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Lowell Davis art at Red Oak II, near Carthage, MO
Red Oak II is the name of this little make shift townsite, created from transplanted vintage / historic buildings that were relocated from around the area. It was the brainchild of local artist Lowell Davis, aka the Norman Rockwell of Rural Art.
Mr. Davis grew up in the original nearby community of Red Oak, Missouri. In the 1950s he left the area to join the military, and then lived in the Dallas, TX area working as an art director and cartoonist, before returning to Missouri in the 1970s. Upon his return, he found that Red Oak had become no more than a ghost town. He started a farm, which acted as inspiration for his art, and began moving old buildings from Red Oak, along nearby Route 66, and other surrounding areas, to his farm where he restored them to create Red Oak II. Among the buildings moved are two Route 66 era gas stations, the general store he grew up in, his grandfather's blacksmith shop, a church, school house, numerous farmhouses, and more. The church currently hosts music every Saturday night and church services on Sunday Morning. Mr Davis passed away in November 2020 and is buried in the cemetery at Red Oak II. Many of his sculptures and signs can be seen on display around the area and throughout the town of Carthage.
Red Oak II website - https://www.redoakiimissouri.com/
an interview with Lowell Davis -https://www.routemagazine.us/stories/looking-back
https://www.lowelldaviscollectors.com/
Includes pictures and his obituary - https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/217951234/lowell_j-davis