14 Apr 2025 Arkansas Heritage awards Small Museum and Public Art Grants to 17 recipients

Posted at 7:00 PMh in News by

LITTLE ROCK — Arkansas Heritage recognized recipients of Small Museum and Arkansas Heritage grants recently at its headquarters in Little Rock. These grant programs provide awards to Arkansas’s small history museums, historical societies, historic houses and sites and military museums. For this grant cycle, Arkansas Heritage awarded $77,710 to 17 recipients from across the state.

Main Street Morrilton representatives received a second public art grant. They have started work on their third mural downtown.

“These grant programs provide funds to help promote education, awareness and enjoyment of Arkansas history,” said Shea Lewis, director of the Arkansas Department of Parks, Heritage and Tourism. “Our hope is that these funds will enrich current programs and provide inspiration for future activities, continuing to build momentum and energy.”

The Small Museum Grant Program aims to increase the ability of community-based small museums/organizations to research, preserve, present and conserve Arkansas history.

Eligible organizations must have an annual operating budget of $250,000 or less; must have a staff of at least one person, either paid or volunteer; and must be open to the public at least 90 days per year. Eligible activities include building and grounds maintenance, operating costs, equipment purchases up to $1,000, accessioning of artifact collections, educational programming, research, exhibits, and website design and maintenance. The maximum grant award is $2,500.

This year’s recipients include:

Public Art Grants

  • Downtown Little Rock Partnership, Rooted in the Rock $9,000
  • Main Street Batesville, Intersection of Community $6,250
  • Main Street Eureka Springs, Colorful Crosswalks: Enhancing Safety and Community Through Art $5,000
  • Main Street Fort Smith, Mind Gap $10,000
  • Main Street Morrilton, “Wonderful World of Books” Children’s Library Mural Installation $10,000
  • South Side Main Street Project, Inc., SoMa’s Trophy: a New Mural on the Trophy Shop Building, $10,000

Small Museum Grants

  • Arkansas Air and Military Museum, These Final Hours Exhibit $2,500
  • Bauxite Historical Association and Museum, Operating Expenses $2,500
  • Boone County Historical and Railroad Society, Heritage Museum Digital Experience $2,470
  • Greene County Historical and Genealogical Society, Steel Bookcases, $2,470
  • Heritage House Museum of Montgomery County, Sorghum Mill Shed, $2,500
  • Hot Spring County Museum, Operating Expenses, $2,500
  • Hot Spring County, Arkansas Historical Society, Operating Expenses, $2,500
  • Howard County Historical Society, Operating Expenses, $2,500
  • Logan County Museum Association, Museum Preventitve Conservation Project, $2,490
  • Nevada County Depot Museum, Operating Expenses, $2,500
  • Walnut Ridge Army Flying School Museum, Inc. Wings of Honor Museum, Operating Expenses, $2,500

To learn more about the application process for Small Museum grants, visit HERE.

“Arkansas’s small museums and historical organizations play a vital role in preserving places and items that have shaped Arkansas’s history,” said Marty Ryall, director of Arkansas Heritage. “These grants provide funds that help them to continue to tell the story of our shared heritage.”