Editing Hannibal, Missouri (section)

==History and landmarks==
[[File:Tom and Huck statue Hannibal.jpg|thumb|right|''Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn at the Foot of Cardiff Hill'' (1926), by [[Frederick Hibbard]]]]
{{see also|National Tom Sawyer Days}}

The site of Hannibal was originally inhabited by various cultures of indigenous [[Native Americans in the United States|Native American]] tribes. Hannibal is home to Osterhout Mounds Park, a preservation of [[Mound Builders|ancient Indian burial mound]]s.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.hannibalparks.org/parks/indian-mounds-park/ | title=Indian Mounds Park &#124; Hannibal Parks and Recreation | date=February 6, 2019 }}</ref>

The river community was the mid-19th-century boyhood home of author Samuel Langhorne Clemens (aka [[Mark Twain]], 1835–1910). Twain drew from his childhood settings for his novels ''[[The Adventures of Tom Sawyer]]'' (1876) and ''[[Adventures of Huckleberry Finn]]'' (1884). Numerous historical sites are associated with Mark Twain and the places depicted in his fiction.

[[Heritage tourism]] contributes to the Hannibal economy, as the city attracts both American and international tourists. The [[Mark Twain Boyhood Home & Museum]] marked its 100th anniversary in 2012; it has had visitors from all 50 states and some 60 countries.<ref>[http://www.marktwainmuseum.org Mark Twain Museum], official website</ref>

Hannibal is also the birthplace of [[Margaret Brown]],  posthumously known as the "'''Unsinkable Molly Brown'''".  The cottage where Brown was born is now the Molly Brown Birthplace and Museum.<ref>https://khqa.com/news/local/molly-brown-house-relocated-to-main-street-boosting-accessibility-and-preservation</ref>

===Background===
After the United States acquired the [[Louisiana Territory]] west of the Mississippi in 1803, European-American settlers began to enter the area. Its early European settlements were established by ethnic French colonists, some from Illinois, who largely spoke French and were Roman Catholic in religion.

Hannibal was laid out in 1819 by Moses Bates<ref name="visithannibal.com">{{cite web
 |url         = http://www.visithannibal.com/en/about-hannibal/hannibal-history
 |title         = Hannibal History
 |publisher         = Hannibal Convention & Visitors Bureau
 |access-date         = 2015-01-06
 |archive-url         = https://web.archive.org/web/20150106214047/http://www.visithannibal.com/en/about-hannibal/hannibal-history
 |archive-date         = 2015-01-06
 |url-status         = dead
 }}</ref> and named after Hannibal Creek (later Bear Creek).<ref>{{cite book | url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_RfAuAAAAYAAJ | title=How Missouri Counties, Towns and Streams Were Named | publisher=The State Historical Society of Missouri | author=Eaton, David Wolfe | year=1916 | pages=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_RfAuAAAAYAAJ/page/n90 193]}}</ref> The name is derived from [[Hannibal]], a hero of ancient [[Carthage]] (in modern [[Tunisia]]).<ref>{{cite book | url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_9V1IAAAAMAAJ | title=The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States | publisher=Govt. Print. Off. | author=Gannett, Henry | year=1905 | pages=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_9V1IAAAAMAAJ/page/n148 149]}}</ref>

The city grew slowly, with a population of 30 by 1830. But by 1846, Hannibal was Missouri's third-largest city when the [[Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad]] was organized by John M. Clemens (Mark Twain's father) and associates.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.abandonedrails.com/Hannibal_and_Saint_Joseph_Railroad|title=The Hannibal and Saint Joseph Railroad - Abandoned Rails|website=www.abandonedrails.com}}</ref> This railway was built to connect to [[St. Joseph, Missouri]], in the west, then the state's second-largest city. This railroad was the westernmost line before the [[Transcontinental Railroad]] was constructed. It transported mail for delivery to the first outpost of the [[Pony Express]].

Construction of railroads to the area and increased steamboats on the Mississippi River had stimulated growth. In 1843 the city had also annexed the town of South Hannibal.<ref name="eb">{{Cite EB1911|wstitle=Hannibal (Missouri)}}</ref> Hannibal gained "city" status by 1845.<ref name="visithannibal.com"/> By 1850 it had 2,020 residents.<ref name="eb"/>

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the city served as a regional marketing center for livestock and grain, as well as other products produced locally, such as cement and shoes.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.hanmo.com/history.html|title=Hannibal, MO - Historic & Literary Resources|website=www.hanmo.com}}</ref> Cement for the [[Empire State Building]] (completed 1931) and [[Panama Canal]] was manufactured at the Atlas Portland Cement Company in the nearby unincorporated [[company town]] of [[Ilasco, Missouri|Ilasco]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://digital.hannibal.lib.mo.us/ilasco/ilasco.htm |title=Ilasco |access-date=2010-06-04 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100619123402/http://digital.hannibal.lib.mo.us/ilasco/ilasco.htm |archive-date=2010-06-19 }}</ref>

The Mark Twain Memorial Lighthouse was constructed in 1933 as a public works project under President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]]. It has been lit on ceremonial occasions at three separate times by Presidents Roosevelt, [[John F. Kennedy]], and [[Bill Clinton]]. [[Rockcliffe Mansion]], a private house on a knoll in Hannibal, is listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]].

In 2011, the Mark Twain Boyhood Home and Museum released ''[[Mark Twain: Words & Music]]'', a CD featuring entertainers who recount Mark Twain's life in spoken word and song. Several songs were written especially for the project and refer to Hannibal, including "Huck Finn Blues" by [[Brad Paisley]] and "Run Mississippi" by [[Rhonda Vincent]]. Other artists include [[Jimmy Buffett]] as Huckleberry Finn, [[Clint Eastwood]] as Twain, and [[Garrison Keillor]] as the narrator of the project.<ref>[http://www.marktwainmuseum.org/index.php/community-projects/mark-twain-cd "Mark Twain CD"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120818115053/http://www.marktwainmuseum.org/index.php/community-projects/mark-twain-cd |date=2012-08-18 }}, Mark Twain Museum</ref><ref>[http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/music_blog/2011/11/in-rotation-mark-twain-words-music.html], ''In Rotation'' blog, November 2011, ''Los Angeles Times''</ref>