A location in Florida - Let's Cheer the Lowly Possum
A location in Florida - Let's Cheer the Lowly Possum
Blog Article
There's a devote Florida that designed a 12-foot-substantial monument in the center of city to exalt the lowly possum. Now, why would any individual might love to do that?
Effectively, to begin with, heroes are tough to acquire on this set in position Florida - the Panhandle town of Wausau, house of much less than five hundred persons in the middle of Washington County about 10 miles south of Chipley.
Why not the possum, an not likely hero as you should expect? No one else places the possum about a pedestal. Why don't you Wausau?
Secondly, again in 1982, Wausau obtained fed up with remaining left out Along with the Florida lists of fun, fairs and festivals. Each and every put in place Florida requires a Competition. Rather than just one put set up Florida has a Possum Festival. Why don't you Wausau?
If you have not been to Washington County, you probably will Feel I am building this up. Should you have been to Washington County, you may recognize - and know that is a legitimate Tale.
Wausau, it proved, experienced some pretty effective possum politicians during the early '80s. Listed here are certain things they attained:
They persuaded the Florida Legislature to proclaim the really 1st Saturday in August as Possum Day in Florida. That led to your creating from the monument together State Highway seventy seven in Wausau.
They even acquired The usa Congress to promote the possum. Congress joined the pleasurable by way of offering the funds for Wausau's Possum Palace so Wausau might need an area to assistance its annual Enjoyable Working day and Possum Festival. Showcasing a queen contest and possum auction, among other points, the Competition attracts A lot of people annually, moreover they adore it.
Trip for the couple of educating of Northerners here. The South's possum is identical lowly animal you get in touch with opossum, (Why use 7 letters when six can perform?) It's a smallish marsupial that lives in trees and shows its unattractive human body only in the evening. This is why, if you find yourself In the ideal spot in Florida, you may listen to possum hunters' pet dogs baying and barking. Treed by canines, the possum 'freezes', so it check here truly is straightforward adequate to entice (or shoot) one particular.
An inscription for that monument in the midst of Wausau cites the possum's job in supplying 'the two fur and food' with the entire generations. It goes on say: 'Their existence right here has delivered a supply of nutritious and flavorful food items in typical instances and it's got been a substantial guide to human survival in situations of distress and significant need.'
Chuckle if you prefer. The folks of Wausau will laugh together with you - whilst downing baked possum and sweet potatoes.