List of museums in Arkansas facts for kids
This list of museums in Arkansas is a list of museums, defined for this context as institutions (including nonprofit organizations, government entities, and private businesses) that collect and care for objects of cultural, artistic, scientific, or historical interest and make their collections or related exhibits available for public viewing. Museums that exist only in cyberspace (i.e., virtual museums) are not included.
Museums
| Name | Location | County | Region | Area of study | Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Altus Heritage House Museum | Altus | Franklin | Arkansas River Valley | Local history | Original German-American State Bank, circa 19th century, with early coal mining equipment, local history |
| Arkansas Air & Military Museum | Fayetteville | Washington | The Ozarks | Aviation | website, History of aviation in Arkansas and American military conflicts, historic aircraft |
| Arkansas Arts Center | Little Rock | Pulaski | Little Rock Central Area | Art | |
| Arkansas Country Doctor Museum | Lincoln | Washington | The Ozarks | Medical | website, life of a small-town doctor and the history of medicine as it was practiced in the early 20th century |
| Arkansas Entertainers Hall of Fame | Pine Bluff | Jefferson | Arkansas Delta | Hall of fame - Entertainers | Located in the Pine Bluff Convention Center, artifacts and memorabilia of entertainers from Arkansas |
| Arkansas Governor's Mansion | Little Rock | Pulaski | Little Rock Central Area | Historic house | |
| Arkansas Historic Wine Museum | Paris | Logan | Arkansas River Valley Region | Industry - Wine making | website, operated by Cowie Wine Cellars, history of wine making in the state |
| Arkansas Inland Maritime Museum | North Little Rock | Pulaski | Little Rock Central Area | Maritime | Features the submarine USS Razorback (SS-394) |
| Arkansas Museum of Discovery | Little Rock | Pulaski | Little Rock Central Area | Science | |
| Arkansas Museum of Natural History | Hot Springs | Garland | Ouachita Mountains | Multiple | website, displays archeological and geological artifacts from Arkansas and from around the world including minerals and fossils |
| Arkansas Museum of Natural Resources | Smackover | Union | Arkansas Timberlands | Industry - Petroleum | Petroleum industry in Arkansas |
| Arkansas National Guard Museum | North Little Rock | Pulaski | Little Rock Central Area | Military | History the Arkansas National Guard, Camp Pike and Camp Robinson |
| Arkansas Post National Memorial | Gillett | Arkansas | Arkansas Delta | History | Commemorates key events at the site: first semi-permanent European settlement in the Lower Mississippi Valley (1686); an American Revolutionary War skirmish (1783); the first territorial capital of Arkansas (1819–1821); and the American Civil War Battle of Fort Hindman (1863) |
| Arkansas Railroad Museum | Pine Bluff | Jefferson | Arkansas Delta | Railroad | Housed in former railroad shops, features steam locomotives |
| Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame Museum | North Little Rock | Pulaski | Arkansas Timberlands | Sports | Features men, women and teams from a variety of sports, includes inductees from each of the 78 counties in Arkansas |
| Arkansas River Visitor Center | Russellville | Pope | Arkansas River Valley Region | Natural history | website, natural and cultural history of the Arkansas River and the construction of Lake Dardanelle, operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers |
| Arkansas State University Museum | Jonesboro | Craighead | Arkansas Delta | Multiple | website, state history, natural history and cultural heritage |
| Arkansas Tech Museum | Russellville | Pope | Arkansas River Valley Region | History | website, history and memorabilia of Arkansas Tech University |
| Arts and Science Center for Southeast Arkansas | Pine Bluff | Jefferson | Arkansas Delta | Multiple | Emphasis on Arkansas and African-American artists, hands-on science exhibits |
| Ashley County Museum | Hamburg | Ashley | Arkansas Delta | Local history | Located in the Watson House |
| Aviation Cadet Museum | Eureka Springs | Carroll | The Ozarks | Aviation | website |
| Baum Gallery | Conway | Faulkner | Little Rock Central Area | Art | website, art gallery in McCastlain Hall of University of Central Arkansas |
| Bauxite Historical Association & Museum | Bauxite | Saline | Little Rock Central Area | Local history | |
| Baxter County Heritage Center | Gassville | Baxter | The Ozarks | Local history | website, operated by the Baxter County Historical and Genealogical Society |
| Bella Vista Museum | Bella Vista | Benton | The Ozarks | Local history | website |
| Belle Museum and Chapel | Charleston | Franklin | Arkansas River Valley Region | Local history | |
| Blythe's Scott County Museum | Waldron | Scott | Ouachita Mountains | Local history | website, includes Native American artifacts, firearms, weapons, coins |
| Boone County Heritage Museum | Harrison | Boone | The Ozarks | Local history | website, operated by the Boone County Historical & Railroad Society, antique collections, pioneer life, railroad and Civil War artifacts, local history collections |
| Bradbury Art Museum | Jonesboro | Craighead | Arkansas Delta | Art | website, part of Arkansas State University, changing exhibitions of contemporary art in all media |
| Bradley County Historical Museum | Warren | Bradley | Arkansas Timberlands | Local history | Located in the historic Dr. John Wilson Martin House |
| Bradley County Veterans Museum | Warren | Bradley | Arkansas Timberlands | Military | website |
| Bradley House Museum | Jasper | Newton | The Ozarks | Local history | website, operated by the Newton County Historical Society |
| Bud Walton Arena Razorback Sports Museum | Fayetteville | Washington | The Ozarks | Sports | History of Razorback basketball, track and field, baseball, tennis and golf |
| Carroll County Heritage Museum | Berryville | Carroll | The Ozarks | Local history | Operated by the Carroll County Historical Society in the historic county courthouse |
| Central Delta Depot Museum | Brinkley | Monroe | Arkansas Delta | Local history | Operated by the Central Delta Historical Society, showcases the importance of the Louisiana Purchase, the impact of the railroad era and the local history of the delta region |
| Central High School National Historic Site | Little Rock | Pulaski | Little Rock Central Area | History | History of the Little Rock Nine and forced desegregation in Arkansas |
| Chaffee Barbershop Museum | Fort Smith | Sebastian | Arkansas River Valley Region | History | Restored 1958 period barbershop where Elvis Presley received his famous first G.I. haircut |
| Cherokee Village Museum & Learning Center | Cherokee Village | Fulton and Sharp Counties | North Central Arkansas | Community History | website |
| Clayton House | Fort Smith | Sebastian | Arkansas River Valley Region | Historic house | Victorian Renaissance baroque mansion, operated by the Fort Smith Heritage Foundation |
| Cleburne County Historical Society Museum | Heber Springs | Cleburne | The Ozarks | Local history | Located in the historic Clarence Frauenthal House |
| Clinton House Museum | Fayetteville | Washington | The Ozarks | Historic house - Biographical | Early home of Bill and Hillary Clinton |
| Clinton Presidential Center | Little Rock | Pulaski | Little Rock Central Area | Biographical | Library and museum of President Bill Clinton |
| Clover Bend Museum | Black Rock | Lawrence | Arkansas Delta | Local history | website, farmstead exhibits and local history |
| Crater of Diamonds State Park | Murfreesboro | Pike | Arkansas Timberlands | Geology - Gems | Visitors can sift soil for diamonds, agate, garnet, amethyst, and other gems |
| Cross County Museum | Wynne | Cross | Arkansas Delta | Local history | website, operated by the Cross County Historical Society |
| Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art | Bentonville | Benton | The Ozarks | Art | Features American art from the Colonial era to contemporary work |
| Dallas County Museum | Fordyce | Dallas | Arkansas Timberlands | Local history |
website Exhibits of Dallas County history along with an archives room and a searchable collection of nearly 25,000 negatives from the Alexander Studios. The new Sports Museum is located across the street and from April 22-June 3, 2017 will house the traveling Smithsonian exhibit Hometown Teams:How Sports Shape America. |
| Daisy Airgun Museum | Rogers | Benton | The Ozarks | Commodity - Airguns | website, vintage products and artifacts of the Daisy company |
| Darby House | Fort Smith | Sebastian | Arkansas River Valley Region | Biographical | Home of World War II General William Orlando Darby |
| Delta Cultural Center | Helena | Phillips | Arkansas Delta | History | Local history, culture, music, railroads |
| Delta Rivers Nature Center | Pine Bluff | Jefferson | Arkansas Delta | Nature center | website, natural history of the Arkansas River Delta, located in Pine Bluff Regional Park, 130 acres with trails |
| Delta Gateway Museum | Blytheville | Mississippi | Arkansas Delta | Local history | website, regional history, industry, agriculture, transportation, geology, natural history, located in the historic Kress Building |
| Desha County Museum | Dumas | Desha | Arkansas Delta | Open-air | website, includes the museum with period business displays, an 1828 church, a stocked country store, a building with period farm machinery and equipment, and an 1850 log house |
| Drennen-Scott House | Van Buren | Crawford | Arkansas River Valley Region | Historic house | |
| Drew County Historical Museum | Monticello | Drew | Arkansas Delta | Local history | Operated by the Drew County Historical Society |
| Eddie Mae Herron Center | Pocahontas | Randolph | Arkansas Delta | African American | Museum, education, community, heritage and cultural center about African Americans in Randolph County |
| Ernie's Museum on Black Arkansans | Little Rock | Pulaski | Little Rock Central Area | African American | website, also called EMOBA - The Museum of Black Arkansans and Performing Arts Center, contributions of black Arkansans |
| ESSE Purse Museum & Store | Little Rock | Pulaski | Little Rock Central Area | Fashion | website, evolution of the 20th-century American woman – decade by decade – through her handbags and the items she carried with her |
| Eureka Springs Historical Museum | Eureka Springs | Carroll | The Ozarks | Local history | website |
| Fargo Agricultural School Museum | Fargo | Monroe | Arkansas Delta | History | |
| Faulkner County Museum | Conway | Faulkner | Little Rock Central Area | Local history | Housed in the former county jail |
| Fort Smith Air Museum | Fort Smith | Sebastian | Arkansas River Valley Region | Aviation | website, located at Fort Smith Regional Airport, honors pioneer and military aviators from western Arkansas and eastern Oklahoma |
| Fort Smith Museum of History | Fort Smith | Sebastian | Arkansas River Valley Region | Local history | |
| Fort Smith National Historic Site | Fort Smith | Sebastian | Arkansas River Valley Region | Military | Fort Smith's military history from 1817–1871 |
| Fort Smith Regional Art Museum | Fort Smith | Sebastian | Arkansas River Valley Region | Art | website, nationally and internationally recognized traveling exhibits |
| Fort Smith Trolley Museum | Fort Smith | Sebastian | Arkansas River Valley Region | Railroad - Trolley | Heritage streetcars, steam locomotives, railroad equipment, transportation and other technology |
| Frog Fantasies Museum | Eureka Springs | Carroll | The Ozarks | Commodity | website, collection of frog items and gift shop |
| Gann Museum | Benton | Saline | Little Rock Central Area | Local history | |
| Galaxy Collection | Hot Springs | Garland | Ouachita Mountains | Media | website, vintage items related to the Star Wars franchise |
| Gangster Museum of America | Hot Springs | Garland | Ouachita Mountains | History | website, area history related to organized crime in the 1920s to 1940s |
| Grant County Museum | Sheridan | Grant | Little Rock Central Area | Local history | website, special exhibits include the Arkansas Louisiana Gas Company Museum, a Civil War Red River Expedition room, automobiles and military vehicles |
| Gravette Historical Museum | Gravette | Benton | The Ozarks | Local history | Located in the Kindley House |
| Guitar Museum | Jacksonville | Pulaski | Little Rock Central Area | Music | website, vintage guitars & amps, w/large display of Cowboy Guitars circa 1930s - 1950s |
| Hampson Archeological Museum State Park | Wilson | Mississippi | Arkansas Delta | Archaeology | Collection of early American aboriginal artifacts from the Nodena site |
| Headquarters House Museum | Fayetteville | Washington | The Ozarks | Historic house - History | 1853 period home, exhibits related to Civil War battle, operated by the Washington County Historical Society |
| Helena Museum of Phillips County | Helena | Phillips | Arkansas Delta | Local history | Includes local history (social clubs, lumber industry, river port, etc.) and Civil War history. Housed in the oldest civic building in Phillips County and the oldest purpose build museum building in the state. |
| Hemingway-Pfeiffer Museum and Educational Center | Piggott | Clay | Arkansas Delta | History | Barn-studio associated with author Ernest Hemingway and the family home of his second wife, Pauline Pfeiffer; focus on area life and literature in the 1920s and 1930s |
| Heritage House Museum of Montgomery County | Mount Ida | Montgomery | Ouachita Mountains | Local history | website |
| Historic Arkansas Museum | Little Rock | Pulaski | Little Rock Central Area | History | State history |
| Historic Washington State Park | Washington | Hempstead | Arkansas Timberlands | Open-air | Also known as Old Washington Historic State Park, over 30 historic buildings |
| Hot Springs National Park | Hot Springs | Garland | Ouachita Mountains | Historic site | Includes early 20th century period Fordyce Bathhouse museum |
| Howard County Museum | Nashville | Howard | Arkansas Timberlands | Local history | Operated by the Howard County Historical Society |
| Hunter-Coulter Museum | Ashdown | Little River | Arkansas Timberlands | Local history | |
| Huntington Jail and Miner Museum | Huntington | Sebastian | Arkansas River Valley Region | Local history | |
| Jacksonport State Park | Newport | Jackson | Arkansas Timberlands | Multiple | Includes African American History Exhibit, Courthouse Museum, Mary Woods No. 2 Riverboat, freshwater pearling exhibit |
| Jacksonville Museum of Military History | Jacksonville | Pulaski | Little Rock Central Area | History | website, includes Arkansas military history from the civil war through Iraq, with a special emphasis on Little Rock AFB, plus the Arkansas Ordnance Plant. |
| Jacob Wolf House | Norfork | Baxter | The Ozarks | Historic house | Oldest public structure in Arkansas, two story log house |
| Japanese American Internment Museum | McGehee | Desha | Arkansas Delta | Ethnic | History of Japanese American internment at Rohwer War Relocation Center and Jerome War Relocation Center during World War II |
| Josephine Tussaud Wax Museum | Hot Springs | Garland | Ouachita Mountains | Wax museum | |
| Klipsch Museum of Audio History | Hope | Hempstead | Arkansas Timberlands | Technology | website, Klipsch Audio Technologies products, test equipment, audio source components, early manufacturing equipment, items from other companies |
| Lakeport Plantation | Lake Village | Chicot | Arkansas Delta | Historic house | The only remaining Arkansas Antebellum Plantation Home on the Mississippi River; owned and operated by Arkansas State University. |
| Dyess Colony | Dyess | Mississippi | Arkansas Delta | History | website, history of the New Deal federal agricultural resettlement community, includes boyhood home of singer Johnny Cash |
| Lepanto Museum | Lepanto | Poinsett | Arkansas Delta | Local history | website |
| Little Rock Central High School | Little Rock | Pulaski | Little Rock Central Area | History | 1955 Little Rock integration crisis and the Civil Rights Movement |
| Logan County Museum | Paris | Logan | Arkansas River Valley Region | Local history | Housed in a restored jail |
| Lonoke County Museum | Lonoke | Lonoke | Little Rock Central Area | Civil War | website, dioramas and weapons from the Civil War |
| Lowell Historical Museum | Lowell | Benton | The Ozarks | Local history | |
| Lower White River Museum State Park | Des Arc | Prairie | Arkansas Delta | Local history | website, river's influence on area history, industry and agriculture |
| Lum & Abner Museum & Jot 'Em Down Store | Pine Ridge | Montgomery | Arkansas Timberlands | Media | Memorabilia from Lum & Abner radio show from 1903s and 1940s |
| MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History | Little Rock | Pulaski | Little Rock Central Area | Military | Military history of Arkansas from its territorial period to the present |
| Mammoth Spring State Park | Mammoth Spring | Fulton | The Ozarks | Railroad | Features early 20th-century period train station, caboose and local history displays |
| Marked Tree Delta Area Museum | Marked Tree | Poinsett | Arkansas Delta | Local history | Local history, general store and 4 room replication of the old Verser Hospital in Harrisburg, changing exhibits |
| Mark Martin Museum | Batesville | Independence | The Ozarks | Automobile racing - Biography | website, focuses on Mark Martin's car racing career; attached to his Ford dealership |
| Maynard Pioneer Museum | Maynard | Randolph | Arkansas Delta | Local history | Historic log cabin and pioneer artifacts |
| McCollum-Chidester House | Camden | Ouachita | Arkansas Timberlands | Historic house | Operated by the Ouachita County Historical Society, mid 19th-century period house |
| Mena Depot Center | Mena | Polk | Ouachita Mountains | History | Also known as Kansas City/Southern Historical Railroad Museum |
| Mid-America Science Museum | Hot Springs | Garland | Ouachita Mountains | Science | Hands-on science exhibits |
| Miss Laura's Social Club | Fort Smith | Sebastian | Arkansas River Valley Region | History | Visitor center |
| The Momentary | Bentonville | Benton | The Ozarks | Contemporary art | |
| Morrilton Depot Museum | Morrilton | Conway | Little Rock Central Area | Local history | |
| Mosaic Templars Cultural Center | Little Rock | Pulaski | Little Rock Central Area | Ethnic - African American | African American history, culture and community in Arkansas from 1870 to the present |
| Museum of American History at Cabot High School | Cabot | Lonoke | Little Rock Central Area | Local history | |
| Museum of Native American History | Bentonville | Benton | The Ozarks | Native American | Includes tools, weapons, clothing, pottery |
| Museum of the Arkansas Grand Prairie | Stuttgart | Arkansas | Arkansas Delta | Open-air | website, pioneer and farm life, agriculture, tractors, store displays, collections of antiques, duck calls and decoys, school house, fire house |
| Museum of Automobiles | Morrilton | Conway | Little Rock Central Area | Transportation - Automobiles | Antique and classic cars |
| Nevada County Depot and Museum | Prescott | Nevada | Arkansas Timberlands | Local history | Exhibits include area settlers, railroads, military items |
| New Rocky Comfort Museum | Foreman | Little River | Arkansas Timberlands | Local history | Housed in a former jail |
| Old Jail Museum | Greenwood | Sebastian | Arkansas River Valley Region | Local history | Operated by the South Sebastian County Historical Society |
| Old Independence Regional Museum | Batesville | Independence | The Ozarks | Local history | |
| Old State House Museum | Little Rock | Pulaski | Little Rock Central Area | History | State history and culture |
| Ozark Depot Museum | Ozark | Franklin | Arkansas River Valley Region | Local history | Local history and railroad memorabilia |
| Ozark Folk Center | Mountain View | Stone | The Ozarks | Living history | Ozark cultural heritage and tradition, music, crafts |
| Ozark Heritage Arts Center | Leslie | Searcy | The Ozarks | Multiple | Art gallery, oral histories, music and theatre |
| Parkin Archeological State Park | Parkin | Cross | Arkansas Delta | Archaeology | |
| Paris-Logan County Coal Miners Memorial | Paris | Logan | Arkansas River Valley Region | Mining | |
| Pea Ridge Historical Museum | Pea Ridge | Benton | The Ozarks | Local history | website, operated by the Pea Ridge Historical Society |
| Pea Ridge National Military Park | Garfield | Benton | The Ozarks | Military | Preserved Civil War battlefield, museum |
| The Peel Mansion Museum & Heritage Gardens | Bentonville | Benton | The Ozarks | Historic house | 1870s period mansion |
| Pine Bluff/Jefferson County Historical Museum | Pine Bluff | Jefferson | Arkansas Delta | Local history | Located in the former Pine Bluff Union Station |
| Plantation Agriculture Museum | Scott | Lonoke | Little Rock Central Area | Agriculture | website, cotton agriculture and plantation farming life, operated by the state |
| Potts Inn Museum | Pottsville | Pope | The Ozarks | Historic house | 1850s home and stagecoach station on the Butterfield Overland mail route |
| Powhatan Historic State Park | Powhatan | Lawrence | Arkansas Delta | History | Features the 1888 Powhatan courthouse which served as the home of county government from 1888-1963, other historic structures |
| Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park | Prairie Grove | Washington | The Ozarks | Military - Civil War | 1862 battle site and museum about the Battle of Prairie Grove |
| President William Jefferson Clinton Birthplace Home National Historic Site | Hope | Hempstead | Arkansas Timberlands | Historic house - Biographical | Birthplace home of President Bill Clinton |
| Quigley's Castle | Eureka Springs | Carroll | The Ozarks | Historic house | Mid 20th-century house covered in small stones |
| Randolph County Heritage Museum | Pocahontas | Randolph | Arkansas Delta | Local history | website, historic artifacts, folk art, archaeological artifacts recovered from the site of the town of Davidsonville, Arksansas |
| Rector Community Museum | Rector | Clay | Arkansas Delta | Local history | website, historic items that have a connection to the area of the Rector School District. |
| Ridge House | Fayetteville | Washington | The Ozarks | Historic house | Tours by the Washington County Historical Society |
| Rogers Historical Museum | Rogers | Benton | The Ozarks | History | website |
| Saunders Memorial Museum | Berryville | Carroll | The Ozarks | Commodity | website, firearms, knives, Victorian clothing, accessories, textiles and furniture |
| Scott Family Amazeum | Bentonville | Benton | The Ozarks | Children's, science | website, hands-on interactive museum for children of all ages and their families |
| Sevier County Historical Society Museum | De Queen | Sevier | Arkansas Timberlands | Local history | |
| Shiloh Museum of Ozark History | Springdale | Washington | The Ozarks | History | Ozark and Northwest Arkansas history |
| Siloam Springs Museum | Siloam Springs | Benton | The Ozarks | History | website |
| South Arkansas Arts Center | El Dorado | Union | Arkansas Timberlands | Art | website |
| Southern Tenant Farmers Museum | Tyronza | Poinsett | Arkansas Delta | Agriculture | website |
| Stephens Art Gallery | Clarksville | Johnson | Arkansas River Valley Region | Art | website, part of the Walton Fine Arts Center at the University of the Ozarks |
| St. Francis County Museum | Forrest City | St. Francis | Arkansas Delta | Local history | |
| Stone County Historical Society Museum | Mountain View | Stone | The Ozarks | Local history | website |
| Toltec Mounds Archeological State Park | Scott | Lonoke | Little Rock Central Area | Archaeology - Native American | 18-mound complex with the tallest surviving prehistoric mounds in Arkansas, museum of artifacts |
| Tontitown Historical Museum | Tontitown | Washington | The Ozarks | History | website |
| Turner Neal Museum of Natural History | Monticello | Drew | Arkansas Delta | Natural history | website, part of the University of Arkansas at Monticello, also Pomeroy Planetarium |
| Two Rivers Museum | Ashdown | Little River | Arkansas Timberlands | Local history | |
| University Museum and Cultural Center | Pine Bluff | Jefferson | Arkansas Delta | History | History of the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff and the Arkansas Delta region |
| U.S. Marshals Service National Museum | Fort Smith | Sebastian | Arkansas River Valley Region | Military | website, planned museum about the U.S. Marshals Service |
| Van Buren County Historical Society Museum | Clinton | Van Buren | The Ozarks | Local history | website |
| Walmart Museum | Bentonville | Benton | The Ozarks | Historic store | website, original store opened by Sam Walton, company history |
| White River National Wildlife Refuge | DeWitt | Arkansas | Arkansas Delta | Natural history | |
| Wings of Honor Museum | Walnut Ridge | Lawrence | Arkansas Delta | Local History, Military | website, History of Walnut Ridge Army Flying School and wars |
Defunct museums
- The Band Museum, Pine Bluff, closed in 2010, former website
- Baxter County Heritage Museum, Gassville, closed in 2008 and sold to a private individual
- Gallery Mint Museum, Eureka Springs
- Marine Corps Legacy Museum, Harrison, closed in 2010
- Museum of Chicot County Arkansas, Lake Village, closed in 2014
- Museum of Earth History, Eureka Springs, moved to Dallas, Texas
See also
- List of nature centers in Arkansas
Regions of Arkansas
- Arkansas Delta - eastern and southeastern sections of the state
- Arkansas River Valley Region
- Arkansas Timberlands - also called Southern Arkansas, Southwestern Arkansas or West Gulf Coastal Plain
- Little Rock Central Area - Pulaski, Faulkner, Saline, Lonoke, Perry and Grant County
- Ouachita Mountains - area around the mountain range located in west central Arkansas
- The Ozarks - highland region of northwest and north central Arkansas
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List of museums in Arkansas Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.