Joplin Number Plate Mural

National Tourism Week kicked off Monday and the Missouri Welcome Center hopes to inspire people to travel.

The Welcome Center on I-44 is home to a mural consisting of 500 license plates that spell out “Joplin”.

All 50 states are represented on the mural that was finished last November.

The artist, Matthew Dehaemers, says he was inspired by the license plate game when he was kid and hopes tourists enjoy his work.

“The idea is this might inspire somebody who may not have wanted to stop off to actually be curious to ask about one of these areas,” Dehaemers tells us. “This might make them want to stop and check something out that they may not otherwise been interested in.”