A Place in Florida - Let's Cheer the Lowly Possum

There's a invest Florida that developed a twelve-foot-significant monument in the midst of town to exalt the lowly possum. Now, why would any one have to do that?
Very well, to start out, heroes consider effort and time to come by on this make investments Florida - the Panhandle town of Wausau, household of below five hundred folks in the course of Washington County about 10 miles south of Chipley.
Why don't you the possum, an unlikely hero to state the least? No one else puts the possum with a pedestal. Why don't you Wausau?
Next, back in 1982, Wausau obtained Weary of getting neglected from the Florida lists of entertaining, fairs and festivals. Each and every put in position Florida needs a Pageant. Instead of one particular devote Florida includes a Possum Competition. Why not Wausau?
If you have never ever attended Washington County, you probably will Consider I'm producing this up. If you have gone to Washington County, you are going to comprehend - and know It is just a correct story.
Wausau, it turned out, had some really impressive possum politicians noisy . '80s. Listed below are a pair of matters they achieved:


They persuaded the Florida Legislature to proclaim the incredibly initially Saturday in August as Possum Working day in Florida. That led on the building with the monument alongside Point out Freeway 77 in Wausau.

They even got the United States Congress to marketplace Possum removal Mt.Waverly the possum. Congress joined the entertaining by supplying the cash for Wausau's Possum Palace so Wausau would've a spot to carry its yearly Pleasurable Working day and Possum Festival. That includes a queen contest and possum auction, amongst other matters, the Pageant attracts Countless people today yearly, they usually adore it.
Day trip for many educating of Northerners here. The South's possum is similar lowly animal you call opossum, (Why use seven letters when 6 can perform?) It's a smallish marsupial that lives in trees and exhibits its unattractive human body only at night. That is why, whenever you end up from the correct dedicate Florida, you are able to listen to possum hunters' canine baying and barking. Treed by canine, the possum 'freezes', so it is uncomplicated to hook (or shoot) 1.
An inscription about the monument in the midst of Wausau cites the possum's purpose in delivering 'equally fur and meals' with the generations. It goes onto say: 'Their existence right here has furnished a resource of nutritious and flavorful food stuff in typical instances and it's got been An important aid to human survival in times of distress and demanding have to have.'
Chortle If you'd like. The individuals of Wausau will laugh in addition to you - when downing baked possum and sweet potatoes.