Pine Bluff Unveils Trail of Tears Marker on National Remembrance Day
News related to:Pine Bluff Advertising & Promotion Commission · 3 min read
On Wednesday, September 16, 2026, a significant marker unveiling ceremony will take place in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, to commemorate the Trail of Tears. The event, held on National Trail of Tears Remembrance Day, marks the arrival of the last Cherokee detachment in Indian Territory in 1838. The ceremony, organized by the National Park Service, the Arkansas Trail of Tears Association, and the City of Pine Bluff, will be held at the Sgt. Elga Lee Roberts Jefferson County Veterans Service Office, located at 114 South State Street, within the Delta Rhythm & Bayous Cultural District.
The unveiling, scheduled to begin at 11 a.m., will feature a program lasting approximately 45 minutes. The event is free and open to the public, and attendees can expect a blend of historical insights and community engagement. The marker, which will be unveiled, commemorates the removal routes that carried Cherokee, Seminole, Muscogee, Choctaw, and Chickasaw people through Jefferson County between 1830 and 1840. It also pays tribute to two significant figures: John Ross, the Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation, and John Horse, the Black Seminole leader, interpreter, and diplomat.
The Arkansas River, which runs through Pine Bluff, played a crucial role in the Trail of Tears. In the summer of 1838, a party of Seminoles and Black Seminoles, traveling under John Horse, encountered difficulties at Barraque’s Bar, a location near Pine Bluff, aboard the steamboat Swan. They remained there for several days before continuing their journey upstream toward Indian Territory.
In the winter of 1838, the last Cherokee detachment, including Chief John Ross and his family, ascended the Arkansas River on what the National Park Service designates as the water route of the Trail of Tears. During this journey, Ross’s wife, Elizabeth “Quatie” Ross, died aboard a steamboat and is buried at Mount Holly Cemetery in Little Rock.
Between 1830 and 1850, more than 60,000 people were forcibly removed from their homelands in the Southeast. Thousands died during the journey. Jefferson County was not a destination but a place people were forced through, and some did not survive the journey.
The marker unveiling is part of the ongoing work by the Arkansas Trail of Tears Association to research, promote, and protect the Trail of Tears National Historic Trail. The Arkansas Chapter, headquartered in Little Rock, collaborates with the National Park Service, the State of Arkansas, historical societies, and municipalities such as Pine Bluff to ensure that the Trail of Tears is remembered and honored.
The event will feature a variety of speakers, including Jason Irby, President of the Arkansas Trail of Tears Association, who will serve as master of ceremonies. Mayor Vivian Flowers of Pine Bluff will offer the welcome, followed by representatives from the National Park Service who will speak about the Trail of Tears National Historic Trail and the importance of Indigenous history in the nation’s 250th anniversary. Rachel Whitaker, a historian with the Arkansas Trail of Tears Association, will speak about the legacies of John Horse and John Ross and the removal of their peoples.
Sheri Storie, Executive Director of the Pine Bluff Advertising & Promotion Commission, will recognize the partners who brought the marker forward. The unveiling will be led by representatives of the Arkansas Trail of Tears Association, followed by a reading of the marker text and a moment of silence in remembrance of those removed. The Seminole Nation and the Cherokee Nation are invited to offer invocations, blessings, and greetings in their own languages.
The event is part of Arkansas 250, a statewide initiative to commemorate the state’s 250th anniversary. The Pine Bluff Advertising & Promotion Commission, through Explore Pine Bluff, the official destination marketing organization for Pine Bluff, is committed to driving economic vitality and elevating the city’s rich heritage by positioning it as a premier destination for leisure travel, conventions, and cultural events.
The marker will serve as a touchstone of history for generations to come, ensuring that the Trail of Tears is never forgotten. It is a testament to the ongoing efforts to preserve and honor this significant chapter in American history.