Press Releases

Join a Park Ranger for a Wildflower Walk on Saturday, April 7, 2012, at 10:00 am at the Chickasaw Village Site (milepost 261.8 on the Natchez Trace Parkway near Tupelo, Mississippi). This one hour program will take participants on an easy walk through both prairie and forest ecosystems, and will include wildflower identification and ecology. Visitors are encouraged to bring insect repellent, sunscreen, and wear comfortable walking shoes.

A special program of dulcimer music will be provided by the North Mississippi Dulcimer Association from 10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, April 7, 2012, at the Parkway Visitor Center located at milepost 266 near Tupelo, Mississippi.

The Natchez Trace National Scenic Trail across from the Parkway Visitor Center (milepost 266), the Chickasaw Village Site (milepost 261.8), near Black Belt Overlook (milepost 250 to 252), Chickasaw Agency (milepost 241), and Tishomingo State Park (milepost 304-305). Visitors can expect trails to be temporarily closed during these burns. The public can expect to see fire and smoke.

The National Park Service will be closing an 8-mile section of the Natchez Trace Parkway to vehicular traffic on March 14, 2012, due to a major safety hazard that has developed near milepost 94.8 between Ridgeland, MS, and Clinton, MS.

The Tombigbee Pioneer Group will perform living history demonstrations that show the challenges faced and creative solutions developed by those Americans who lived in the area from the 1700s to 1840. The demonstrations will take place at the Natchez Trace Parkway Visitor Center (located at milepost 266 near Tupelo, Mississippi) from 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 24, 2012.

A special program of dulcimer music will be provided by the North Mississippi Dulcimer Association from 10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 10, 2012, at the Parkway Visitor Center located at milepost 266 near Tupelo, Mississippi.

The Tombigbee Pioneer Group will perform living history demonstrations that show the challenges faced and creative solutions developed by those Americans who lived in the area from the 1700s to 1840. The demonstrations will take place at the Natchez Trace Parkway Visitor Center (located at milepost 266 near Tupelo, Mississippi) from 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, February 25, 2012. The public is invited to watch pioneer lifestyle activities that often include corn-shuck doll making, basket weaving, beading, and quill pen demonstrations. Leatherworking and mountain dulcimer demonstrations will also be offered throughout the day. Children are invited to participate by dressing up in pioneer clothes and trying these activities firsthand.

A special program of dulcimer music will be provided by the North Mississippi Dulcimer Association from 10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, February 18, 2012, at the Parkway Visitor Center located at milepost 266 near Tupelo, Mississippi.

TUPELO, MS – Discover what life may have been like for a member of the U.S. Colored Troops (USCT) during the Civil War on Saturday, February 11, 2012, at 10:00 a.m. at the Natchez Trace Parkway Visitor Center. In celebration of Black History Month, a ranger in USCT dress will present “Will They Fight,” giving families the opportunity to hear about the challenges African American soldiers faced. Visitors can also see a soldier’s equipment and watch a non-firing musket demonstration.

A special program of dulcimer music will be provided by the North Mississippi Dulcimer Association from 10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, January 14, 2012, at the Parkway Visitor Center located at milepost 266 near Tupelo, Mississippi.