BIRCHWOOD, Tenn. — The dedication of the new Cherokee Removal Memorial Visitor Center drew local and state officials Saturday along with members of the Eastern and Western bands of the Cherokee Nation.

“This is such a beautiful place,” said Gloria Schouggins, who with Mrs. Lawrence and now-Atlanta resident Shirley Hoskins worked for more than 20 years to develop the memorial park. “Sometimes we had our doubts whether it would ever happen, but we hung on, and now this is such an asset for the county.”

Although work is not complete, the dedication had been scheduled in advance, said Shirley Lawrence, one of the original planners of the memorial. A grand opening in late October is planned once work is complete.

The center includes a log cabin building, along with meeting rooms, a sunken granite map of the routes for the Trail of Tears from Blythe Ferry to Oklahoma, and a meandering granite wall with the history of the trail embossed on it.

The center is part of a $1.7 million development at the site that also includes a walkway and overlook of the Tennessee River, an open pavilion and trails. The park is located at the site where 9,000 Cherokees, their slaves and others left for the trek to Oklahoma.

Birchwood residents Greg Vital and David Gooch are donors to the park.

“This is just the beginning,” said Mr. Vital, who is heading up a donation campaign for the site’s operational and maintenance expenses.

He said the park can be a great tourist attraction and economic development feature for both Meigs and Hamilton counties.

Eastern Band representative Alva Crow and Western Band spokesman Jack Baker attended the dedication and said the memorial park along with education programs could make a big difference in how people understand what really occurred.

Work toward the park began in the late 1980s, said Southeast Tennessee Development District spokeswoman Beth Jones.

“I remember standing here with then-Chief Wilma Mankiller from Oklahoma, with the three women in the rain, talking about a park and trying to map out the area,” Ms. Jones said.

The idea remained only a dream until U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp, R-Tenn., earmarked $1.3 million for the project several years ago, she said.

A 20 percent match was raised through Meigs County, state agencies, and private donations. The land was donated by the Tennessee Valley Authority, and other work was done by the Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency.

Private donations still are needed for a seven-point star memorial that will be engraved with the names of those who were forced to leave their homeland.

Two booklets are available for visitors — one tells the history of the rail, and the other lists the names of those forced to leave.

Ms. Lawrence said a genealogy section will be located at the visitors center along with historical documents and souvenirs. The center also will be available to rent for meetings and weddings.

Chattanooga Architects Barge & Wagoner designed the visitors center and construction is under the oversight of P&C Construction of Chattanooga.

Anyone wishing to donate can contact Meigs County Mayor Ken Jones at P.O. Box 156, Decatur, TN 373222.

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