Siloam Springs Community Guide

14 | 2021 Siloam Springs community guide For five decades, the Siloam Springs Museum has strived to preserve the history, celebrate the culture and build the community of Siloam Springs. In 2019, the museum celebrated its 50th anniversary and its newly renovated space. Founded in 1969, the museum's first home was the former Kansas City Railroad depot. e collection outgrew the space in a few years, and moved to its current home at 112 N. Maxwell Street, previously a Church of Christ, in 1972. Don Warden, Director of Collections and Research, said "It fees like a whole new building." e museum shut down in 2018 for the renovation, re-opening to the public in March 2019. Most of the changes were interior. "We did a lot of work on the main exhibit floor, and added an office level. We also added restrooms on the main floor; before, they were located on the basement level. We also made them handicap-accessible," Don pointed out. Some businesses that rely on public foot traffic may not have survived the pandemic of 2020, but Siloam Museum didn't shut down. ey continued operating, abiding by the mask mandate and a 10-person limit in the building. "We couldn't allow large groups," said Don, "So our biggest hit was in programming." e museum normally caters to large groups of students, and their two major fundraisers for sustainment. But in 2020 they weren't able to hold the June "Walls Talk" event, hosted at a different location each year, or the October "Tap into History" beer walk downtown, so fortunately they obtained a PPP Grant, which nearly covered what the events typically generate. Mary Nolan, Interim Executive Director, added that the museum, a 501-C3, counts on a donations box and sells memberships for operating support. e museum is excited about the grant for the current "Railroads of Siloam Springs" exhibit. e railroad, as it happens, is paramount to the history of the town. "e railroad is what saved this town [circa 1893]," Don noted. "It brought economic growth, brick and stone buildings, increased the population and generally made Siloam a more prosperous place." As for the future, Mary looks forward to the continued improvement of the "Industries of Siloam" exhibit, thanks to a grant from the La-Z-Boy Foundation. She expressed the museum's gratitude for the generosity of the City of Siloam for their ongoing support. Despite the pandemic still looming, Don is confident about the future, and noted "However long the pandemic continues, the good news is, we're still here." e museum's hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Siloam Springs Museum: celebrating the past, looking to the future | By Rhonda Baber-Crone Ribbon cutting and grand reopening, March 2019. (Courtesy photo) The museum interior after renovations. Movable walls allow the museum to define spaces in the exhibit area. The original wood floors of the building were refinished. (Courtesy photo)

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