & Mary, who went with us.

First stop: the Truman Library.

The bad news is that we discovered the lifetime passes are not sold by, nor are they honored by, the Truman Library.  The good news is that admission is free for Veterans in July and the cost for my wife was only $6.  The lifetime passes are sold, the person at the Truman Library told us, at the Truman Home Ticket Center and Tourist Information Center at Main St. & Truman Road, a block off the square in Independence.

After our tour of the Truman Library, which I highly recommend, we headed to Main & Truman Road.  The good news is that it wasn't far.  The bad news is that you can't get there from the Truman Library right now taking a detour or two due to road resurfacing.

BUT - we made it.  We parked right beside a brand new, electric blue Corvette with Kansas tags.  Inside the Ticket Center, a harried Federal employee said "All you folks who want a Golden Age pass, line up here.  Six people lined up there, so one guy was overwhelmed while two cashiers sat idle.

Just in front of us was the guy with the electric blue Corvette.  He had, he explained, forgotten his driver's license at home.  You might be able to vote without a picture ID, but DO NOT try to buy a Golden Age pass without a picture ID!  He got back into his new Corvette with no pass and drove back to Kansas, driver's license or no, which isn't all that far from the square in Independence.

Plaque at Clinton's Drug Store
on the Square in Independence

We were more fortunate. Within 20 minutes my wife and our neighbors had their Golden Age passes in hand and we headed to Clinton's Drug Store on the
square in Independence for lunch. That's where Harry Truman had his first job.

The Truman Home at 219 N. Delaware in Independence, Mo.
BUT, get your tickets at Main & Truman Street ahead of time!

After lunch, we headed to the Truman Home where Golden Age passes were honored.  It took awhile for us to find a route around the road construction, but we made it.

A few people were already lined up for the next tour when we pulled into a shady parking spot in front of the Truman Home at 219 N. Delaware.   The gate was locked, but after a few minutes a Ranger came for the next tour.  The good news was that our Golden Age passes qualified us for free admission into the Truman Home. The bad news was that you had to get the free tickets back where we purchased the Golden Age passes.  That's what the two cashiers that were sitting idle were there for.

Plaque at the Truman Home

Rather than navigate the detours back to the Ticket Center, we toured the historic Noland Home across the street from the Truman Home.  Harry Truman's cousins once lived there, which was convenient when Harry was dating Bess who lived across the street at what is now the Truman Home.

Then we went to the National Frontier Trails Museum, an amazing source of information on the three trails west that once originated in or passed through Independence, the Oregon Trail, the California Trail, and the Santa Fe Trail.

If you are a Baby Boomer and don't have your lifetime Golden Age National Parks pass, you might want to take a road trip of your own and pick one up before the price increase.  Even at $80 it is a tremendous value.  At $10, it is an absolute steal.

Don't forget your picture ID.