Tag Archives: Bill Worthen

The 49th Annual Historic Arkansas Museum Christmas Frolic today from 1 to 4

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ham-frolicWhen the Culture Vulture was just a Culture Chick, his parents took him to then-Arkansas Territorial Restoration Christmas Open House.

Thankfully, this event continues and celebrates Christmas as it was in the 1800s with living history, carols, reenactments, live music, dancing and more. Visitors come from across the state every year for our famous hot cider and ginger cake, as well as Arkansas-made holiday shopping in the Museum Store.

Celebrate Christmas as it was in the 1800s with living history, carols, reenactments, live music, dancing and more plus:

  • Live music by the Arkansas Country Dance Band, Lark in the Morning, Sugar on the Floor, fiddler Ricky Russell and friends and the Aeolus Recorder Konsort.
  • Meet Linda Palmer Williams, author and artist of Champion Trees of Arkansas
  • Visit with Susan Williamson on her line of Plant Me Seed Cards
  • Take a holiday picture by the reconstructed 1830s Pleasure Wagon!

The fun continues from 1pm until 4pm today.  Watch for HAM director Bill Worthen to dance the Virginia Reel, which members of his family have been dancing in Arkansas since the 1820s.

Little Rock Look Back: Nicholas Peay

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LR sealOn April 28, 1784, in Virginia, future Little Rock Alderman (and acting Mayor) Major Nicholas Peay was born the eleventh of at least thirteen children.  (His gravestone lists a May date for his birth, but other records indicate April 28, 1784.) A veteran of the War of 1812 and the Indian Wars, he later moved to Kentucky (where he met and married his wife, Juliet Neill, in 1814) before settling in Arkansas on September 18, 1825.  At the time, they were the ninth family to set up residence in Little Rock.

After arriving in Little Rock, he bought the Little Rock Tavern. This started a fifty year tradition of his family owning taverns and hotels in Little Rock. In 1828, he was appointed Assistant Postmaster of Little Rock.  From 1825 to 1831, Little Rock residents were allowed to elect five Trustees prior to the formal incorporation. Major Peay was one of those who served on the Board of Trustees.

He later served on the Little Rock City Council, and in 1839 served for seven months as Acting Mayor due to the prolonged absence of Mayor Jesse Brown.  In 1841, his friend Gen. Zachary Taylor, paid a visit to Little Rock and stayed with him on the General’s way to Fort Smith.

Nicholas and Juliet Peay had at least eleven children, though only five appeared to have lived until adulthood. One of those, Gordon Neill Peay, served as Little Rock’s 23rd Mayor from 1859 to 1861. Other descendants of Nicholas Peay who followed him into public service include his grandson Ashley Peay, who was an Alderman in the 1920s (son of John Coleman Peay) and great-great-grandson Joseph B. Hurst (a great-grandson of Mayor Peay), who was a City Director from 1967 to 1970. In addition, City Director Hurst’s daughter-in-law, Stacy Hurst served three terms on the City Board from 2003 to 2014; she is now Director of the Department of Arkansas Heritage.

Major Peay’s egg-nog recipe has been passed down for generations. It is the inspiration for the Historic Arkansas Museum yearly Nog-Off.  This past year, museum director Bill Worthen and his daughter were the sixth and seventh generation of the family to make Peay’s egg-nog. The Worthens are descended from Mayor Peay’s son who was also named Gordon Neill Peay.

Major Nicholas Peay is buried with his wife and many other family members in Mount Holly Cemetery.

The Smithsonian Institution records indicate they have an oil painting of Major Peay as well as of his wife. But there are conflicting records as to whether they have been lost or are in private collections.

Montine McNulty and Bill Worthen to be added to Arkansas Tourism Hall of Fame

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montine-mcnulty-bill-worthen-composite-tourism-hall-of-fameMontine McNulty, executive director of the Arkansas Hospitality Association, and Bill Worthen, director of Historic Arkansas Museum, will be inducted to the Arkansas Tourism Hall of Fame. They will be honored during a luncheon Monday, March 14, 2016, at noon during the 42nd Annual Governor’s Conference on Tourism. The conference will be held in Springdale at the Northwest Arkansas Convention Center March 13-15, 2016.

The Hall of Fame honor is presented annually to an individual or individuals who have been actively involved in tourism for many years and who have made substantial contributions to the betterment of the industry as a whole.

Through her leadership for the leisure and tourism industry, McNulty has played an essential role in promoting tourism-related legislation over the past 25 years, including the passage of the 2% Tourism Tax and the 1/8th Cent Conservation Tax. A member of numerous boards and associations, she has worked to ensure the voice of the tourism industry is heard among members of the Arkansas General Assembly.

For more than four decades, Worthen has served the State of Arkansas as director of Historic Arkansas Museum, shepherding the museum through significant expansions of facilities, programs, collections, publications, exhibits, research, partnerships, community development and tourism. Worthen’s leadership and advocacy have contributed to the revitalization of downtown Little Rock and helped put both Little Rock and Arkansas as a whole on the map as a travel destination.

For information on the Hall of Fame Awards, contact Kristine Puckett at 501-682-5240.

Free field trip programs to Historic Arkansas Museum for any Arkansas school in 2016, funded by Bill Worthen Future of History Fund

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Historic Arkansas Museum is celebrating its 75th diamond anniversary by offering free educational field trip programs to any school in Arkansas that comes to the museum in 2016. This project will be funded by the Bill Worthen Future of History Fund which is dedicated to inspiring the next generation of Arkansas history lovers.

Historic Arkansas Museum provides a variety of engaging and interactive field trip programs throughout the year in addition to popular annual programs such as the Spring and Fall School Fairs and the Before Freedom program in February during Black History Month.

Educators can begin the reservation process by submitting a field trip request form.  To learn more about participating in this program, educators are invited to contact the museum’s director of education, Joleen Linson or call 501-324-9351.

Each year schoolchildren from around the state come to the museum and experience history first hand. Some churn butter—with amazement, as they learn that butter doesn’t come from the grocery store. Others imagine themselves as early Arkansans, travelling west and deciding what to bring with them, in our Packing to Go program. Students leave knowing more about their own history and they leave inspired.

Museum History

What is now a showcase for Arkansas’s history, art and heritage began as a diamond in the rough—a half-block of dilapidated historic structures. Thanks to the efforts of pioneering preservationist Louise Loughborough the museum opened on July 19, 1941, as the Arkansas Territorial Capitol Restoration. Click here to watch the museum’s 75th Anniversary film produced by Cranford Co.

Following Loughborough’s foundational leadership, prominent architect Ed Cromwell led the museum through an era of growth that made the museum an anchor of a once declining downtown Little Rock. In 1972, the museum hired its first professional staff and Bill Worthen was hired as the first executive director, a title he has held for more than 40 years. Worthen made his first goal gaining museum accreditation— a complicated and rigorous process that he and museum staff pursued for nine years, achieving accreditation from the American Alliance of Museums in 1981 making the museum the first accredited history museum in Arkansas.

Worthen also developed and expanded the log house farmstead on museum grounds that has been central to education programs and he led the museum through its most profound expansion which culminated in the 2001 opening of the Museum Center, a project which doubled the size of the previous visitor reception space with 10,000 square feet of exhibits, a theater, a hands-on history classroom, an entrance atrium with views of the historic grounds and other amenities. Other developments under Worthen’s leadership include but are not limited to: development of the ongoing #ArkansasMade research project, the museum’s popular Living History Program, Giving Voice dedicated to those enslaved on what is now museum property, the growth of popular events such as the Christmas Frolic, Territorial Fair, Frontier Fourth of July and 2nd Friday Art Night exhibit openings, and the museum’s achievement of Smithsonian Affiliate status which made possible the opening of the Smithsonian partnership exhibit, “We Walk in Two Worlds: The Caddo, Osage and Quapaw in Arkansas.”

Countless visitors have witnessed Bill Worthen’s passion for Arkansas history and even more across the world have been impacted by his scholarly research and publications, often in partnership with deputy director and chief curator Swannee Bennett, on the subjects of Arkansas-made material culture, the Arkansas Traveler, the Bowie knife and more. As Worthen plans his retirement for the end of 2016, the Bill Worthen Future of History Fund seeks to pass on his passion for Arkansas history to future generations for decades to come.

Memory Share

The museum is seeking stories and memories from visitors as a part of the 75th anniversary celebration. Everyone is invited to share their memories and stories of their experiences at the museum by emailing Chris Hancock, tagging Historic Arkansas Museum on Facebook, or tagging @HistoricArk on Instagram and Twitter with the hashtag #HAM75.

Currently on exhibit:

Historic Arkansas Museum is open 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday, 1 – 5 p.m. on Sunday. Admission to the galleries and parking are free; admission to the historic grounds is $2.50 for adults, $1 for children under 18, $1.50 for senior citizens. The Historic Arkansas Museum Store is open 10 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday, 1 – 4 p.m. on Sunday.

Historic Arkansas Museum is an agency of the Department of Arkansas Heritage, which was created in 1975 to preserve and enhance the heritage of the state of Arkansas. Other agencies of the department are Delta Cultural Center in Helena, Arkansas Arts Council, Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission, Arkansas Historic Preservation Program, Mosaic Templars Cultural Center and Old State House Museum.

 

11th EVER Historic Arkansas Museum Nog-Off tonight

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thnogoff_tstWhat began as a spirited and good-natured rivalry between the offspring of two longtime Little Rock families has given birth to one of the most anticipated holiday events of each year.

Get in the holiday spirit with Historic Arkansas Museum’s 11th Ever Nog-off, a culinary celebration of a favorite holiday drink and friendly competition for the best eggnog in town. Guests will also enjoy a new exhibit by Arkansas artist Ray Parker, holiday shopping in the Museum Store, roasted pecans in the Brownlee kitchen, caroling and storytelling around a fire pit on the museum’s historic grounds. Music will be provided by Heather Smith.

This year’s 11th Ever Nog-off will be judged by Capi Peck (Trio’s), Scott McGehee (Yellow Rocket Concepts) and Marcella Dalla Rosa who won the opportunity to judge this popular competition at Historic Arkansas Museum’s 20th Candlelight Gala

Noggers:
One Eleven at the Capital Hotel
Cache Restaurant
Loblolly Creamery
Bill Worthen
Stone’s Throw/Heritage Grille
John Selig and Leah Elenzweig
Rock City Eats featuring Chef Ken Dempsey and Greg Henderson

Each year, HAM announces a Nogger Emerita who has won this competition too many times!
This year’s Nogger Emerita is Bridget Fennell Farris! She has been a fierce Nog-off competitor with her famous “John Robert Jackson’s Egg-nog”

Ray Parker
Ray Parker is an oil painter from Fayetteville whose subject matter focuses on human portraiture in a style that is both naturalistic and expressive. Parker’s intimate portrayal of the human form intends “to address both the timeless and temporal character of life, I place my subjects in contexts that allow me to investigate their emotional and psychological nature …”

The 48th Annual Christmas Frolic this afternoon at Historic Arkansas Museum

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HAM-frolicWhen the Culture Vulture was just a Culture Chick, his parents took him to then-Arkansas Territorial Restoration Christmas Open House.

Thankfully, this event continues and celebrates Christmas as it was in the 1800s with living history, carols, reenactments, live music, dancing and more. Visitors come from across the state every year for our famous hot cider and ginger cake, as well as Arkansas-made holiday shopping in the Museum Store.

Activities:

  • Have your photo taken with Father Christmas from 1:30 to 2pm and from 2:30 to 3 pm.
  • Crafts and cards in the Hands On History classroom
  • Live music performances in our atrium and galleries.
  • McVicar House: Readings of “The Night Before Christmas” (originally published in 1823) at 1:30, 2:15, 2:45 and 3:15 pm. Readings will alternate with appearances by Capt. James McVicar.
  • Print Shop: Learn what apprentices looked forward to about the holiday; make a wax seal
  • Brownlee Kitchen: caroling
  • Hinderliter Grog Shop: dancing
  • Farmstead: Blacksmith Shop open, Early Arkansas Reenactors will be doing a variety of pioneer demonstrations, cider and gingercake in the parlor, crafts in the bedroom, reindeer food on the porch.
  • There will be games on the historic grounds and at the farmstead.

The fun continues from 1pm until 4pm today.  Watch for HAM director Bill Worthen to dance the Virginia Reel, which members of his family have been dancing in Arkansas since the 1820s.

Today at noon – Bill Worthen discusses Historic Arkansas Museum for Butler Center Legacies & Lunch

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Bill-Worthen_K0A4687-webAt Legacies & Lunch, Bill Worthen, director of the Historic Arkansas Museum, will discuss the museum’s history, placing emphasis on Louise Loughborough, founder of the museum, and Ed Cromwell, who led the museum after Loughborough’s death.

Worthen, a Little Rock native, is a graduate of Hall High School and Washington University, St. Louis. After teaching high school in Pine Bluff for three years, Worthen became director of what was then known as the Arkansas Territorial Restoration in 1972. In 1981, the organization became the first history museum in Arkansas to be accredited by the American Association of Museums. The museum was renamed the Historic Arkansas Museum in 2001 to reflect its expanded facility and mission. Worthen’s current research interests are the bowie knife, sometimes called the Arkansas toothpick, and the Arkansas Traveler, in its many forms.

Legacies & Lunch is free, open to the public, and supported in part by the Arkansas Humanities Council. Programs are held from noon-1 p.m. on the first Wednesday of each month. Attendees are invited to bring a sack lunch; drinks and dessert are provided. For more information, contact 918-3033.