THE PASSAGE WATERWALK

The Passage is both a pedestrian link between Downtown and the Tennessee River and a tribute to the martyrs of the Trail of Tears. The Trail of Tears is the name given to the forced exodus of the Cherokees in 1838-1839 (as well as other Indian nations) from the eastern United States to a territory granted west of the Mississippi (present-day Oklahoma) by the American government. During this terrible ordeal led by the army, some 4,000 Cherokees (at least) died before reaching their new territory. Ross'Landing lies on one of the crossing points of the Trail of Tears.

The staircase has been transformed into a fountain, which you can walk down barefoot, symbolizing the tears shed by the Cherokees. On the walls, seven ceramic discs represent the seven original clans of the Cherokee nation (Anigatogewi, Anigilahi, Anikawi, Anisahoni, Anitsiskwa, Aniwaya and Aniwodi). A marker on the riverbank commemorates this bloody episode in Indian history.