Driving tour unveils Bella Vista history

A massive rock ledge hangs over a cave entrance behind the former fish hatchery in Bella Vista. Participants of a recent driving tour of the village, offered by the Bella Vista Historical Society, got the chance to explore the area.
A massive rock ledge hangs over a cave entrance behind the former fish hatchery in Bella Vista. Participants of a recent driving tour of the village, offered by the Bella Vista Historical Society, got the chance to explore the area.

The Bella Vista Historical Museum's fall driving tour -- one of two the museum does each year -- allowed visitors to take a look at several of the city's historical sites, including the trout farm, Wonderland Cave, the ground that used to be a swimming pool near Lake Bella Vista and the Artist Retreat Center.

This fall's tour started by heading out to Summit Cemetery in the Metfield area, next to the remains of an old church, school and community center's foundation.

"People went to school here," said Xyta Lucas said, director of the museum, who led the tour. "They went to church here."

Lucas pointed out the grave of A.E. Perkins, who died Feb 12, 1902. Perkins was, according to local lore, killed by his wife and a hired hand, she said, and the two killers disappeared after the fact.

From there, tour attendees headed out to Wonderland Cave to check out the cave's entrance, as well as the caretaker's cottage, which burned down in 2010. The cave entrance is along Dartmoor Road.

The cave was opened as a nightclub back in 1930, Lucas said. "When they opened it, they had it as a jazz and big band nightclub."

The tour also covered the trout farm, which is now a private residence sitting along a spring-fed creek south of Cooper Elementary School. The spring used to feed water to the west side of U.S. Highway 71, and adequate pressure was achieved with hydraulic rams, Lucas said.

Attendees were dwarfed by the rock ledge hanging over a cave from which the spring flows, and they were more than happy to take in the site's waterfall.

Next, the tour took guests to the old swimming pool and a water building that used to feed cabins on the east side of the highway. The tour concluded at the Artist Retreat Center.

In addition to this fall tour, the museum offers one in the spring, Lucas reported, and it always fills, even without advertising.

The tour became a tradition after Lucas put a similar trip together for her Quester group. Members of Questers are interested in historical buildings and antiques. The she decided to try it as a museum fundraiser, charging $10 per person.

The tricky part is working out the carpooling, Lucas said. Partly to avoid causing traffic congestion and partly to avoid parking issues, the tour must be limited to eight cars, including her own.

The tour takes roughly four hours, Lucas said. Anyone interested in the next tour can stop in to the museum and put his name on the waiting list.

Lucas said she does not want to have more than two tours annually because some stops -- like the fish hatchery -- are on private property, and she does not want to cause any headaches for property owners.

Once a date is set for the tour -- which requires looking for a good weekend the museum has free -- she can start calling people and confirming guests.

The tricky part, she said, is working out the carpooling. Partly to avoid causing traffic congestion she said, and partly to avoid parking issues, the tour needs to be limited to eight cars, including her own.

Ellen and Gary Creakbaum, a couple living in Bella Vista, said they loved the tour.

"I enjoyed it," Gary Creakbaum said. "We've been to the museum several times."

They've been wanting to go on the tour for a while now, he said, and something or another kept getting in the way. This time around, they made sure to clear their schedules.

And it was worth it, they said.

"I think everyone who lives here should take the tour -- or at least go to the museum," Ellen Creakbaum said.

No stop or site on the tour seemed any more important than any other, Gary Creakbaum said.

"I enjoyed each one," he said, "because it kind of put the puzzle together. Great way to spend your Saturday afternoon."

NAN Our Town on 11/24/2016

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