Today in History for Dec. 24: In 1524, Vasco da Gama, the Portuguese navigator who found the sea route from Europe to the East, died in Cochin, India. In 1781, Canada's first Christmas tree was ...

That’s Washington State Park in De Soto, Missouri. Just about an hour’s drive southwest of St. Louis sits this 2,147-acre natural wonderland that somehow remains one of Missouri’s best-kept secrets.