Flatboat traveling Mississippi River to stop Saturday in Caruthersville

A flatboat replica is traveling down the Mississippi River for Lincoln's Journey of Remembrance. Lincoln's 200th birthday will be observed on Feb. 12, 2009. The Journey of Remembrance is one of several activities drawing attention to that milestone. The journey is a re-enactment of a similar trip Lincoln took in 1828 while transporting a load of produce for a local merchant. [Click to enlarge]

A flatboat filled with re-enactors is floating down the Mississippi River this week, re-creating the journey a young Abraham Lincoln made in 1828.

The boat is scheduled to travel Friday from New Madrid, Mo., to Caruthersville, Mo., where it will dock at Reynolds Park about 3 p.m. The boat is expected to leave Caruthersville Sunday morning and float south to Osceola, Ark. The flatboat will be accessible again Sept. 23, when it will dock all day at the Mud Island River Park in Memphis.

Persons hoping to catch a glimpse of the flatboat on the river should know that the boat plans to leave New Madrid about 8 a.m. Saturday and Caruthersville about 8 a.m. Sunday.

While in Caruthersville, the public is invited to learn about the nation's 16th president between 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. A 16-foot portable exhibit about Lincoln's life in Indiana will be erected. Costumed re-enactors will distribute free 16-page "Lincoln's Journey of Remembrance" booklets and activity sheets for children.

While insurance, liability and U.S. Coast Guard restrictions prevent public tours aboard the flatboat, visitors can walk up to the boat and take a look inside. A scale model of the flatboat also will be available for inspection in the portable exhibit.

The trip, which is called Lincoln's Journey of Remembrance, re-creates a similar trip Lincoln took in 1828 while transporting a load of produce for a local merchant. While in New Orleans, La., Lincoln was disturbed by a slave auction he witnessed on the docks. It was an experience he would never forget and one that influenced his views on the practice of slavery in years to come.

The journey began Sept. 9 as the replica flatboat departed Rockport, Ind. Daily reports about the crew's adventures are being posted on a daily Internet blog: http://lincolnsjourney.org/blog/blog.cfm.

The river journey is part of the president's 200th birthday celebration. His landmark birthday will be observed Feb. 12.

In addition to educating people about this part of history, the trip aims to increase awareness of the Abraham Lincoln-related sites in Southern Indiana. These sites include: Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial, Lincoln State Park & Amphitheatre, Col. William Jones Home, Lincoln Ferry Park, Lincoln Landing, and the Lincoln Pioneer Village, all of which are located in Spencer County. Lincoln lived in Spencer County with his pioneer family from age 7 to 21.

This project is endorsed by the United States Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission, the Indiana Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission and the Illinois Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission.