Visitors attend Museum Day event
Friends of John H. Johnson Museum opened the John H. Johnson Museum and Educational Center recently as part of Smithsonian magazine’s 17th annual Museum Day.
The John H. Johnson Museum at Arkansas City was established in honor of John H. Johnson, a native of the city, who built a multimillionaire empire with Johnson Publishing Co. and his Ebony and Jet magazines.
Friends of the museum, Michelle Robinson of Arkansas City and Angela Courtney of Halley, presented museum goers with an overview of the facility’s history, according to a news release.
Guests were invited to engage in a self-guided tour at the John H. Johnson Museum and at the nearby Delta Heritage Trail State Park trailhead pavilion and park, where Johnson has a trailhead marker.
Approximately 25 local, state and out-of-state visitors explored the museum. Among them was 90-yearold Rachel Scales Walker, originally from Arkansas City, who traveled with her family from Allport for a first-time visit to the museum.
The youth, also their first time at the museum, learned about Johnson’s legacy. They watched a film about the making of the John H. Johnson Museum. In the film, various community leaders, including Dr. Calvin Johnson, who was instrumental in the planning and development of the museum, discussed the historical evolution of the site and its significance to the community, state and region.
The youth who participated in museum day are employed by the city of Dermott through Project Y.I.E.L.D., an initiative of the Arkansas Department
of Workforce Services and Arkansas Human Development Corporation. Project Y.I.E.L.D. represents youth innovation, engaging learning and development.
Chaperones for the youth included Dr. Clinton Hampton, AHDC board chairman; India Donald Ford, representative with the city of Dermott Parks and Recreation; Sharron Hawkins, program manager for city of Dermott Project Y.I.E.L.D.; and Nikki Cobin, program assistant for Project Y.I.E.L.D.
During the national Museum Day, participating museums emulate the free-admission policy of the Smithsonian Institution’s Washington, D.C.-based museums.
“Museum Day goes beyond getting visitors through museum doors — it acts as a springboard to empower and help advance the hopes and ambitions of the public, particularly schoolaged children and those in underrepresented communities,” a spokesman said.