What's Up - Your guide to what's happening in Fayetteville, AR this week!
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8 WHAT'S UP! AUGUST 30-SEPTEMBER 5, 2020 FEATURE On The March Rogers Historical Museum remembers suffragettes BECCA MARTIN-BROWN NWA Democrat-Gazette T his year marks the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment," Serena Barnett begins. "We wanted to commemorate this event with a special exhibit saluting many of the women in America who contributed to the National Women's Suffrage Movement and those who have in these past 100 years used their democratic voices to make a difference in our society." Of course, like so many other institutions, the Rogers Historical Museum faced a challenge. Its doors are closed to visitors due to covid-19 concerns. And "Influential Women of Arkansas: From the Suffragettes to Today" was intended to fill the museum's Trammel Gallery. "We still wanted to offer this exhibit for the 19th Amendment centennial," Barnett underscores. "Also, as this is an election year, we wanted to reinforce the importance of Americans making their voices heard through their Constitutional right to vote. Reformatting the exhibit as a virtual exhibit was a natural solution to ensure our community would still be able to view it in a timely manner." Online exhibits do have advantages, Barnett admits. For one thing, it is accessible to anyone, anywhere. For another, it can remain open indefinitely. And finally, the AT HOME Kid's Craft Corner, scheduled for 2 p.m. Sept. 19 on the museum's Facebook page, can tie into the virtual exhibit. "Kids will learn about the suffragists and how they marched in the streets," Barnett describes. "We'll show them how to design their own flag, using supplies found around the house, to wave in honor of the suffragists who fought for the right to vote for all Americans!" But the "Influential Women" exhibit is only one small part of what's been going on behind the scenes since the museum closed its doors to the public in mid- March. "Museum staff have continued coming into work, and we've used this time to make some changes to some of the exhibits," Barnett says. "We've done some redecorating in the Children's Gallery, added a barn to the Natural State exhibit and expanded the Monte Ne exhibit. We've added some new objects in other areas of the gallery as well. You'll just have to wait for when we reopen to see them for yourself! "We're also using this time to do some maintenance on the historic Hawkins House," she adds. "Every 10 to 15 years, the house needs to have a fresh coat of paint and minor repairs tended to. Beginning mid-September, we will be repainting both inside and outside. Much of the house is empty right now as we have begun removing the collection items in preparation for the upcoming work. "Collections staff have been busy digitizing objects for our new online collections database," Barnett continues. "Of the 51,000- plus objects in our collection that have been catalogued, we currently have over 3,000 records with over 4,000 images now available, and we are adding more all the time." And "education staff have been working on creating virtual programs, such as AT HOME Kid's Craft Corner, our monthly history craft lesson. As in-classroom programming will not be happening this year, they are also "Influential Women of Arkansas: From the Suffragettes to Today" was intended to fill the Rogers Historical Museum's Trammel Gallery. The museum is closed due to covid-19 concerns, but the exhibit is open online at www.rogershistoricalmuseum.org. (Courtesy Images) GO ONLINE! Rogers Historical Museum rogershistoricalmuseum.org facebook.com/RogersHistoricalMuseum