REGION PART OF OLYMPIC TORCH JOURNEY

It was Memorial Day 1996 and patriotism filled the air. Cape Girardeau, Jackson and Perryville were chosen as part of the route for the Olympic torch as it made its way across the country to Atlanta, Ga.

The idea of the cross-country trek was to bring it within a two-hour distance of 90 percent of the U.S. population.

Cape Girardeau was one of only 160 stops along the torch route, and thousands gathered at the foot of the Common Pleas Courthouse steps for the ceremony or along the local route on May 27.

The Olympic flame from Greece arrived in Cape Girardeau aboard a 19-car train. A special cauldron car -- designed to protect it from rain and wind -- carried the flame on its 3,500-mile rail journey.

About 40 local runners took part in the historic torch run. Each carried the torch for one kilometer, or about six-tenths of a mile. These individuals were selected to carry the flame through regional contests sponsored by the Area Wide United Way and the Coca-Cola company.

Three methods of transportation were used locally to move the torch. After arriving by train, the torch was carried by runners to Jackson. It was then handed off to cyclists who carried it up Highway 61 to Fruitland and Perry County. By the time the torch arrived in Atlanta, it had traveled by runner, bicycle, train, horseback, canoe, steamboat, steamer, plane and sailboat.

The local runners and cyclists were part of 10,000 torchbearers nationwide who carried the flame to Atlanta in time for the start of the games July 19. The torch route began in Los Angeles April 27, and the flame will travel 15,000 miles during its 84-day journey.