Main Menu

Bothwell Lodge State Historic Site

Activities

Choose Activity »

Park Information

With a commanding view from atop a bluff, Bothwell Lodge State Historic Site is one of the best representations of early 20th Century sensibilities in the Midwest. Walk through the 31-room, 12,000-square-foot lodge built atop two natural caves by Sedalia lawyer John Homer Bothwell. You will marvel at the owner’s eclectic tastes and how a country gentlemen furnished a recreational lodge for himself and his friends. Most of the furnishings in the house are original, and the property also has a three-mile hiking and mountain biking trail.

Park Hours

Historic Site Grounds

8 a.m. to sunset, year-round

Bothwell Lodge hours

Tour Hours
Summer Hours (On-Season)  

April 1 through Sept. 15

  • 10 a.m. - 4 p.m., Monday, Thursday through Saturday (last tour begins at 3 p.m.)
    11 a.m. - 4 p.m., Sunday (last tour begins at 3 p.m.) No tours Tuesday and Wednesday
Winter Hours (Off-Season)

Sept. 16 through March 31

  • 10 a.m. - 4 p.m., Friday, Saturday and holiday Mondays (last tour begins at 3 p.m.)
    11 a.m. - 4 p.m., Sunday (last tour begins at 3 p.m.)
    No tours Monday through Thursday

Historic Site Office hours

Summer Hours (On-Season)

  • April 1 through Sept. 15
    10 a.m. - 4 p.m., Monday, Thursday through Saturday
    11 a.m. - 4 p.m., Sunday
    Closed Tuesday and Wednesday

Winter Hours (Off-Season)

  • Sept. 16 through March 31
    10 a.m. - 4 p.m., Friday, Saturday and holiday Mondays
    11 a.m. - 4 p.m., Sunday
    Closed Monday through Thursday
Missouri State Parks and Historic Sites
May 23, 2013
Fifty years ago, if you had arrived at the natural tunnel in Bennett Spring State Park, you would have seen a lake. Around 1964, a dam created from gravel and silt and reinforced with rebar and concrete blocked the upstream entrance of the natural tunnel. There is no record of how long the resulting lake lasted, but historical accounts state the dam failed after heavy rains, leaving only the portion of the structure seen today at the end of the trail. Walk the Natural Tunnel Trail today and imagine what it would have been like 50 years ago. For more information about this trail, other trails at the park, and all the other things you can do at Bennett Spring State Park, visit mostateparks.com.