June 7

Trail of Tears State Park Visitor Center

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Cape Girardeau Conservation Nature Center

Cape Girardeau, Missouri

 

Trail of Tears State Park is a certified site on the Trail of Tears National Historic Trail, commemorating the forced relocation of the Cherokee to Oklahoma. 

The interpretive center has exhibits that detail this tragedy.

The Trail of Tears National Historic Trail covers nine states and thousands of miles of land and water routes.

 

Thousands of men, women, and children from the Cherokee, Muscogee, Choctaw, Ponca and Seminole nations (collectively referred to as the Five Civilized Tribes) were forcibly moved from their homes to stockades and internment camps, after which they walked hundreds of miles to Indian Territory beginning in 1831.  There was a high rate of illness, widespread desertion and hundreds of deaths due to the harsh conditions.

This shameful time in American history was due to passage of the Indian Removal Act of 1830 which authorized the government to extinguish Indian title to lands in the southeast.  It came about because American settlers had begun pressuring the federal government to remove Indians from the Southeast as the settlers were encroaching on Indian lands. 

One Choctaw leader remarked that the removal was “A Trail of Tears and Deaths.” 

The Cape Girardeau Conservation Nature Center offers hands-on exhibits, a scientific research laboratory, freshwater aquariums, an indoor wildlife viewing area and an indoor beehive and interactive exhibits.

Opened in 2005, the facility showcases the rich cultural history and diverse natural resources of Southeast Missouri. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Every Thursday the center has a “feeding frenzy” while visitors look on as they staff feed the center’s resident reptiles, amphibians and fish.  We hadn’t known about the feeding frenzy prior to our visit but we were glad that we chose a Thursday to visit even though watching snakes swallow mice whole is a little gruesome. 

 

 

 

According to the centers manager, “A lot of people ask us what the feeding routine is for our resident animal educators.  Watching how the animals eat can help people understand what they need in the natural habitat and gain a better understanding of the different animal species.  Watching animals eat is exciting, because you can really learn how they move and see them in action.”

 

 

 

 

 

The reptiles, amphibians and fish are fed a smorgasbord of crickets, worms, mice and minnows.