Recommendations between Birmingham, Alabama and St. Louis, Missouri, beginning of April

If you opt to take the Nashville route, you will pass through Paducah, KY on I-24. Paducah, a town on the Ohio River, is home to the National Quilt Museum.

Jules: You really need to go online and see all that Nashville has to offer for tourists.
Outside of the music scene, you've got the Parthenon, The Frist art museum, Andrew Jackson's Hermitage, Belle Meade Mansion. There's also a fine new Tennessee State Museum.
You can take tours to the homes of the music and movie stars.
The Gaylord Opryland hotel alone is a sight to see, and the Grand Ole Opry is next door with shows numerous times weekly.
With over 2500 restaurants, the food in the city is nothing short of incredible. It's just a happening city to be in.

I prefer Nashville over Memphis.
If you like Country Music it would be a must.
Andrew Jackson's home is just outside of Nashville and Nashville, city is nice.

You might consider stopping in Huntsville, Alabama, home of NASA's rocket development. Werner Van Brahn lived there.

If any of you have any interest in space exploration, you should definitely stop at the Space and Rocket Museum in Huntsville.

Graceland?

There are many Civil War Battlefields (National Parks) in Tennessee.

Big Oak Tree State Park in Missouri.

David, some day I will spend more time in Nashville. It does look appealing, but probably too much for my parents. I did go to Opryland and do some of the other attractions as a child and my parents have been to Nashville a few times. I just spent 2 1/2 days in New Orleans with my parents (that was part of my trip down to get them to their vacation rental for the month. In a few weeks I will fly down and drive them back) We had a lot of fun in New Orleans, but it was a lot of work. Traffic, stairs, lots of walking, etc. Plus, they have a small dog. I am looking for quicker, more manageable stops.

Paducah is an excellent idea, but we did it on the way down.

Huntsville is an excellent idea which I'm considering, however, I have a daughter, who won't be with us who would be most interested in that.

It's a pretty easy days drive from B'ham to St Louis, are you planning on doing an overnight enroute? Memphis is pretty run down, and unless you're into Country music Nashville isn't what it used to be. The rockets at Huntsville are kind of neat, but only if you're interested in that stuff.

If you get off 65 in Decatur and take 72 west you can drive thru Muscle Shores (where they have a fairly famous music festival) to Corinth. Driving north from there you immediately run into Civil War sites as this was the staging area for the Siege of Vicksburg and Shiloh Battlefield is right there. They have a very good visitors center, a nice drive around the park, and several easy walks to important spots. It's well worth the time if you parents are interested.

The road is good, and travels fast, although there are some small towns and traffic lights on the way.

You could then make your way over to 55 (which is a straight shot to to St Louis). Along the way you may want to stop in Cape Girardeau, which is the site of the strongest earthquake in the continental USA. It's not much to look at, but back around 1806 it really shook.

If you do go thru Nashville, head towards Clarksville and you can stop and see the Military Museum at Ft Campbell.

Yes, KGC, we plan a stop between Birmingham and St. Louis. My parents are getting up early to pick me up at the Birmingham airport. I believe they will drive about 4.5 hours prior to picking me up. I could then drive a bit before stopping for the night. They like to stop for interesting sites they haven't seen, and between them and the dog, they need frequent breaks. I appreciate the thoughts so far. I have some ideas now to explore. I knew there was something interesting about Cape Girardeau!

An option would be to take the Pennyrile Parkway toward Evansville then cut west to St. Louis. Kentucky has a nice state resort park system with lodges (Pennyrile, Lake Barkley, Kentucky Dam Village, etc are in western KY) and there is a JJ Audubon Park and museum near Henderson, KY.

Have a great trip!

Corinth has an excellent National Park Service museum about the Civil War.

If your folks were Elvis fans in their youth, Graceland in Memphis could be pretty special.

About that major earthquake, I do believe it was centered in New Madrid, Missouri, in 1811, rather than Cape Girardeau in 1806. But, my memory may be faulty, so to speak, it was quite a while ago.

If you take Interstate 22 northwest from Birmingham you can go to Tupelo where Elvis grew up. Then you can pick up a very scenic drive called The Natchez Trace. It does go to Nashville (which your indicated you might skip) but it is a really worthwhile drive. Just food for thought.

The earthquake was definitely in New Madrid not Cape Giradeaux. I had to teach earth science in 2017.

Yes, the main point of the earthquake was in New Madrid, but there's even less to see there than in Cape Girardeau.

If you're only going to drive an hour or two after leaving B'ham I'll recommend stopping in Decatur, AL. The historical district is filled with great old homes and antique shops and I expect you can find a decent hotel at a reasonable price.

You might also consider detouring over towards Wickliffe to see the old Indian mounds.

Thanks for the great suggestions! So here is what I'm thinking so far.
From Birmingham, I-22 to Tupelo (stay for the night around here somewhere??), Natchez Trace, ending somewhere around Florence. 72 west to Corinth for battlefield monument. I-55 to St. Louis, possible stops, Cape Giraudeau and Wickliffe.

I have 1 1/2 days to get from Birmingham to St. Louis.
Does the above sound feasible? Am I picking up an attractive portion of Natchez Trace? Would go a bit further north past Florence if there is a compelling reason (but not too far). Anything interesting between Memphis and St. Louis? Any scenic stretches along the Mississippi off I-55?

So far this is sounding interesting and fun, for me, mom and dad and dog.

Saw's BBQ in Birmingham is the best I have ever had. I realize this has nothing to do with quilting but I recommend it for a food stop!
The Pork n'Greens may simultaneously win the award for most delicious dish and worst name. It's greens, pulled pork, and grits and is heaven on a plate. I'm driving cross-country this Summer and between Memphis and OKC, I'm driving 2 hours out of the way just to go to Saw's! If you go to the Avondale location, Big Spoon creamery is two blocks away and delicious if you have room for dessert!

All of the Natchez Trace is very scenic and attractive. Personally I'd spent as much time on it as time will allow because driving it is totally different than driving the "regular" roads.

I grew up in the Tri-State area of IL-MO-KY, my hometown being Cairo, IL which is located at the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. Cairo was Gen. Grant's headquarters during part of the Civil War. If you plan to visit Wickliffe Mounds and Cape Girardeau, then your routing should take you through Cairo. I wanted to share info on some sights in Cairo which are worth a visit:

• Fort Defiance State Park, aka known as "The Point" to locals - drive down to the point to see the confluence of the two rivers.

• Magnolia Manor - a historic home which is open for tours: http://visitmagnoliamanor.org/

• The Customs House Museum - might want to call ahead to schedule a tour or verify hours: http://greatriverroad.com/meetohio/customshouse.htm

• Cairo Public Library - dates back to 1883 and has historical displays and several architectural features: http://greatriverroad.com/meetohio/saffordlibrary.htm

Cairo was once a very prosperous town with a "Millionaires' Row" along a brick lined boulevard in the late 19th century. Sadly Cairo has become a decimated shell of a town and its current condition is a shock to visitors and downright depressing to its former residents as there are many abandoned and decaying buildings throughout the town. The local residents work hard to maintain the remaining historic buildings and they are worthy of a visit if you are passing through the area.

The historic Thebes Courthouse is on a bluff overlooking the Mississippi River and it is off of IL Route 3 between Cairo and Cape Girardeau. It has historic ties to Abraham Lincoln and Dred Scott. There is also the Mounds City National Cemetery about 10 minutes north of Cairo off of IL Route 37.

Finally, you do not indicate when you are making your trek, but I wanted to point out that you should be mindful of spring flooding when the rivers are up. Sometimes US Hwy 51 between Wickliffe, KY and the Ohio River bridge at Cairo can be closed due to high water. It was recently closed for a couple weeks earlier this month.

Malette

Jules,
Glad to see you'll be traveling down near my neck of the woods. Sort of.

Regarding the portion of the trace from Tupelo to Cherokee Alabama (us hwy 72). All of the trace is beautiful! This is a short stretch but you can only go 45mph and there are interesting stops about every mile or so. So be prepared to take it slow. This portion includes overlooks, Civil wall Cemeteries, and Native American Mounds. Don't miss the Pharr Mounds one of my favorites.

If you have time in Tupelo check out the Tupelo auto musuem they have over 100 years of auto history in a 120,000 sf facility. Your dad will love it. http://www.tupeloautomuseum.com/index.php.
I hope you and your parents have a great road trip, and I especially hope you enjoy your time in Mississippi!

UGG, what's the saying, best laid plans. . .? Haven't been able to find a hotel room in Corinth, or anything convenient to Corinth. Had really wanted to go to the visitor center in Corinth. It would seem that any hotel that has adequate ratings and above doesn't take small pets. There are some places with some pretty bad ratings. Was going to do the Natchez Trace from Tupelo to about Colbert Ferry and then stay overnight in Corinth so that we can go to the interpretive center in the am. From Corinth, the plan was to head to St. Louis. Any ideas?