History of tennis in Bella Vista
A program on the history of tennis in Bella Vista will be presented by Paul Pautsch, a former tennis pro in Bella Vista, at 7 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 16, at the museum. Pautsch was the tennis pro in Bella Vista for many years and just recently completed his 25th year of working the Cancer Challenge fundraiser. Prior to that, he worked on the annual Phillips Classic fundraiser. Admission is free and light refreshments will be served. You are welcome to come early and tour the museum before the program begins.
Fay Jones exhibit
Visitors from all over Northwest Arkansas have been coming to the museum to see the exhibit on architect Fay Jones. On loan from the Old Statehouse Museum in Little Rock, the exhibit was created in 1999 while Jones was still alive. A native of Arkansas and resident of Fayetteville at the time of his death in 2004, Jones was a student of Frank Lloyd Wright. In a current exhibit at Crystal Bridges, architect Moshe Safdie gives credit to Jones as one of his influences in designing Crystal Bridges: "When exploring the area, Sadfie was also inspired by some of the modern structures he encountered here, such as Thorncrown Chapel and the Walton family residence, designed by Arkansas native Fay Jones ... Sadfie incorporated principles seen in the work of both Jones and Wright into the design of Crystal Bridges." He said, "I had no idea that the Waltons had a Fay Jones house. It impressed me ... that Fay Jones had put a dam across the ravine and created the body of water, and that kind of stayed in my mind."
Log Cabin project
Our next step with the log cabin, which was donated earlier this year, is to get the foundation built on the museum grounds, which we expect to have done late this fall or early winter. Then we will be able to get the cabin moved. Donations for this project are still very much welcome, either through the gofundme/cabin fever account online or through payments left at or mailed to the museum. Our mailing address is 1885 Bella Vista Way, Bella Vista AR 72714. All donors of $100 or more will be recognized with a plaque inside the cabin.
Gift shop merchandise
We continue to stock items in our museum gift shop that you won't find anywhere else in Bella Vista, including jigsaw puzzles of Bella Vista scenes, magnets, Christmas tree ornaments, vintage postcards and more. Newly arrived merchandise includes baseball caps with the city logo embroidered on them. Please stop in and browse at your leisure.
Private tours available
Private tours of the museum are available outside of normal open hours for church groups, students, civic clubs, businesses, etc. To arrange for a tour, leave a message at the museum, 479-855-2335, or contact Xyta Lucas at 479-876-6118.
Hours of operation
The Historical Museum is located at the corner of U.S. Highway 71 and Kingsland Road and is open from 1 to 5 p.m. Wednesdays through Sundays. The phone number is 479-855-2335, and the website is bellavista.museum.org.
General News on 08/15/2018