Missouri Springs Galleries

Alley Spring : Located in the Missouri Ozark National Scenic Waterways System six miles west of Eminence on State Hwy. 106, Alley Spring is one of the Ozarks' most famous attractions. Open daily from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., admission is free, but donations are happily accepted to offset operating costs. Original mill machinery is on display inside the building, but is no longer operational. Restoration efforts are currently underway. One can also purchase books, sourvenirs, post cards, among other historical and interesting items. The park isn't just the mill, it has wonderful walking trails by, over and under interesting rock formations along the water flowing from the spring. The first mill was constructed in 1868. A Post Office was erected, named after the Alley Family, a prominent local family. The building that sits on the proerty today was constructed during 1893-1894 by George Washington McCaskill as a merchant mill. The mill never had a water wheel, it always operated by a turbine with rollers rather than stone grist stones. In its heyday, it was considered ahead of it's time. It processed farmers' grain, thus serving the local community. Originally it was unpainted, but eventually was painted white with green trim. The famous red color it is associated with today came later. Alley Spring also has a campground not far away. For more information please visit http://nps.gov, click on "Find A Park, , then go to Ozark National Scenic Waterways System, then find Alley Spring.

Alley Spring

Big Spring : Big Spring, located in the heart of the Missouri Ozark National Scenic Waterways System, is the largest spring in Missouri. Did you know it is also the largest freshwater spring in the United States? 278 million gallons of water gush from the spring via subterranean passages. It then continues to the Current River. Experiments have been done in which hamless die is placed into the ground to see how far the water would carry it before it dissipated. It was found that it can travel from as far as forty five miles away through underground passages before surfacing at Big Spring. If you like peace and serenity, this is the place. The constant rush of water over the rocks makes for a nice interlude and escape from everyday stress. The scenery surrounding the Spring is gorgeous, especially in the fall months.

Big Spring

Blue Spring : Located in the heart of the Missouri Ozarks National Scenic Riverway Systems, Blue Spring is approximately twelve miles east of Eminence on Hwy. 106. It is one of Missouri's deepest springs. It flows slowly from a very deep cave shaft that is at the base of a dolomite bluff. There is a viewing platform from which you can see down on the spring, affording the visitor a beautiful view deep into the spring. The foliage that surrounds this spring is magnificent, especially in the fall months when the leaves are in full color.

Blue Spring

Round Spring : This is the park in the Missouri Ozark Scenic Riverways System where Jack and I camp hosted a portion of the summer of 2009 and hope to go back to for the summer months of 2010. Round Spring was one of the first parks in the Missouri State Park System. It was incorporated into the Ozark National Scenic Riverways System in 1972. Located approximately thirteen miles north of Eminence on Hwy. 19, the spring flows into an almost perfectly round cavern that has collapsed. From there it flows through a natural tunnel before it comes out into the spring branch. When you travel the path that takes you up to Round Spring, there is a body of water that looks similar and is often confused for Round Spring itself. You have to continue on the path to the top where the observation platform looks over Round Spring itself. It is usually a beautiful blue color, but can become muddied at times. Some say that a portion of the spring's recharge area is to the northeast of Spring Valley. That means the water would have to flow under the current River to reach the Spring.

Round Spring