By STEVE EIGHINGER

Herald-Whig Staff Writer

HANNIBAL, Mo. -- Flood? What flood?

That topic seemed to be entirely taboo Friday during the National Tom Sawyer Days festival that engulfed the city's downtown area.

Big crowds moved throughout the celebration's epicenter at Central Park, where 139 different vendors have set up shop this week. A nearby carnival and the usual beehive of activity in the city's historic district along the riverfront were the other principal attractions.

There were even traffic jams, which meant tourism was booming again in America's Hometown.

"You couldn't have gotten another person in here earlier today," said Gary Riney of the Hannibal Evening Kiwanis Club, whose group was selli ...

By STEVE EIGHINGER

Herald-Whig Staff Writer

HANNIBAL, Mo. -- Flood? What flood?

That topic seemed to be entirely taboo Friday during the National Tom Sawyer Days festival that engulfed the city's downtown area.

Big crowds moved throughout the celebration's epicenter at Central Park, where 139 different vendors have set up shop this week. A nearby carnival and the usual beehive of activity in the city's historic district along the riverfront were the other principal attr ...