Last edited 4:33 p.m., March 13, 2012Despite the EF-2 tornado that hit Branson on Leap Day during its 100th year, the city is moving forward with centennial celebrations planned in April.
Centennial festivities are scheduled to begin with the April 1 opening of the Branson Centennial Museum at 1 p.m., according to a city new release.
The museum is at 101 N. Veterans Blvd. a former Morris Oil Co. gas station owned by Springfield businessman and philanthropist Jim D. Morris. Morris said he has donated the two-story property rent-free to the White River Valley Historical Society for 2012. Morris said, moving forward, the organization could lease the property, or he could decide to donate it.
The museum, a joint project of the Branson/Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce, the city of Branson, the Downtown Branson Mainstreet Association and the White River Valley Historical Society, will rotate exhibits every six to eight weeks. An early exhibit planned for the museum is a tribute to Branson prior to its 1912 incorporation, the release said.
Mayor Raeanne Presley and invited speakers are scheduled to arrive at the museum at 2 p.m. via horse-drawn carriage. Jim Barber, a comedian and ventriloquist, will serve as master of ceremonies, and speakers will include Presley, Missouri Division of Tourism Director Katie Steele Danner and museum supporter Leon Combs. Attendees will be invited to follow a Dixieland band into downtown Branson for more events.
Branson was officially incorporated as a city April 1, 1912. Now, the city 45 miles south of Springfield is home to more than 10,000 people and attracts roughly 8 million visitors per year. Branson officials claim more than 100 lives shows with 64,000 theater seats, 800 miles of lake shoreline, 18,000 hotel rooms, 3,000 RV and standard campsites, more than 200 outlet shops and boutiques, at least seven golf courses, the Branson Landing and the Branson Airport. Other tourist attractions include Silver Dollar City, Sight and Sound Theatre, Showboat Branson Belle, the Titanic Museum Attraction and Tanger Outlet Mall.
Branson boomed in the 1990s following a Dec. 8, 1991, "60 Minutes," program that called the city the "live music capital of the entire universe." More coverage followed, with Time and People magazines, the Los Angeles Times and the Wall Street Journal taking notice, according to
Springfield Business Journal archives.
