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Free to See in
Springfield, Missouri
When visiting Springfield,
you can put your wallet away. Missouri’s third-largest city offers plenty of things that are free to
see and do, including educational historical sites, inspiring
arts, the wonderful outdoors and more.
Free
to See History
Free historical sites
include the downtown area Battle of Springfield Driving Tour
showcasing 12 informative markers placed throughout the
battleground commemorating the 1863 Civil War battle fought in
the heart of the city.
Also downtown is
Founders Park presenting murals and displays depicting
Springfield events over the past 100 years and Park Central
Square, the site of the first recorded shootout of the Wild West
Era.
A few blocks north of
the square is the Commercial Street Historic District featuring
a variety of arts, entertainment and shopping along with the
Jefferson Avenue Footbridge. The 106-year-old footbridge is one
of the nation’s longest. Everyone enjoys tramping across as
freight trains travel along just a few feet below.
Other historical sites
that are free to visit include the Gray/Campbell
Farmstead,
Railroad
Historical
Museum, Route
66, Springfield
National Cemetery
and the Missouri Institute of Natural
Science. Also free is the
visitor’s center at Wilson’s Creek National
Battlefield; a nominal fee is charged for a
driving tour of the battlefield. And admission to the History
Museum
for Springfield-Greene
County is by donation.
Free
to See Arts
Springfield
is filled with art galleries that are free to see. The largest
is Keyes Gallery in downtown Springfield
featuring high-quality paintings, pottery and custom framing.
And one of the most unique is Springfield Hot Glass Studio where
owner Terry Bloodworth presents glassblowing and torch-working
demonstrations. Keyes Gallery, Springfield Hot Glass Studio and
many others are regular participants in the
popular – and free
– First Friday Art Walk the first Friday evening of each
month.
The city also has plenty
of public art, including more than 45 murals, statues and
sculptures. Check out the statues of sports legends at The
Legends Walkway outside the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame and
don’t miss the K-Man, an interactive sculpture at
Jordan
Valley
Park. Other favorites include The Elephant’s Child sculpture in
front of Dickerson Park
Zoo, The World’s Largest Fork in
Chesterfield
Village
and the Sun Target sculpture at the Springfield
Art Museum, where admission is by donation.
The
Springfield Regional Arts Council offers a brochure of public
art available at http://springfieldarts.org/pages/107.
Free
to See Outdoors
A visit to Springfield
wouldn’t be complete without visiting the city’s free public
gardens, parks, nature center and greenways trails.
Public gardens include
the
Master
Gardeners
Demonstration
Garden
at Nathanael
Greene
Park
and several gardens – all maintained by volunteers – at Close
Memorial Park. It’s easy to spend hours at these adjacent parks admiring
the flowers and other flora.
Part of the Ozark
Greenways Trails Network also goes through Close
Memorial Park. The city has 60 miles of trails that go through urban and
rural areas, great for walking, running and biking.
More trails are
available at the Springfield Conservation Nature
Center, along with an expansive visitor’s center.
Sightings of
wildlife are guaranteed at this Springfield
gem.
On hot days, dip your
toes in The Ozarks Stream or get totally soaked in the Fountain
at Jordan
Valley
Park. The stream runs continuously while the fountain shoots water
up in a random pattern from 10 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. daily for 30
minutes at the beginning of each hour and continuously from 11
a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Click
Here to view more Free to See sites in Springfield.
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