News Release

Natchez Trace Parkway Battle of Ackia Commemoration and Pioneer Day May 26,2018

Brian Mast, living historian, talks to a group of visitors at the Natchez Trace Parkway Visitor Center about the weapons used by the French Marines during the Battle of Ackia.

NPS Photo

News Release Date: May 11, 2018

Contact: Andy Danneker, 662-680-4018

TUPELO, MS:  Historic Site Coordinator Joseph Smith from the Chickasaw Nation and Brian Mast from the Black Belt Museum at the University of West Alabama will present programs at the Natchez Trace Parkway Visitor Center on Saturday, May 26, 2018.
 
Starting at 10:00 am, Smith will present a 30-minute Junior Ranger program entitled “Chickasaw Culture and Life.” Children will learn and discover how the Chickasaw people lived around Tupelo in the 1700s. At 11:30 am, Mast will present at 30-minute Junior Ranger Program entitled “We Want YOU for the French Marines!” Junior Rangers will experience what life was like for a French Marine in 1736. At 1:30 pm, Mast will give a 30-minute talk about the Battle of Ackia from both the French and Chickasaw perspectives and the long-range impacts this battle had on European colonization of the area. Following the programs until 3:00 pm, Smith and Mast will share their knowledge of the time period with visitors of all ages through displays of Chickasaw life and French Marine equipment. 

The Chickasaw prevailed over the French at the Battle of Ackia- known as Hikki’ya’ by the Chickasaw near modern-day Tupelo on May 26, 1736. This victory prevented the further expansion of the French and eventually led to their defeat during the French and Indian War.
 
The Tombigbee Pioneer Group will also demonstrate pioneer-era crafts and skills at the visitor center from 10:00 am until 3:00 pm. The presentations will show the challenges faced and creative solutions developed by those Americans who lived in the area during the early 1800s.

All programs are free to the public. The visitor center is located at milepost 266 on the Natchez Trace Parkway near Tupelo, Mississippi. For additional information, please call 1-800-305-7417.
 
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