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10,000 Years of History:
The Natchez Trace Parkway is a gift waiting to be enjoyed. The highway's graceful curves and lower speeds slow down the pace of daily life.
A sense of discovery replaced everyday concerns. Up ahead, around that bend, nestled in the Parkway's tunnels of trees are dozens of scenes from 10,000 years of history.
Take time to stop and explore. Rediscover the past. Accept this gift, and meet the people and cultures forever linked to the Natchez Trace.
Trails to Trace:
The Natchez Trace Parkway is the last of many names given to one of North America's most historic transportation corridors. Each name suggests who traveled this ancient, braided ribbon of trails first created by animals.
Some called portions the Chickasaw Trail or the Path to the Choctaw Nation. In the early 1800s, it became the Boatmen's Trail and the Mail Room. WHen trade and travel shifted to river steamboats, sections of the Trace became local roads while others faded into the natural landscape.
Trace to Parkway:
It was local residents who kept the history of Natchez Trace alive. In the 1930s, their interest in preserving the legacy of the Trace captured the attention of Congress.
First, the federal government approved a survey of the meandering path. Then, in 1938, President Franklin Roosevelt signed the law creating the Natchez Trace Parkway.
Completed in 2005, the Parkway is the latest chapter in centuries old stories of trade, travel, and homeland. Preserved by the National Park Service, those stories live on. Discover them for yourself. |