Roughly at the center of the state, 130 miles west of St. Louis and 140 miles east of Kansas City on the south bank of the Missouri River, Jefferson City (pop. 39,636) is a strangely small and somnolent place. The handsome neoclassical state capitol (daily; free), modeled on the U.S. Capitol and completed in 1918, is the central landmark, rising above the river at the heart of town. Inside, the rotunda and ground floor area is packed with informative exhibits tracing the state’s political and natural history, while hourly guided tours take in the entire building, including a famous mural by Thomas Hart Benton on the walls of the third-floor House Lounge.
The small, surprisingly quiet downtown area has one place worth searching out: Arris Pizza (573/635-9225), at 117 W. High Street, which has been serving great pizzas and a range of Greek specialties since 1961. Right downtown, a block off US-50, the family-run Hotel Deville ($75 and up; 573/636-5231) at 319 W. Miller Street is the closest Jeff City comes to a boutique hotel.
