Rural area with interesting small town in Missouri (St. Louis, Springfield: for sale, real estate)

[fridaybaker]

We are considering moving to Missouri and were thinking along the lines of the southeast part of the state. Actually, we need to be either within 1 1/2 hours of Saint Louis or Springfield. We would like some fairly rural acreage with natural beauty, such as hills, river, etc. but would also like to be near some sort of interesting town. Is this possible?

We keep seeing beautiful property in St. Francois county, but I can't help but think we'd like to be within at least 45 minutes or so of something besides a Walmart, Sears, Pizza Hut, etc.

We are going to do a driving trip in the next couple of weeks to get a better feel for the area but any input beforehand would be much appreciated.

[GunnerTHB]

Originally Posted by fridaybaker

We are considering moving to Missouri and were thinking along the lines of the southeast part of the state. Actually, we need to be either within 1 1/2 hours of Saint Louis or Springfield. We would like some fairly rural acreage with natural beauty, such as hills, river, etc. but would also like to be near some sort of interesting town. Is this possible?

We keep seeing beautiful property in St. Francois county, but I can't help but think we'd like to be within at least 45 minutes or so of something besides a Walmart, Sears, Pizza Hut, etc.

We are going to do a driving trip in the next couple of weeks to get a better feel for the area but any input beforehand would be much appreciated.

I guess that depends on what you mean by interesting. Ste. Genevieve has a ton of history. (First town in Missouri & older than the United States) Along the river is gently rolling to very steep terrain. Several wineries in this area if you are interested in that.

St. Francois County is pretty hilly as well with a lot of clay in the soil. Farmington is the largest town in the county & has relatively easy access to St. Louis. (So does Ste. Genevieve) There is also probably some decent land for sale in Franklin County (SW of St. Louis). Relatively hilly terrain there as well & it is part of the Ozarks.

What do you like to do? What are you looking to do with your land? How many acres are you looking for?

[fridaybaker]

Gunner,

Thanks for getting back with me and sorry for the vagueness of my post. Here is some further information:

When I say "rural", what I really mean is more like "country life". Where we can have at the very least 8 or 10 acres (but would love more) and have a very country-feel vs. suburban feel. No "developments" or "estates", etc. However, I realize that we do love interesting little restaurants, shops, historic towns, etc. The idea of shopping being limited to Walmart, KMart, etc. is very depressing to me. When it comes right down to it, I realize that I'd love a little town with some cache, maybe some little antique shops, a bistro, etc.

As far as topography, we love nature and would like to be able to garden some, but especially would love to have a view and water access, such as a river or stream, which seem to be plentiful in the southeastern part of the state. From what I've seen, though, the topography may be spectacular in the southeastern part of the state, but there's no town like what I'm thinking of. I'm beginning to think maybe we should look for some acreage outside of Hermann, in Gasconade Co., although it seems expensive. Yikes! This is hard...

[ION1010]

Originally Posted by fridaybaker

Gunner,

As far as topography, we love nature and would like to be able to garden some, but especially would love to have a view and water access, such as a river or stream, which seem to be plentiful in the southeastern part of the state. From what I've seen, though, the topography may be spectacular in the southeastern part of the state, but there's no town like what I'm thinking of. I'm beginning to think maybe we should look for some acreage outside of Hermann, in Gasconade Co., although it seems expensive. Yikes! This is hard...

Take a look around Washington. Hey, they have a Schnucks! I love Schnucks.

Keep in mind these closer-in towns are becoming bedroom communities to STL and the wealthier folks from there have horse farms, etc., diving up prices. Water features come with floods so be careful. Drive from there to Hermann and stay in one of the dozens of B&Bs there if you're into that sort of thing. They have an awesome bakery.

It sounds like what you'd want might be near Columbia, a college town. West of there Rocheport has some interesting artsy shops and Boonville has the best pie I've ever had.

[GunnerTHB]

Originally Posted by fridaybaker

Gunner,

Thanks for getting back with me and sorry for the vagueness of my post. Here is some further information:

When I say "rural", what I really mean is more like "country life". Where we can have at the very least 8 or 10 acres (but would love more) and have a very country-feel vs. suburban feel. No "developments" or "estates", etc. However, I realize that we do love interesting little restaurants, shops, historic towns, etc. The idea of shopping being limited to Walmart, KMart, etc. is very depressing to me. When it comes right down to it, I realize that I'd love a little town with some cache, maybe some little antique shops, a bistro, etc.

As far as topography, we love nature and would like to be able to garden some, but especially would love to have a view and water access, such as a river or stream, which seem to be plentiful in the southeastern part of the state. From what I've seen, though, the topography may be spectacular in the southeastern part of the state, but there's no town like what I'm thinking of. I'm beginning to think maybe we should look for some acreage outside of Hermann, in Gasconade Co., although it seems expensive. Yikes! This is hard...

Ok so I'll give you this information: 1-1/2 hours south of St. Louis puts you north of a line at about Cape Girardeau over to Fredericktown. The counties that border the river (Cape Girardeau, Perry, Ste. Genevieve) are a bit more populated than the interior counties away from the river. The topography runs the range from flat as a pancake to very steep terrain.

Ste. Genevieve was founded by the French and is a fairly rural county with several wineries. As I said in my first reply, lots of history there and definitely an interesting town. I think you could find most of what you want there. I'm not an expert by any means on that county though so I couldn't tell you if you could get close to a stream or river. I would imagine property near the Mississippi will either be expensive or in a flood plain.

Perry County has quite a bit of unique history too. Much of the county was populated by German immigrants from Saxony in the 1830's and 1840's. It also has the most caves out of any county in Missouri. It has a bit of a unique culture among the families that have been there a long time. I think something like 5% of the county's residents can still speak German.

Cape Girardeau County is the most populated county in Southeast Missouri. Cape Girardeau would definitely have what you are looking for with regards to an interesting town, if you consider it small enough to count as a town and not a city. Neighboring Jackson also has some similar things but is a bit smaller. The challenge with Cape Girardeau County is higher land prices & less of it available for what you want. (Non-subdivision rural) Also, depending on how far you are off the interstate, it may push you outside of your 1-1/2 hour window to St. Louis. Depending on where you are coming from, you may still consider the land to be cheap though. I grew up in a rural section of this county so it is the one I know the most about.

The interior counties (Not bordering the Mississippi River) are rural to very rural. This is where the Ozarks start as well. You will have no problem finding the land you want but you may be far away from a town that meets your requirements. There are a couple of interesting towns, but I don't think it would take very long to see everything since they are so small.

I would use Zillow or a similar website, put in your acreage requirements and just look around a bit.

[ION1010]

Originally Posted by GunnerTHB

Cape Girardeau County is the most populated county in Southeast Missouri. Cape Girardeau would definitely have what you are looking for with regards to an interesting town, if you consider it small enough to count as a town and not a city.

Cape has a Schnucks, too!

[MUTGR]

Originally Posted by fridaybaker

We are considering moving to Missouri and were thinking along the lines of the southeast part of the state. Actually, we need to be either within 1 1/2 hours of Saint Louis or Springfield. We would like some fairly rural acreage with natural beauty, such as hills, river, etc. but would also like to be near some sort of interesting town. Is this possible?

We keep seeing beautiful property in St. Francois county, but I can't help but think we'd like to be within at least 45 minutes or so of something besides a Walmart, Sears, Pizza Hut, etc.

We are going to do a driving trip in the next couple of weeks to get a better feel for the area but any input beforehand would be much appreciated.

Somewhere near Cape seems like the natural fit, nice river town with a decent sized state college there. Smaller towns north of Cape include Perryville and St. Genevieve. Lot's of history in St. Genevieve in particular.

[fridaybaker]

Everyone, thanks so much for your help.

ION1010: I think you like Schnucks! I'll have to look it up. And Boonville: The best pie you've had? We'll definitely be scheduling that into our upcoming trip.

Gunner: Thanks for the geography help. I've been studying maps, but the basic sort of boundaries to stay within helps tremendously. Also, your summaries of the area are quite useful -thanks so much.

MUTGR: I'll look into Perryville some, as it's a name I'm not familiar with. We are at this point thinking that St. Genevieve might fit the bill as to a fairly interesting small town within at least a decent driving distance of some property that offers some water and maybe a view.

I'm going to do some more perusing of maps, information and available real estate. Thanks again!

[GunnerTHB]

Originally Posted by fridaybaker

Everyone, thanks so much for your help.

ION1010: I think you like Schnucks! I'll have to look it up. And Boonville: The best pie you've had? We'll definitely be scheduling that into our upcoming trip.

Gunner: Thanks for the geography help. I've been studying maps, but the basic sort of boundaries to stay within helps tremendously. Also, your summaries of the area are quite useful -thanks so much.

MUTGR: I'll look into Perryville some, as it's a name I'm not familiar with. We are at this point thinking that St. Genevieve might fit the bill as to a fairly interesting small town within at least a decent driving distance of some property that offers some water and maybe a view.

I'm going to do some more perusing of maps, information and available real estate. Thanks again!

Just FYI: Perryville is the county seat of Perry County.

You may look into north Scott County as well. (South of Cape County)