I think of Fort Smith as the Rooster Cogburn of Arkansas. There are plenty of Arkansans who consider this state's second-largest city to be a "one-eyed fat man," the same way Ned Pepper viewed the deputy U.S. marshal who was hunting him down in True Grit.
When you get to know this sometimes gritty manufacturing city on the Oklahoma border, though, you'll find that its people are resourceful, loyal and hardworking. They're also patient, sometimes out of necessity. More than a decade ago--January 2007 to be exact--the U.S. Marshals Service selected Fort Smith as the site of its museum. Unfortunately, the Great Recession set in soon after the announcement was made. More than $50 million was needed to build an almost 53,000-square-foot facility along the banks of the Arkansas River. Fundraising efforts seemed to stall at times.
Members of the Arkansas Historical Association gathered last month at Fort Smith for their 77th annual conference soon after it was announced that the family of the late Lt. Gov. Winthrop Paul Rockefeller had given a $350,000 gift to the U.S. Marshals Museum Foundation. That gift leaves the museum $19.3 million short of its current fundraising goal of $58.6 million. That's still a lot of money, but at least supporters of the project can now see the finish line.
When Patrick Weeks came on board as the president and chief executive officer of the museum, he knew that people across Arkansas were becoming skeptical that the facility would be built. So he set an opening date of Sept. 24, 2019, to coincide with the 230th anniversary of the U.S. Marshals Service. He hasn't wavered from that goal. Weeks' hiring was announced in June 2016, freeing predecessor Jim Dunn to focus entirely on fundraising. The museum's architects were asked to revise their design in order to reduce cost overruns. Dirt work began last fall. At long last, things are happening along the banks of the river.
I was amazed at how many of those attending this year's AHA meeting had never spent time in downtown Fort Smith which is, after all, one of the most historic neighborhoods in the state. There was lots of buzz about the Marshals Museum, and most of the 250 people registered for the conference took time to visit the National Park Service's Fort Smith National Historic Site and the Fort Smith Museum of History. The NPS site preserves some of the state's most historic structures and interprets the role Fort Smith played in keeping the peace in Indian Territory during the 1800s. The city of Fort Smith began reclaiming the property in the 1950s. In 1961, the site of two forts, a federal courthouse and a jail was turned over to the federal government. Lady Bird Johnson, the nation's first lady, dedicated the historic site in 1964.
The Fort Smith Museum of History traces its roots back to 1910 when a group of women learned that the city was planning to tear down the old commissary building, which the U.S. Army constructed in 1838. The building had been purchased by the city in 1898. The City Federation of Women's Clubs later leased the rock structure and operated the Old Commissary Museum. The building is now part of the Fort Smith National Historic Site. The museum moved for a time to Garrison Avenue. In 1979, it moved to its current location in the Atkinson-Williams Building adjacent to the National Park Service facilities.
It was just after 11 p.m. on April 21, 1996, when an F-2 tornado took dead aim at downtown Fort Smith. The tornado caused more than $300 million in damage. Most downtowns across Arkansas never would have recovered from such a blow. The leadership of Fort Smith, pushed by the likes of developer Richard Griffin, decided not only to rebuild structures that had been destroyed but also to renovate aging properties that had been neglected for years.
The city's Central Business Improvement District became more aggressive in marketing downtown, updating design guidelines and attracting residents with projects such as the West End Lofts. Traditional retailers such as Newton's Jewelers, which has been around since 1914, were encouraged to stay while restaurants and entertainment venues such as the Bricktown Brewery, Rolando's, R. Landry's, Doe's Eat Place, 21 West End, Neumeier's Rib Room, La Huerta and Sake Sushi & Martini Bar were added to the mix. Down by the Garrison Avenue Bridge, the Park at West End opened, featuring a 1950s Ferris wheel and an Italian carousel.
Among those who answered the call was Steve Clark of Propak Logistics, who spent more than $2 million renovating the 1911 Friedman-Mincer Building for his company's headquarters. The 24,000-square-foot building now houses dozens of employees. In a speech last year to the Fort Smith Downtown Business Association, Clark spoke frankly about his reasons for starting 64.6 Downtown. The nonprofit group created The Unexpected festival, which has added art to the sides of buildings throughout downtown.
"Once you cross the bridge intellectually that there's no cavalry coming to save us economically, you're going to have to fight a little harder and do the things for yourself that maybe historically you waited on others--the city, civic leaders, whatever--to do for you," Clark said. "When people ask me why I do The Unexpected, my answer is: 'Because that is the kind of city I want to live in.'"
If you perceive Fort Smith to be a declining industrial city, take a walk down Garrison Avenue. Your perception will change.
------------v------------
Senior Editor Rex Nelson's column appears regularly in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. He's also the author of the Southern Fried blog at rexnelsonsouthernfried.com.
Editorial on 05/05/2018