Russellville Area Chamber of Commerce

Date: 8/25/2018
Time: 1:00 PM TO 3:30 PM

Lake Dardanelle State Park
100 State Park Drive
Russellville, AR 72802

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Event Description: The public is welcome and encouraged to attend the meeting. The business meeting will commence at 1:00 p.m. with President Bethany Henry Rosenbaum presiding. At 1:30 p.m. Ryan Spring, director of GIS and GPS specialist with the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, will present a program entitled, "Choctaw Removals through the Dardanelle Area: 1831-1850." As Spring points out, "After the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek, Choctaw people were instructed to leave their homes in Mississippi and Alabama. This meant each family not only stood to lose their homes, but areas rich in generational knowledge passed down for thousands of years. This significantly impacted Choctaw people’s relationship with the land. And this happened not just in the 1830s, but on into the next century with subsequent removals." In his presentation, Spring will discuss removals that went through Dardanelle during 1831-1850 with descriptions of these routes and historical accounts; special emphasis will be given to the lesser known 1840s Trail of Tears routes. A recent discovery of a Trail of Tears song, composed in 1831, will also be highlighted. "I hope participants will leave not just with a mere understanding of the history of these removals, but the essence of the loss the Choctaw people faced in walking away from everything they knew," Spring said. After Spring's talk, we will visit sites within Lake Dardanelle State Park associated with the Trail of Tears. Questions? Email ARTOTA Vice President and Lake Dardanelle State Park Interpreter Sasha Bowles or call her at the park, 479-967-5516.


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