Talk to detail forced moves by Choctaws

The Arkansas Chapter of the Trail of Tears Association will host its annual meeting at Lake Dardanelle State Park in Russellville from 1 p.m.-3:30 p.m. on Aug. 25

The public can attend. The business meeting is scheduled to start at 1 p.m. with President Bethany Henry Rosenbaum speaking.

At 1:30 p.m., Ryan Spring of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma will present a program titled “Choctaw Removals through the Dardanelle Area: 1831-1850.”

“After the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek, Choctaw people were instructed to leave their homes in Mississippi and Alabama,” Spring said in a news release. “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.”

Spring will discuss removal of people that went through Dardanelle during 1831-1850, with descriptions of the routes and historical accounts. In his presentation, a special emphasis will be given to lesser known 1840s Trail of Tears routes.

Also, a recent discovery of a Trail of Tears song, composed in 1831, will be presented.

After Spring’s presentation, attendees will have an opportunity to visit sites within Lake Dardanelle State Park associated with the Trail of Tears.

More information is available from Arkansas Chapter of the Trail of Tears Association Vice President and Lake Dardanelle State Park Interpreter Sasha Bowles at sasha.bowles@arkansas.gov or by phone at (479) 9675516.