It's Day 320.....it's also March 21...2020...and we are in Marion Arkansas

It's Day 320.....it's also March 21...2020...and we are in Marion Arkansas

We continued our trek west on Alabama Hwy 78, crossing over into Mississippi by mid morning.

While rolling through the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains I noticed another shift early on in Mississippi.

The roadside greenery was... suddenly injected with a blast of color...thoe cherry blossoms were back .....and we learned....that Macon....and Georgia....well they're not the only ones that know how to put on a show in these parts...and that pop of color in contrast to the greenery.....ahh....is stunning.

Next stop… Tupelo Mississippi....and a bit of a fun twist.....we had stopped for gas.... and as we pulled out of the gas station....headed back out to the hiway...well...a big ol sign....complete with arrow directing us to the birthplace of Elvis Presley....

Of course we followed that arrow…I mean cummon...who wouldn’t?

While I did grow up listening to Elvis Presley via the extensive record (yes, that’s record…as in vinyl) collection of my moms....but I guess I never truly graduated to “fan” status because I had no clue that he was born in Tupelo Mississippi. ....until right now.

Graceland, as in Memphis Tennessee, is all I ever really internalized and remembered. None-the-less….here I am.... in east Tupelo Mississippi…taking photo’s of the house Elvis was born in.

And all the while....flash backs in time.....1978 ...... North Branch Minnesota....baby sitter dropped off....and mom gone to work....within minutes...that 17 year old babysitter (apparently a big Elvis fan)...my brother and I ...... record player out....hairbrushes in hand....belting out Elvis songs....as if were 1957. And of course....my favorite.... when I hopped on bed...star of the show....for Jail House Rock.

A 14 year old kid....with not the least of a notion.....that 42 years later.....He'd stand in the courtyard....built around what is now a museum....looking at....and into....a history....of pop culture in America.

Learning....that in 1934....an 18 year old guy named Vernon...Presley....newly married....borrowed 180 bucks from his boss.....and with the help of his dad...and brother....they built this house. Simple as simple could be...kitchen, bathroom....living room and bedroom...single light bulb in each room....all they needed....and just in time....because in 1935....they'd welcome a son into Tupelo... and name him Elvis ..... Daddy Vernans middle name......and the rest...as they say....is history. By the 50's.....Elvis had a new name...the king of rock and roll. Shortly after that....one of the most recognizable names...on the planet.

Ahhh.....good times.....

And 100 miles up the road, leaving Mississippi and entering Tennessee, the first sign I saw....directed me to Graceland…but with everything shutting down...pandemic and all…we had to skip that exit. ...next time for sure

Instead, we skirted Memphis working to avoid traffic.

Our time in Tennessee.... would be short lived as just a couple miles beyond the Tennessee welcome center, we crossed the Mississippi River into Arkansas.

And more shifts in scenery.....the Pine tree lined highway through rolling hills almost instantly... flattened out on the Arkansas side, replaced with the distant horizon lined no longer with the greenery of pines trees and budding poplars…but instead, endless rows of oak and maple still dormant and filling the skyline with a much more wintery feel....Arkansas....hasn't quite gotten around to spring yet.... It does not help that the temperatures are dropping rapidly as we move northwest and into....yet another....series of spring thunder showers....I'm missin St. Mary's more with every mile.....and having clocked nearly 200 of 'em for the day......we found a spot to park for the night in Marion Arkansas. Snapped a few photo's of that Arkansas horizon....

And with each update on this pandemic thing....not so good....just this morning....I'd learn that ... something like 16 or 17 states had issued these "Stay at Home" order thingys.....and over 40 states have begun shutting down certain types of businesses....Concerts....Sporting events....any activity that could bring large crowds together. The NBA, NFL......well pretty much every major Sport Organizaion from what I can tell....has postponed all public activity...indefinitely......the NFL the other day said that their scheduled draft activity would be held virtually....wow.

I had asked the cashier at the gas station in Tupelo this morning what he had heard about any of this......he just sorta shrugged....said the governer had issued a state of emergency....he said he really wasn't sure what that meant....wash your a lot I guess......he said....so far....seems like business as usual around here.....and he was right....it did seem like that.....in Mississippi anyways.....

We'd found our spot for the night....not a very cool one....more utilitarian....it'll get the job done.....some sorta big paved parking area....tons a trucks.....not a rest stop.... not a truck stop....but clearly a popular spot....truckers around here sure use it for some shut eye...

For us....we'll use it to ride out the rains some.....do some reading..... grab some shut eye....

We'd just passed thru so much....Macon....Birmingham....Tupelo....Memphis...and yep...my brain was doin it again...music......Hard to treck across Georgia....Arkansas.....walk through the birthplace of Elvis...and drive by Memphis.... and not have the area's music...in my head........before I knew it.....

Then I'm Walkin in Memphis....Walkin with my feet 10 feet off the Beale....Walkin in Memphis....but do I really feel the way I feel?

I'm a little past Little Rock.....further down the line.....to soon to know what's up ahead....to late to change my mind.....

Thats the night that the lights went out in Georgia....Thats the night that they hung an innocent man.....

maybe it was memphis...maybe it was southern summer nights...maybe it was you...maybe it was me....but it sure felt right.........oh my gosh.....crazy....how fast my head filled up....

So pullin in here tonight....I wondered....how many are there...really....songs written about....or inspired by this American South....and now...I know.....a lot....typed a few keywords into the internet and poof....hundreds....

Memphis, Tennessee"

Midnight Train to Memphis" by Chris Stapleton:

Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again" by Bob Dylan:

Memphis Beat" by Jerry Lee Lewis:

Graceland" by Paul Simon:

Big River" by Johnny Cash

That's How I Got to Memphis" by Tom T. Hall:

Georgia on My Mind" by Ray Charles:

Midnight Train to Georgia" by Gladys Knight & The Pips:

The Devil Went Down to Georgia" by The Charlie Daniels Band:

Ramblin' Man" by The Allman Brothers Band:

Walkin' Back to Georgia" by Jim Croce:

I think hundreds of them.........

Enough of that...I thought......Dougie and I got an evening walk comin up.....and Dougie may be used to Dad randomly burstin into song......but we gotta bunch trucker neighbors here....and we do not need witnesses to my silliness

And besides....Marion Arkansas? And just like back in Guin Alabama....I only knew exactly where I after my phone told me....And you'd think....a town of some 14 thousand folks....on the banks of the Mississippi River....smak dab in the middle.....of West Memphis Arkansas.......and Memphis Tennessee....might struggle....to have an identity....a history of it's own.....But not Marion...

This place was incorported 124 years ago....in 1896....but it's history goes back much further...

The area's first inhabitants ad more names to the list of Native Americans we've learned about....here...the Osage, Omaha, Ponca, Kansa.... (Ponca: Pronounced "PONG-kah"Kansa: Pronounced "KAHN-zah")and Quawpaw

The spanish would arrive in the area in the 1500's....The region would part of the Spanish Louisianna ....or New Spain....territory all the way up to 1803. The Spanish had actually begun issuing land grants.....but then....that secret deal between Spain and France....just in time....for the area to join the US...as part of the Louisianna Purchase.

Marion....was named for Marion Tolbert.....and early resident that donated the land....that would become home to the Crittenden County Courthouse....The original courthouse was a framed structure built in 1836 to serve as the county courthouse as Marion became the county seat. That structure would be burned in January of 1865.....by confederate soldiers.....weird....since Marion was part of the confederacy....but apparently....Union troops had begun siezing courthouses throughout the south.....they had determined that the documents contained in these court houses were valuable to the war effort.....So Crittenden would fall victim to it's very own confederate forces....in an effort to prevent union capture.....hmmm ..... I wondered....couldn't they have just hidden the documents....I mean ....burn the whole building down?.... Interesting.....I guess there were where concerns that the enemy could also occupy the building and utilize it in other ways....so maybe....I dunno...war....crazy times....

But in the end....Marion....and Crittendon County would come back..... and drop 100k this time....in 1873....when A two-story brick courthouse would open it's doors and resume the tasks of running a county.....but guess what.....in 1909.....an electrical fault in the buildings 36 year old wiring....would take the building out again....total loss.,,,,,man....that poor courthouse....couldn't catch a break.....but the folks in Marion....not the sort to give up...and But by 1911.....the current courthouse would be up and running again....this time....in the classical Revival Style of architecture.

But through all this.....and regardless from which structure.....Marion would maintain it's role as the county seat.....and hub of county government from way back there in 1836....to today.....I84 years........ and in 1977..... the courthouse....would be placed on the National Register of historic places.

Next....in Marion Arkansas.... I read....Trail of Tears..I'd remembered reading of the Trail of Tears....even back in New Mexico....and Texas......another dark period....in American History. When acts that would be considered genocidal..... by any of todays standard.s...would be inflicted on "The Five Civilized Tribes".....a term applied by the US Government to the Cherokee, Muscogee (or Creek....and they were called back in Georgia)....The Seminole, Chickasaw and Chocktaw nations.

Over a span of 20 some years...beginning in 1830......a forced relocation program would be put in place and enforced by US Troops. Native Americans would be forced from their homelands to travel...on foot....to a region the US would call.....the New Indian Territory. We call it...Oklahoma...Some of these native americans would walk thousands of miles....That trail would see some 60....to 100,000 Native Americans pass through over those twenty years. Along the way....Countless would die from exposure, disease, even starvation. I'd also learn that..... Beginning with George Washington.....Native Americans had been defined...by the us government, as biologically equal.....but as a society...inferior....this belief...continuing through the Jefferson administration...and clearly beyond....is the rationale.... That the US government would use...to justify their treatment of native americans.....The government would actually refer to the process of forced relocation as "civilization".....The Cherokee....on the other hand....would coin the phrase...Trail of Tears.....

One stretch of the Trail of tears....referred to as The Bell Route passed through Marion on its way to that new Indian Territory. Parts of the trail have been restored, and preserved....marked with historical markers....one of which is right here in Marion.

Ahh....a lot to absorb.....so much stuff.....and certainly makes one feel grateful for how far we've come...whats been done.....but at the same time.....realizing the importance of knowing....not forgetting....and....gettin some more done.

I'd also read....that Arkansas changed it's official Nickname..... From....the land opportunity...to:

The Natural State" Seems Arkansans...wants to highlight the state's natural beauty and abundant outdoor recreational opportunities. States got a little of most everything.... mountains....forests...rivers and lakes.....The state also wanted to underscore the fact that they are committed to preserving these natural resources....for generations to come. They use the term....eco tourism around here a lot.....I'll look up later.

Getting tired....

Looking forward to seeing what “The Natural State” has in store for us tomorrow….and I wonder what we'll learn there