Arkansas' Old State House

A chill runs over your spine as you step into the open, sunlit room-- and that's before the guide tells you that a murder occurred in the House of Representative chamber in Arkansas' Old State House. The structure is the oldest surviving state capitol building west of the Mississippi, and in addition to the murder of a state representative by the House Speaker, the Old State House was the site of a war over the governership (The Brooks-Baxter War) and the vote by the state to withdraw from the United States. The House Chamber is the historic room in an already historic building.

First commissioned in 1834 by territorial governor John Pope in anticipation of Arkansas' impending statehood, the building served as the state offices until 1916. After the government officials moved to the new state capitol building, the Old State House served as the state's first medical school and a war memorial building before becoming a museum in the early 1950s. The structure underwent a multi-million dollar renovation in the 1990s.

In addition to being a link to Arkansas' past, the Old State House served as a backdrop to Bill Clinton's two presidential campaigns. The museum's first floor features an exhibit on those campaigns along with personal Clinton memorabilia. There is also a hand-on exhibit, Grandmother's Cottage, that features common household items from the turn of the century.

The second floor of the museum features period rooms decorated from the eras of the American Revolution, the Spanish American War and the Civil War. The furnishings of each room were donated to the museum by the Spanish American War Veteran's Auxiliary, the Daughters of the American Revolution and the Daughters of the Confederacy. Other permanent exhibits include a women's history exhibit, and a collection the inaugural gowns of the state's first ladies.

The Old State House also features two revolving exhibits. Current exhibits are Sam Dellinger and the Raiders of the Lost Arkansas, featuring Native American artifacts, and A Piece of the My Soul: Quilts by Black Arkansans. Past exhibits were Try US: Arkansas and the U.S.-Mexican War and John Barleycorn Must Die: The War Against Drink in Arkansas.

The centerpiece of the museum is the recreation of the 1836 original House Chamber. The current Arkansas Constitution was ratified in the chamber in 1874, and the contentious vote to secede from the Union took place in the room as well. The chamber served as the headquarters for the House of Representatives until 1885, when the representatives were moved to the expanded chambers. Through meticulous research, the room has been restored to its original appearance complete with wooden desks and spittoons.

The Old State House Museum is open every day except Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas and New Year's Day. Admission is free