BVBA Bazaar
The Bella Vista Business Association, founded in 1982, will have its annual Bazaar at Riordan Hall from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday, March 14, where we will be among dozens of local vendors offering our gift shop merchandise for sale and giving out information about the museum. Please stop by and say hello to our volunteers!
Battle of 1812
Our annual meeting, to which the public is invited to attend, will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday, March 24. Our speaker will be Dale Phillips , a recent retiree to Bella Vista who was with the National Park Service for 41 years, including 10 years as manager of the Chalmette Battle of New Orleans site. His program will be on the importance of the War of 1812 and in particular on the Battle of New Orleans. He will explore some of the lesser known reasons for the War of 1812 and what led to the British effort to capture New Orleans. He will also examine the British campaign and the battle of Jan. 8, 1815, in detail. He has authored numerous articles on U.S. military history and been involved with historical documentaries. Admission is free, and refreshments will be served.
Citywide Garage Sale
We will make available 17 parking spaces in front of the museum for individuals who would like to participate in the citywide garage sale on April 26 and 27 but don't want to have a garage sale at home. Volunteer Dustie Meads will coordinate this project, which will be a fundraiser for our "Settlers Cabin." If you are interested in renting one or more of the spaces, please contact her for details at 479-553-8116.
Gift Shop
Our Gift Shop Manager, Jill Werner, deserves a great deal of credit for the tremendous success that we have realized with our museum gift shop. She visited other local museums to see what they were doing, she designed the layout of our gift shop and then ordered merchandise that she thought would appeal to our gift shop visitors. We carry a variety of Bella Vista souvenirs not available elsewhere, plus many items donated as fundraisers for the museum, which include bluebird houses, Victorian house cookie jars, salt and pepper shakers, and more. If you haven't stopped by the museum to see what we have to offer, please do so, and while you are there, check out all of our exhibits which represent the past 100+ years of Bella Vista history.
Tours and programs available
Private tours of the museum and programs about the history of Bella Vista are available outside of normal open hours for church groups, students, civic clubs, businesses, etc. To arrange for an event, please 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, next door to the American Legion, and is open 1 to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday. The phone number is 479-855-2335. The website address is bellavistamuseum.org.
Community on 03/13/2019