A day trip to Arcadia Valley takes you from Civil War battlegrounds to one of the state’s prized possessions: Chanticleer, the pottery company
By Christy Marshall
A day trip to Arcadia Valley is worth the two-hour trek south for one very solid reason: It’s where you will find Chanticleer (711 W. Russell, Ironton, 573-546-3336, www.chanticleerpottery.com).
Founded in 1955 by Ethel and Michael Chomyk and now run by Ethel’s son, Malcolm Clark, the terra-cotta pottery company ranks as one of Missouri’s treasures. Each piece is hand-thrown, hand-painted, glazed and then fired.
For years, Clark has threatened to put the company on the block—which should serve as a heads up for everyone to blast out there before it’s gone. The factory and main store are located in Ironton, which is well worth the visit. But the wise shopper also makes tracks to Chanticleer 2 (215 Main, Arcadia), the small seconds shop in neighboring Arcadia—where the prices are discounted from 20 percent to 50 percent.
You’ve seen their pieces—the hand-inscribed platters are a staple gift for St. Louis brides and grooms. Locally, Chanticleer pottery is sold at Byron Cade, J.A. Whitney and the newly opened Chanticleer Galleries in St. Charles.
For your garden, Chanticleer has statuary, great pots with reliefs, planters adorned with a basket weave, urns, window boxes ($32), glazed bricks and garden plaques ($35). Of course, there are also the cement roosters. Then there is the signature work—glazed plates ($17), small vegetable casseroles ($35), large glazed bowls ($50), coasters ($20), large painted bowls ($100), platters glazed in their signature blue ($100), pie plates with painted tulips ($75) and chargers ($100).
When we shopped Chanticleer 2, we found a large platter for $35 ($75 regular price) and a large bowl for $65 (marked down from $125), among other deals.
Not far from Chanticleer 2 is a worthwhile second stop, Arcadia Academy Antiques (128 S. College, Arcadia, 573-546-4139, www.arcadiaacademy.com). The campus started out in the 1840s as Methodist High School. During the Civil War, it was used as a hospital for Union forces. In 1877, the school was purchased by nuns, who ran it as a girls’ day and boarding school until it closed in 1971. According to lore, those nuns still haunt the grounds, supposedly opening and closing doors at night.
In the early days, students came from around the world. A year’s tuition, board and laundry in the early 1900s was $500; music lessons, $72; ballet and tap dancing, $50; the picture-show deposit, $8; and a single room, $50. Today, the convent holds a bed and breakfast, an antique mall of dubious distinction (lots of toys and dolls, oodles of bric-a-brac) and a restaurant called Thee Abbey Kitchen that offers great soups and sandwiches as well as breads you will definitely want to cart home. The Hen House (600 S. Main, 573-546-6869), a nice antique shop, is next door to the Academy.
Shopping aside, the area is steeped in history: Fort Davidson is the site of a Civil War battle waged in late September 1864 in which the Confederates lost nearly 1,000 men in their defeat. Arcadia Valley is also home to Elephant Rocks and Johnson’s Shut-Ins state parks. The latter was deluged when the Taum Sauk Reservoir collapsed in December but is expected to open in a limited capacity on Memorial Day weekend.
Once prosperous, the area’s fortunes have dwindled. The poverty here is palpable. Deteriorating doublewides dot the landscape like dandelions in spring. The area is reputed to be among the state’s highest in unemployment and lowest in literacy.
If you are on Highway 21 heading back north, you will drive through Caledonia, a one-block scenic stop and home to Carr House Antiques (312 S. Main, 573-779-3367), Village Country Store (once known as Stewart McSpadden’s Golden Rule Store, 414 S. Main, 573-779-3907) and the Chocolate Garage Restaurant and Bakery (400 S. State Highway 21, 573-779-8969), located in an old service station. Be sure to call before you go.
