Situated in the center of the region, Lowell is often referred to as the heart of Northwest Arkansas. The Lowell Historical Museum has seen a lot of changes come through Northwest Arkansas over the years, and it is striving to protect the history of the city that sits in the middle of one of the fastest-growing metros in the country.<\/p>\n
Understanding the History of Lowell<\/strong> \u201cMudtown\u201d<\/strong> A Dream Come True<\/strong> An approximately 11,000-square-foot building will be built to house current artifacts as well as make room for future exhibits. The museum\u2019s plans include:<\/p>\n \u2022 Veterans\u2019 Room \u201cThis 100-acre park will be a popular place for families to visit in Lowell and will be the center point for development in the city,\u201d Estes said. \u201cWe also envision it being a must-stop for visitors in Northwest Arkansas.\u201d<\/p>\n New Museum, New Name<\/strong> \u201cWe want to invite the community to get involved with the museum as much as we can,\u201d said Carol Kick, President of the Lowell Historical Museum Foundation of NWA. \u201cWe would like teachers and community leaders to speak at our programs making them a focal point. We want the new museum to be an inclusive experience that will complement all of the other outstanding museums in our area and make it something for those who love Lowell to be very proud.\u201d<\/p>\n The expanded space will give the museum more room to showcase everything about Lowell and the region. \u201cThere are a lot of people who have wanted to bring items to exhibit in our museum, but we are full right now,\u201d Estes said. \u201cWe are excited to have additional space with the new museum so that we can add more exhibits and make the experience even more enjoyable.\u201d<\/p>\n Lowell has seen its population rise from just under 300 people when it was founded, to now nearly 9,000. This increase is due in part to the infusion of businesses into the area such as J.B. Hunt, headquartered just minutes from the museum. The new museum will likely feature a spectacular J.B. Hunt exhibit when it opens.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are definitely a trucking town now,\u201d Estes said. \u201cTransportation has done a lot for our local economy, industry and the overall growth of Lowell.\u201d<\/p>\n Celebrating History and Making New History<\/strong> \u201cProperly preserving and sharing our city’s history over the years has made it necessary to make new history by building a contemporary facility that will serve as an educational center for many generations to come on the Kathleen Johnson Memorial Park property,\u201d Lowell Mayor Eldon Long said. \u201cIt will have access to the Razorback Regional Greenway Trail system. The City of Lowell has a rich heritage and we look forward to working together with the community in bringing this vision to reality.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Situated in the center of the region, Lowell is often referred to as the heart of Northwest Arkansas. The Lowell Historical Museum has seen a lot of changes come through Northwest Arkansas over the years, and it is striving to protect the history of the city that sits in the middle of one of the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1148,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[197],"tags":[1083,1092,1073,845,758,1091,1081,1082,1085,1088,1090,1093,1084,1087,1086,1089],"class_list":["post-1147","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-focus_community","tag-bloomington","tag-carol-kick","tag-eldon-long","tag-elza-tucker","tag-j-b-hunt","tag-leonard-johnson","tag-liz-estes","tag-lowell-historical-museum","tag-mudtown","tag-overland-butterfield-stagecoach","tag-phil-biggers","tag-razorback-regional-greenway","tag-robinsons-crossing","tag-san-francisco","tag-st-louis","tag-the-trails-a-convergence-of-history"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/impactpossible.com\/voice\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/New-Rendering.png?fit=640%2C336","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8RhO8-iv","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/impactpossible.com\/voice\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1147","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/impactpossible.com\/voice\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/impactpossible.com\/voice\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/impactpossible.com\/voice\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/impactpossible.com\/voice\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1147"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/impactpossible.com\/voice\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1147\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1161,"href":"http:\/\/impactpossible.com\/voice\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1147\/revisions\/1161"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/impactpossible.com\/voice\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1148"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/impactpossible.com\/voice\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1147"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/impactpossible.com\/voice\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1147"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/impactpossible.com\/voice\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1147"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nLed by Museum Director Elizabeth Estes, the museum preserves and interprets historical objects and works of art that build a bridge of culture and understanding of the history of Lowell as well as the greater Northwest Arkansas region. It also honors the service and sacrifice of veterans and their families. Estes says the museum is a vital part of the fabric of Lowell. \u201cIf we didn\u2019t have a museum, we wouldn\u2019t know our history,\u201d she said. \u201cIf we didn\u2019t know our history we wouldn\u2019t remember what we have proudly accomplished, which also helps us envision our future.”<\/p>\n
\nThe city was founded in 1847 as Robinson\u2019s Crossroad, and the name was changed to Bloomington in 1858. It would later earn the nickname \u201cMudtown\u201d after a private\u00a0stagecoach operating out of Butterfield, Mo. got stuck in the mud, leading its frustrated driver to exclaim that he must be in Mudtown. Lowell celebrates the nickname each year with the Annual Mudtown Festival. The town was destroyed by a tornado in 1881 and was given the current name of Lowell after it was relocated next to the St. Louis and San Francisco Railroad tracks.<\/p>\n
\nFounder Elza Tucker\u2019s dream for a museum started in 1976, but it wasn\u2019t until June 1, 2003 when then-Mayor Phil Biggers cut the ribbon and opened the permanent location of the museum, which has now outgrown its current facility at 304 Jackson Pl. In 2014, Leonard Johnson donated 100 acres of land to the City of Lowell in memory of his wife, Kathleen. The museum was then granted three acres that they will use to build a new facility at 403 Bellview Road.<\/p>\n
\n\u2022 Children\u2019s Room
\n\u2022 Community Room for public meetings and\/or family events
\n\u2022 Caf\u00e9 for sandwiches and cold drinks
\n\u2022 Lobby with the Butterfield Stagecoach at the center
\n\u2022 Covered outdoor space for farm and agriculture implements
\n\u2022 6,000 square feet of exhibit space
\n\u2022 Storage and receiving areas
\n\u2022 Rose Garden in memory of Kathleen Johnson
\n\u2022 Offices and restrooms<\/p>\n
\nThe land will feature several monuments,\u00a0recreational and educational activities, and other businesses. There will also be a significant emphasis on honoring Northwest Arkansas military veterans. As part of the relocation, the museum will be changing its name to \u201cThe Trails: A Convergence of History\u201d.<\/p>\n
\nWhile the museum\u2019s goal is to celebrate Lowell\u2019s history, they are continuously looking toward the future.<\/p>\n