There is a spot in Florida that created a twelve-foot-significant monument during city to exalt the lowly possum. Now, why would anybody would like to accomplish that?
Well, to begin with, heroes are challenging to analysis inside of this place in place Florida - the Panhandle town of Wausau, house of much less than 500 people through Washington County about 10 miles south of Chipley.
Why not the possum, an unlikely hero to put it mildly? Nobody else places the possum with a pedestal. Why don't you Wausau?
Next, back in 1982, Wausau acquired sick and Sick and tired of currently being ignored in the Florida lists of fun, fairs and festivals. Each commit Florida needs a festival. And never one particular spend Florida carries a Possum Pageant. Why don't you Wausau?
If you have never attended Washington County, you probably will Feel I am making this up. If you have been to Washington County, you may recognize - and know that is a real story.
Wausau, it turned out, had some really powerful possum politicians while in the early '80s. Listed below are two factors they accomplished:


They persuaded the Florida Legislature to proclaim the 1st Saturday in August as Possum Working day in Florida. That led on the creating from the monument together Point out Highway seventy seven in Wausau.

They even received the United States Congress to industry the possum. Congress joined the entertaining by supplying the cash for Wausau's Possum Palace so Wausau might have a place to hold its yearly Entertaining Working day and Possum Pageant. Featuring a queen contest and possum auction, among the other items, the Competition attracts loads of men and women on a yearly basis, they usually come across it irresistible.
Trip for the number of educating of Northerners here. The South's possum is analogous lowly animal you connect with opossum, (Why use seven letters when 6 will almost certainly do?) It is a smallish marsupial that life in trees and displays its unattractive human body only during the night. This is exactly why, if you're Within the suitable location in Florida, you can listen to possum hunters' canines baying and barking. Treed by dogs, the possum 'freezes', so it can be straightforward to trap (or shoot) one.
An inscription to the monument in the center of Wausau cites the possum's purpose in delivering 'each fur and food stuff' during the overall centuries. It goes on to say: 'Their existence here has provided a source of nutritious and flavorful food stuff in read more regular instances and has been an important assist to human survival in periods of distress and important will need.'
Chuckle If you prefer. The people today of Wausau will chuckle along with you - although downing baked possum and sweet potatoes.