The plan today was to head downtown and see what we could see, starting with the Arkansas Inland Maritime Museum. This part of town is torn up with road construction, so the trip there was a joy. I guess that is a good thing because our infrastructure needs repairs badly. The roads and bridges are beating the crap out of our coaches.
Before we went anywhere I needed fuel. The first two gas stations we found that sold diesel had all of their nozzles bagged indication either no fuel or inoperative dispensing. Well then!! So we finally found a Kum & Go and fueled up. Decent price too for these wonderful economic times - $3.399/gal
We made our way to the downtown area and found our first stop - the Arkansas Inland Maritime Museum. This museum features exhibits from the USS Arkansas (BB 33), the USS Arkansas (CGN 41), a diorama of Pearl Harbor on Dec 6, 1941 and USS Little Rock (LCS-9). There is also a submarine you can tour, the USS Razorback (SS 394) and another ship, the USS Hoga (YTB 146).
Unfortunately for us we are here a bit too early. They are still on winter hours from Labor Day to Memorial Day and only open certain hours Friday, Saturday and Sunday.. Dang it! I just assumed...
A 3" / 50 caliber gun used for anti-aircraft and surface targets.
The shells weighed 24 lbs and it could fire 20 rounds per minute!
The WWII vintage submarine, USS Razorback (SS 394), is 90 percent operational and kept as authentic as possible – meaning a 14-foot ladder climb into the space! I am really sorry we missed this!
The top of the USS Razorback
We saw what we could here and then did a drive-by of the minor league baseball stadium, Dickey-Stephens Park. The ballpark is the home for the Arkansas Travelers of the Texas League. The capacity of the ballpark is over 7000. It opened in 2007 and is named after four local Arkansas brothers: Baseball Hall of Famer Bill Dickey, former Major League Baseball catcher George Dickey, and businessmen Jackson T. Stephens and W. R. Stephens. Next time we are here we will plan to attend a game.
We then crossed the Main Street bridge heading south across the Arkansas River and visited the area just south of the Riverfront Park. We struggled to find an adequate parking spot for the big ol' brown truck, but eventually we did. We walked a few blocks to the Historical Arkansas Museum.
One display they are currently featuring is a "Knife Gallery - Home of Bowie No, 1" and this immediately caught my eye. I have collected knives since I was a young child.
I expected this museum to tell the story of Arkansas history, but I guess I misunderstood. It features various galleries, some that rotate themes like the Knife Gallery. We started upstairs in the Native American gallery, entitled "We walk in Two Worlds: The Caddo, Osage, & Quapaw in Arkansas" Here they tell the story of Arkansas's first people. Artifacts such as pottery, clothing and weapons are displayed.
. Another gallery upstairs was the Trinity Gallery for Arkansas artists. The displays featured some beautiful painting and other items but seemed a bit sparce.
Downstairs we walked past the Cabe gallery which was closed and being revamped. Gallery II featured "Arkansas Made" and highlighted Victorian-era items from the "high society" Arkansans
We made our way back to the Knife Gallery. It opened in 2001 and is dedicated to the history of the Bowie knife and the forged blade in Arkansas. There is history and information of an Arkansas knifemaker James Black and displays showing the 200 year evolution of "a knife like Bowie's". The pictures I took don't do this justice. The intricate detail on the knives is amazing. This is really a great collection! Some pictures:
Bowie No. 1 - A large guardless coffin-handled bowie knife with
black walnut handles and silver-wrapped pommel
From here we did not stay for the guided outside tours as we were going to run out of time. There are various buildings on the grounds that you can tour, such as an 1850's farmstead, the Macvicar House that features stonework, the Brownlee House from the late 1840's, and others,
The Printshop
The Plum Bayou Log House
As we crossed the street to look at the Plum Bayou Log House a street car passed by. They are very active here and fun to watch.
It was past lunchtime so we walked a block towards the river and stopped at Gus's World Famous Fried Chicken restaurant. We visited a Gus's in Nashville and a Hattie B's in Memphis, so it seemed appropriate to check this place out. They feature spicy hot chicken which is common in the south.
From their web site: "Over 60 years ago in the small community of Mason, Tennessee, Napoleon “Na” Vanderbilt created something amazing – fried chicken that could unite a community. In an era of divisive racial attitudes the residents of Mason found that they could all – black and white – agree on how much they loved Na’s fried chicken." I did learn that Gus's is not to be confused with Nashville hot chicken; They serve southern spicy fried chicken here!
Doreen and I both ordered a dinner with sides and it was very good, but I expected hotter. There again, I thought this was going to be the same as "Nashville Hot". One interesting thing, it is pieces of fried chicken served on a slice of white bread, The bread dates back to 1953 when Napoleon sold sandwiches. The tradition continues!
By now we were out of time and with the construction there were going to be delays driving back, so we headed for the Air Base campground. As we drove in Doreen snapped a few pictures of their Air Park static displays.
Tomorrow we have a few more places to visit before the storms roll in and then our friends Mike and Rachel are stopping out to pick us up and go out to eat. Since tomorrow is our last day here, I will also wrap up the outside work hopefully before it rains.
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