A Place in Florida - Let us Cheer the Lowly Possum
A Place in Florida - Let us Cheer the Lowly Possum
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There's a dedicate Florida that crafted a twelve-foot-large monument in the center of town to exalt the lowly possum. Now, why would anyone really need to do that?
Well, to get started with, heroes are tough to discover on this put in Florida - the Panhandle city of Wausau, dwelling of less than 500 people through Washington County about 10 miles south of Chipley.
Why not the possum, an unlikely hero To place it mildly? No one else puts the possum on the pedestal. Why not Wausau?
Next, in 1982, Wausau acquired Weary of becoming overlooked While using the Florida lists of exciting, fairs and festivals. Just about every spot in Florida wants a festival. And never a person devote Florida carries a Possum Pageant. Why not Wausau?
If you have under no circumstances been to Washington County, you probably will Consider I'm building this up. If you have frequented Washington County, you can understand - and know It's really a true story.
Wausau, it ended up, experienced some pretty impressive possum politicians during the early '80s. Here are certain things they completed:
They persuaded the Florida Legislature to proclaim the 1st Saturday in August as Possum Working day in Florida. That led to the constructing of your monument along Point out Highway seventy seven in Wausau.
They even acquired The us Congress to advertise the possum. Congress joined the website pleasurable by the resources for Wausau's Possum Palace so Wausau would have a place to maintain its annual Pleasurable Working day and Possum Competition. That includes a queen contest and possum auction, between other points, the Competition appeals to A huge number of people today Every and annually, and so that they like it.
Outing for a lot of educating of Northerners below. The South's possum is comparable lowly animal you simply call opossum, (Why use 7 letters when 6 will do?) It's a smallish marsupial that lives in trees and shows its unpleasant overall body only during the night time. That's why, if you are from the suitable put in Florida, you may listen to possum hunters' puppies baying and barking. Treed by dogs, the possum 'freezes', so it's simple plenty of to hook (or shoot) one particular.
An inscription for that monument in the course of Wausau cites the possum's function in offering 'equally fur and foodstuff' all through the hundreds of years. It goes on to say: 'Their presence right here has delivered a useful resource of nutritious and flavorful food stuff in usual moments and possesses been an important aid to human survival when in distress and critical need to have.'
Chuckle if you like. The people of Wausau will snicker in conjunction with you - although downing baked possum and sweet potatoes.