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MINDENMINES, Mo. —
There are still a few acres of tall grass prairie left in the Midwest, and several thousand visitors spent the day at Prairie State Park in Missouri Saturday to see what life was like for the settlers and Native Americans who lived here 150 years ago.
The park, which has the largest tract of tallgrass prairie left in Missouri, hosts Prairie Jubilee every two years, and re-enactors come from Kansas, Oklahoma and Missouri to help out. The tourists followed a living history loop, learning how pioneers traveled in wagon trains, how cannon fuses work, how Native Americans designed their weapons and how medicine shows were conducted, among other activities. They also got to get up close and personal with the Park’s resident bison herd and eat bison burgers. There were so many visitors that volunteers had to shuttle them in from a parking lot a half mile away.
“We usually get about 1,000 visitors, but I think this year we might go over that,” park resource steward Brian Miller said. “Conservation seems like a prominent theme now, and this is a way we can bring our natural and cultural resources together.”
Pittsburg resident Megan Corrigan and her boyfriend, Wayne Bockelman, came to see what was up at the park.
“I’ve never been here before,” Corrigan said after they tried using an atlatl — a device used to throw spears with more velocity and accuracy. “It seems like everyone’s here.”
Corrigan, who is a history buff, said she enjoyed the Osage lodge a lot.
“I feel like I know more about cowboys and the Civil War, but not that much about Native Americans,” she said.
Bockelman said he appreciated the time the re-enactors put into their craft.
“I like the fact that people are taking interest in history,” he said. “It’s a great way to learn things.”
Morrisville, Mo., resident Matthew Morris brought his family for an educational adventure.
“We thought it would be a great day to come out and have some fun with the family,” Morris said.
His wife, Kate, agreed.
“I’ve never seen live bison before,” she said. “It was really cool. We ate some bison, too, and it was pretty good.”
Edna, Kan., residents and wagon train re-enactors Richard and Kim Elliott took a unique route to the park; they took an overland route with several other re-enactors in their wagon. Their more than 18-mile trip from near Nashville, Mo., took more than six hours.
There are still a few acres of tall grass prairie left in the Midwest, and several thousand visitors spent the day at Prairie State Park in Missouri Saturday to see what life was like for the settlers and Native Americans who lived here 150 years ago.
The park, which has the largest tract of tallgrass prairie left in Missouri, hosts Prairie Jubilee every two years, and re-enactors come from Kansas, Oklahoma and Missouri to help out. The tourists followed a living history loop, learning how pioneers traveled in wagon trains, how cannon fuses work, how Native Americans designed their weapons and how medicine shows were conducted, among other activities. They also got to get up close and personal with the Park’s resident bison herd and eat bison burgers. There were so many visitors that volunteers had to shuttle them in from a parking lot a half mile away.
“We usually get about 1,000 visitors, but I think this year we might go over that,” park resource steward Brian Miller said. “Conservation seems like a prominent theme now, and this is a way we can bring our natural and cultural resources together.”
Pittsburg resident Megan Corrigan and her boyfriend, Wayne Bockelman, came to see what was up at the park.
“I’ve never been here before,” Corrigan said after they tried using an atlatl — a device used to throw spears with more velocity and accuracy. “It seems like everyone’s here.”
Corrigan, who is a history buff, said she enjoyed the Osage lodge a lot.
“I feel like I know more about cowboys and the Civil War, but not that much about Native Americans,” she said.
Bockelman said he appreciated the time the re-enactors put into their craft.
“I like the fact that people are taking interest in history,” he said. “It’s a great way to learn things.”
Morrisville, Mo., resident Matthew Morris brought his family for an educational adventure.
“We thought it would be a great day to come out and have some fun with the family,” Morris said.
His wife, Kate, agreed.
“I’ve never seen live bison before,” she said. “It was really cool. We ate some bison, too, and it was pretty good.”
Edna, Kan., residents and wagon train re-enactors Richard and Kim Elliott took a unique route to the park; they took an overland route with several other re-enactors in their wagon. Their more than 18-mile trip from near Nashville, Mo., took more than six hours.
“When you get into a wagon, you’re surprised by what you miss when you’re going down the road in a car,” said Richard, who has been a re-enactor in several western-themed movies.
Richard said wagon travel has given him a unique perspective on modern life, and how different life was just 150 years ago.
“I was trying to pack just for a weekend and it was hard enough,” he said. “Those people were relocating for life with everything they had. I don’t know how they did it.”
Richard’s wife, Kim, said she loves re-enacting with her husband and friends.
“When you top a hill and see the open prairie and bison, it’s amazing,” she said, adding that she’s a Little House on the Prairie fanatic. “It’s something I always wanted to do. You learn something the whole time you’re doing it.”
For the Elliotts, re-enacting is a way of life.
“It’s the peace, the quiet and getting away from the hustle and bustle of real life,” Richard said. “There’s camaraderie in being with your friends and making fun of each other and telling jokes around the fire.”
