My Corner Online

 

Cairo Illinois and Fort Defiance State Park

Fort Defiance State Park is located in Cairo, Illinois and is where the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers meet. At this confluence on November 14, 1803, Lewis and Clark spent six days training the other members of the Corps of Discovery how to use their navigational equipment before their journey began.

I am interested in this confluence because somewhere near here my ancestor, David Sevier Kirkpatrick, was buried in 1822, where he died and was taken ashore and buried in the wilderness. You can read the stories on David's page. No one knows exactly where he is buried, so it could be any side of the rivers in Missouri, Illinois, or Kentucky. Another great place to have an overlook of the confluence is Fort Jefferson Hill Park and Memorial Cross in Kentucky. Seeing both locations in the same day makes for a wonderful historic view.

We visited on August 12, 2018. Below are some images that are included in the above vide.

This is the unique bridge you travel under as you enter Cairo. At one time Cairo was a bustling city and it is more like a ghost town now.

It is a great view from atop the stairs in this photo on the deck.

This is the point where the Ohio (to the left) and the Mississippi (to the right) rivers meet.

Here is me in a "heritage" photo. Somewhere out here my ancestor is buried.

I look off in the distance and see the untouched forest at the edge of the river and imagine that this is what it looked like when the family crossed through this area losing their father.

They would have taken him off into the wilderness to bury him.

This is the front of the view deck.

This is the sign in front of the sculpture called "Proceeding On."

This is the Magnolia Manor. They were closed so we were not able to get a tour and we walked around the outside.

This is another house across the street that is marked to be restored.

 

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