A New Home in the West -- Talimena National Scenic Byway, Polk Co. AR - Signs of History on Waymarking.com

In 1877 the US government undertook a survey to mark the border between the United States (Arkansas) and the various Indian tribes that had been assigned lands in Indian Territory, which was not officially part of the US, Indian Territory being sovereign tribal lands given the tribes by the US government after they were forcibly removed by the Government in the 1830s, a shameful episode now known as the Trail of Tears.

A sign near this monument reads as follows:

"A NEW HOME IN THE WEST
When Push came to shove

You are standing on the boundary of what was once 2 separate nations. Before this became the Arkansas and Oklahoma state line, this was the boundary between the United States and the Choctaw nation.

Shortly after the American Revolution, people from the original 13 colonies poured into the rest of the continent. The Choctaws and other native peoples living in the South and East were overwhelmed by white settlers.

In 1801, Thomas Jefferson started a push to move native people west. The push turns to shove when Andrew Jackson signed the Indian removal act of 1830. In the fall of 1831, the United States government began moving the Choctaw people to their new home in Oklahoma. The Choctaws were followed by the rest of the 5 civilized Tribes, Cherokees, the Chickashaws, the Creeks, and the Seminoles.

[Map of Trail of Tears Routes]

epidemics of deadly diseases, the worst blizzard at the century, and inadequate food supplies plagued to the Choctaws. An estimated one fifth of those who made the trip died along the way, or shortly after reaching their new home."

Group that erected the marker: National Park Service URL of a web site with more information about the history mentioned on the sign: [Web Link] Address of where the marker is located. Approximate if necessary: OK-AR state line Talimena Scenic DriveAR

Visit Instructions:
Take a picture of the marker, preferably including yourself or your GPSr in the photo. A very detailed description of your visit may be substituted for a photo. In any case please provide a description of your visit. A description of only "Visited" or "Saw it while on vacation" by anyone other than the person creating the waymark may be deleted by the waymark owner or the category officers.

Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log   11/11/2017 Benchmark Blasterz visited it