Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
‘Fifty From Fifty’
Shiloh Museum showcases pieces of past
Carolyn Reno has had a uniquely fortunate position with the Shiloh Museum for 34 years of its 50-year history. She is the one who knows its collections most intimately.
“When I got to the museum [in February 1984], the collections were nicely organized on open shelves so it was easy to see a lot of them,” Reno recalls. “We started an inventory soon after I arrived, so I got to see a lot of the collections through that process. I had to pack up the collections when we moved out of the old museum building so the current building could be constructed. That was about 1989. I trained volunteers how to pack the collections and again, got to see all of them as they got boxed up.”
So when the museum was preparing to celebrate its 50th birthday in 2018, Reno wanted to put her expertise to good use.
“I suggested that we do an exhibit featuring 50 objects, one from each year between 1968 and 2018,” she explains. “The selection process involved me looking back through each year to find historic, unique or compelling objects that would represent the scope of the collection and the scope of the museum’s field of interest — Northwest Arkansas and the Arkansas Ozarks.
“There were few donations in the early years, so selection was fairly easy. It wasn’t so easy in later years because of greater number of donations. That took a while. I also thought about what the public might enjoy seeing. It was tough work to make the selections. I could have done a 100 things and more, but we don’t have the space at this time due to ongoing renovations.”
What Reno chose truly includes something for everyone, she thinks.
“One piece that will delight some folks is the big enamel Chevrolet sign from the Mooney-Barker Drug Store in Pettigrew. Car enthusiasts and sign lovers will appreciate it,” she says. “There is also a beautiful handmade saddle made for Fred Grigg Sr. by W.E. Lamb of Green Forest (Carroll County) in 1918. The one surprising artifact is an architectural remnant from another era: the White Waiting door from the old Frisco Railroad Depot in Springdale. The depot was torn down in the early 1980s. The door could have been thrown away in the demolition but it was donated to the museum. This is the first time it is being exhibited.”
The exhibit also includes folklorist Vance Randolph’s derringer pistol, a handmade wooden crutch from Newton County and a Princess Feather applique quilt from the Blackburn family at War Eagle. But one piece has special meaning to Reno. It’s something that captured her heart all those years ago.
“One of the first pieces that got my attention was a little textile piece, a Victorian wall pocket. It was handmade in a horseshoe shape with the tiniest pocket for storing I don’t know what. It’s more decorative than useful,” she says. “Besides that, it was always the textile items that I liked. Just my personal interest. I have since come to enjoy all kinds of things for different reasons – how they are made, what they are made of, iterations over the years.
“I will confess that the wall pocket made it into the exhibit. But legitimately so.”
Titled “Fifty From Fifty,” the exhibit will be on display through Jan. 12, 2019.