October 9
I forgot to mention that on Saturday I filled the gas tank in the rental car at Huber Heights, OH for $3.14/gallon. Then today, before returning the car at CAK airport, the price was $3.17/gallon. This is a far cry from the $5.79/gallon I bought near the Seattle airport on my last loop, or the high $5s in Northern California. On a side note, the Akron-Canton area is annually listed as one of the most affordable urban areas in the country. My family sure enjoys that economic benefit.
This morning was another pre-4AM departure, to try and beat the Chicago rush hour. Being Indigenous Peoples Day (started in 1990 when South Dakota became the first state to change from Columbus Day), one hope was there could be fewer cars to begin with. Well, no traffic issue whatsoever. Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley NMon is 5 miles south of the center of downtown Chicago, one block off I-94/90, on South State St, at 40th Street. It is a proverbial stone’s throw from the Chicago White Sox stadium at 36th Street.
Emmett Till was visiting relatives in Mississippi in 1955. He was 15 years old. His mother had moved to Chicago in 1943 to escape the racism and injustice of the South. Now, he was returning to his birthplace, with words of warning from his mother. Witnesses at a grocery said Till whistled at the white woman who had serviced them at the store. The woman’s husband and another man kidnapped Till that night at gunpoint, then tortured and murdered him. An all-white male jury returned a not guilty verdict in one hour on the count of murder, even though the evidence was staggering, and the two men had admitted to the kidnapping. Later, the men admitted to the murder in a magazine interview, but the law of double-jeopardy prohibited them from being retried.
Mamie-Till Mobley made the hard decision to have an open-casket visitation and funeral so the world could view Emmett’s mutilated body, as she stated, “Let the people see what I’ve seen.” These events were a catalyst for the modern-day Civil Rights Movement (1957 was the Central High School event in Little Rock for forced desegregation… another NPS park… and the ball continues to roll forward to this day).
The church is still an active congregation. Signs ask for visitors to respect the privacy of the building. Since this is the newest National Park, there is no visitor center, visitor facilities, bookstore, etc. One can park on the street.
The two sites of this park in Mississippi are about 35 miles away from the road I took on my way across MS to reach Arkansas Post NMem back in February. I would have stopped had I known this was to become the 425th National Park. I hope there is not another new park added before November 19.