Hosted by AmericanTrails.org

NPS Solicits Public Input for Trail of Tears National Historic Trail

National Park Service will hold public meetings on Trail of Tears National Historic Trail Additional Routes Feasibility Studyy

Members of the public are invited to help the National Park Service evaluate the possibility of adding more routes to the existing Trail of Tears National Historic Trail during a series of twelve scoping meetings in July.

The public meetings (please refer to schedule below) will be held in communities along the various proposed routes. The National Park Service invites everyone with an interest in the trail and its history, possibilities for recreation and heritage tourism, resource protection, and other opportunities along the routes to attend one or more of the scoping meetings.

Interested persons may also submit comments in writing, by email, or though the webpage, http://parkplanning.nps.gov from July 9 to August 9, 2007. Written comments should be addressed to John Conoboy, National Trails System Office, National Park Service, P.O. Box 728, Santa Fe, NM 87504, or through email at lodi_administration@nps.gov. Anyone needing the services of a sign language interpreter for persons with hearing disabilities should contact the National Trails System Office at 505-988-6012 prior to June 10.

Comments provided by the public during this scoping phase will be considered by the National Park Service as it prepares a feasibility study of the additional routes, as required by Congress. Congress, in turn, will consider the study's recommendations in deciding whether to add more trail segments to the existing Trail of Tears National Historic Trail

The inclusion of the additional trail segments could add thousands of miles to the existing Northern and Water Routes as well as provide a more complete and accurate story of the Cherokee removal. If the routes are designated, the National Park Service would work in cooperation with other federal, state, and local agencies, private organizations, landowners, and others to tell the trail story and provide opportunities for people to visit important sites along the route. Land ownership and private property rights along the trail would not be affected by Trail of Tears designation. Participation of land owners and managers in trail-related projects would be voluntary.

Designated by Congress in 1987, the Trail of Tears National Historic Trail commemorates the tragic story of Cherokee removal as mandated by the Indian Removal Act of 1830. Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Muscogee (Creek), and Seminole tribes were all forced to relocate to Indian Territory, now known as the State of Oklahoma. Over 4,000 Indian people died as a result of this forced relocation. Please refer to the attached newsletter for more information about the Trail of Tears National Historic Trail and the Feasibility Study.

Public scoping meetings will be held at the following locations:

July 10 - Murphy, North Carolina

Murphy Public Library

4pm - 9 Blumenthal Street

July 11 - Chattanooga, Tennessee

Development Resource Center

1pm - 1250 Market Street

July 11 - Calhoun, Georgia

Gordon Cnty. Chamber of Commerce

5:30pm - 300 S. Wall Street

July 12 - Fort Payne, Alabama

DeKalb Theater

11am - 306 Gault Avenue North

July 12 - Sheffield, Alabama

Sheffield Recreation Center

5:30pm - 2901 E. 19th Avenue

July 13 - Pulaski, Tennessee

City Hall, Council Room

1pm - 203 S. 1st Street

July 14 - Memphis, Tennessee

Holiday Inn Select, Magnolia Room

1pm - 160 Union Avenue

July 16 - Mayfield, Kentucky

Graves County Public Library

11am - 601 N. 17th Street

July 16 - Poplar Bluff, Missouri

Poplar Bluff Chamber of Commerce

5:30pm - 1111 W. Pine Street

July 17 - Batesville, Arkansas

Old Independence Regional Museum

1pm - 380 S. 9th Street

July 18 - Little Rock, Arkansas

Historic Arkansas Museum

Ottenheimer Theater

1pm - 200 E. 3rd Street

July 19 - Tahlequah, Oklahoma

Cherokee Nation Tribal Complex

1pm - 17675 S. Muskogee Avenue

More resources:

Bibliography
Quotations
Glossary
Acronyms
Tools
Trailbuilding
Wildlife and trails
Planning
Maintenance
Volunteers
Products & services

Do you need training?
Do you have training opportunities you'd like to publicize?
Are you a trails expert who can teach trail skills to others?
The National Trails Training Partnership wants to work with you to make training more available.

Contact us!