ROGERS -- Asa Fowler, 10, stepped backward as he learned what a chamber pot was during a recent tour of the Rogers Historical Museum.
The guide told him his job as a child would have been to empty the pot per society rules during the Victorian era in the United States.
Museum History
A look at the history of the Rogers Historical Museum • 1974: Rogers City Council approves a commission to develop the museum • 1975: Museum opens in a former bank building • 1982: Museum moves to its rented space in the Hawkins House • 1987: Current museum facility open
• 1995: Museum opens a facility for research and education in Roger’s former public library
• 1999: Museum receives American Alliance of Museums accreditation
Source: Rogers Historical Museum
"Ew," Asa, of Rogers, said. "I don't like this book of rules."
A concern about losing heritage sparked a movement to preserve Rogers history in the 1970s. Forty years later the Rogers Historical Museum is viewed as a leading example of historic preservation in the state.
The 40,000 artifact museum is accredited by the American Alliance of Museums. Other accredited institutions include the Arkansas Arts Center and Museum of Discovery in Little Rock. The Smithsonian Museums in the District of Columbia are examples of national museums accredited through the association.
The museum opened Oct. 25, 1975, following a decision by the City Council to fund it the previous year.
About 800 people from around the country visit the museum every month, said Terrilyn Wendling, assistant director. People from 14 states visited the museum in March, she said.
John Burroughs, director, said the museum accomplishes the important goal of preserving the area's history.
"It is everyone's story," Burroughs said. "It is how a community came to be and a perspective of where we are going."
A 2,760-square-foot exhibit space at 322 S. Second St. gives visitors an interactive experience, Burroughs said. History is told in a variety of ways, he said. This includes written information, videos and hands-on exhibits.
There is an exhibit about the history of law in Benton County from the 1830s to the late 1900s. Artifacts in the collection include a jail cell once used by the Rogers Police Department. The cell was first installed at Rogers City Hall in 1894. People are allowed inside the cell to take pictures.
The historic Hawkins House provides visitors with a glimpse into life in 1894. The house is connected to the museum.
"This house was built with overhead lighting," S.K. Clark-Will, museum guide, explained to Asa's family. "They were only provided two hours of electricity a day."
Clark-Will pointed to a wood-burning stove and ice box while explaining the house's appliances were not electric.
"Some of us have experience with ice boxes," Erma Fowler, Asa's grandmother, said.
Burroughs said the museum's exhibits put a 'human face' on history.
John Jennings, a former Arkansas Court of Appeals judge, is a Rogers native. He served on the museum board in the 1970s. Parts of the museum, including an exhibit on the White River, bring back memories for him.
"I floated the White River with my father in the '50s," Jennings said. "I was a child then."
Exhibits that look at some of the manufacturing in the city also are memorable, Jennings said.
"Daisy was really the first manufacturing business that we had here in Rogers," Jennings said. "That was a major thing for us kids in Rogers. We had never seen anyone from north of the Mason-Dixon line in the 1950s."
Other cities in the state have looked to Rogers for guidance in setting up their museums, Burroughs said.
Sandra Taylor Smith, director of the North Little Rock History Commission, said the commission is considering placing exhibits in the basement of its facility.
"Rogers is where we have gone to get ideas," Smith said. "We like how it has been done."
Rogers Museum officials are looking to expand in the next three to five years, Burroughs said.
The museum owns about 6,700 square feet of space overall. This includes office, research and education space. A 27,000-square-foot expansion would increase exhibition space to 7,500 square feet.
Boxes stacked on top of boxes were scattered across Burroughs' office late in March. The office is shared between four people.
"I don't want a lot but someday maybe my own office," Burroughs joked.
Many of the museum's artifacts are unable to be displayed in the current facility, Burroughs said. This includes the original ticket window from the train station downtown and a cornerstone from the 1911 Rogers High School.
A Springfield wagon used to farm land in Rogers also sits in storage, Burroughs said.
"We are maxed out," Burroughs said. "We couldn't even think about getting a wagon in here."
The museum has about $500,000 toward expanding, Burroughs said. He said planning is preliminary at this point. It is unknown how much the total project could cost.
Events to celebrate the 40-year history of the museum are in the works, Burroughs said. No details have been confirmed so far, he said.
NW News on 04/11/2015