Discovering the Thomas Nuttall Exploration Journeys in Eastern Oklahoma

The Kiamichi Technology Center and Dr. Steve Patterson offered a tour of the trails that Thomas Nuttall followed when he explored, made observations, and collected specimens in what was then Indian Territory. We started the journey at Ft. Smith at the old fort where a Ranger, Cody Faber, led a tour of the fort ruins and what life was like in 1819. The journey into the Indian Territory came during a time when the Osage and Cherokee Nations were at war, so travel in that part of the country was not always safe. This is described in Nuttall’s Journal starting at Chapter VIII. Be sure to read all of the journal since it is a very good description of his journey from back east, Philadelphia, to Indian Territory and identifies the various ecosystems along the way.

As a class we discussed Nuttall’s descriptions of the land, river, and vegetation and how much it has changed since then. During several stops we were able to see the restorations that are now taking place and discuss the process with the responsible persons.

Viewing the area surrounding the Fort gave us some perspective of the daunting task to explore the area along the Poteau River as it separates from the Arkansas River and winds into Indian Territory. We were able to read the descriptions in the Journal and discuss this with the Ranger leading the tour. Several stories of the life and times of the old fort were shared by the Ranger.

In Ft. Smith at the Ben Geren Golf Course the Course Manager, Jay Randolph, is returning the rough areas to native plants. This is working well and accepted not only by the golfers but also by the State Managers. It seems that the savings on water and mowing are well worth the effort to restore to native plants. During the tour we were pleased to see a Bald Eagle near the Lake on the west side of the property. We were not quick enough to get a picture though.

During the trip to the next stop we discussed the “seven mile” prairie that is now industrial Fort Smith.

We were able to visit a Farm near Gilmore and see some fields that the Pickle Family has maintained as hay fields with native grasses long term. There we discussed the theories of the formation of prairie mounds found in the area. We also were able to see old wagon roads, long since overgrown and worn flat. We were able to see one old trail that retains the appearance of a wagon trail near Gap Creek.

During the travel back to Poteau we were able to discuss the landmarks of Sugar Loaf Mountain and Cavanal Hill and how Nuttall described them in his journal. There are some local legends associated with Kully Chaha (high spring), also called hotel spring, on Sugar Loaf Mountain, however we did not venture up the mountain to verify.

We then followed the Poteau River back towards the Kerr Ranch. We met with David Redhage, and he shared the activities that the Kerr Ranch and Kerr Center are using to return the native grasses and maintain the land as it was in Nuttall’s time. We spent a little time near Beaver Lake, a horseshoe bend lake that was formed by the stream changes in the Poteau River. We identified several native grasses and plants that are carefully maintained by the Kerr Ranch Staff.

All the participants were very impressed by the scope of the tour and the knowledge of the leader and the presenters at each stop. In 2019 the tour will be special since this is the 200th anniversary of Thomas Nuttall’s start of his journeys through this area. There are some plans to even develop a float trip up the Poteau River in coordination with the land tour.

Nancy and I also recommend that anyone that participates in the tour read Thomas Nuttall’s journal of travels into the Arkansas Territory during the year 1819. This will bring the places discussed in the tour come to life as they were in 1819.