After Two Decades, Chickasaw Cultural Center Opens
SULPHUR, Okla. (AP) - For generations, members of the Chickasaw Nation told the tribe's stories of hardship and renewal through its families, community organizations and churches. Now others can get a glimpse of the tribe's history - from their ancestral homelands in the southeastern United States to the Trail of Tears and what would become Oklahoma. The tribe opened the $40 million Chickasaw Cultural Center in July. Among its features are a 350-seat theater and an historical exhibit that includes a long hallway known as the "Removal" exhibit. That exhibit tells the story of the Trail of Tears - the forced movement of the Chickasaws and other tribes to what is now Oklahoma in the 1830s. Tribe historian Phil Morgan says the center makes the statement that the tribe has survived and will continue to do so.