Get outside
Things to do
Throwed rolls at Lambert’s, the biggest rodeo in southeast Missouri, a 1916 depot, and one of the oldest river towns in the state — all within the county, plus places to eat, shop, and stay.
Food Landmarks
The home of throwed rolls.
Historic Sites & Museums
A 1916 depot, one of Missouri’s oldest river settlements, and the courthouse at Benton.
Sikeston Depot Museum
Sikeston was founded in 1860 at the end of the Cairo and Fulton Railroad, and this restored 1916 Missouri Pacific depot, on the National Register of Historic Places, is now the city’s museum and cultural center.
Commerce
French settlers were here by 1788, making Commerce, by one account, the third-oldest settlement in Missouri still on its original site, after St. Louis and St. Charles. A trading post opened in 1803 gave it its name. During the Civil War it was a Union enclave in a Southern-leaning county: Col. Richard Oglesby’s troops landed here in November 1861, Jeff Thompson’s Confederates raided it that December, and from 1864 to 1878 it was the county seat. Today it’s a quiet river village of a few dozen people, with River Ridge Winery in the hills nearby.
Scott County Courthouse
Benton was laid out in 1822 as the seat of the new county, named for John Scott, Missouri’s first U.S. representative. The seat moved to Commerce during the Civil War and came back in 1878. The courthouse was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2004.
Farms & Wineries
A corn maze, a family farm, and a winery in the river hills.
Beggs Family Farm
A working family farm with seasonal festivals: strawberry picking in spring, and a 12-acre corn maze, pumpkins, wagon rides, and farm animals in the fall. Check its site for the season’s hours.
River Ridge Winery
A winery in the hills above the Mississippi near Commerce, with a tasting room, the Fermentation Room Cafe, a patio, and the Yule Log Cabin, a gift and decoration shop open for fall and Christmas.
Seasonal Events
When to plan a trip.
Sikeston Jaycee Bootheel Rodeo
The biggest rodeo in southeast Missouri, four nights each August with bull riding, bareback and saddle bronc riding, and a Nashville headliner every night; Kenny Rogers played it in 1977 and Loretta Lynn in 1983. In 2026 it runs August 5–8.
American Legion Cotton Carnival
American Legion Post 114’s carnival at the rodeo grounds every September since 1944, with rides, food, and a parade on the closing Saturday. In 2025 it ran through September 27.
Food & Drink
Places to eat and drink
Shopping
Antiques, boutiques, and local shops
Gas & Convenience
Gas and supplies
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Verify before relying on this. Compiled from Scott County, the Sikeston Convention and Visitors Bureau, VisitMO, and each venue’s own site. Hours, fees, and regulations change — check directly before a trip, especially for hunting and fishing seasons and limits.
