Uncharted Waters

Hello and welcome to not only a brand new blog, but a brand new experience as we here at the Fort Smith Museum of History maneuver through the next few weeks, feeling our way, along with the rest of our nation and world. We are an institution of learning and experience, operating since 1910, sharing the historical journey of our city and region. It's fascinating. Luckily, social media will allow us to participate and interact virtually, in a world outside our mutual confinements. As that's no substitute for real interaction, it will have to do. Our staff will strive to provide you with social and online representations of our museum, of artifacts we house and the stories they tell. Please join us on here, on our website, and also on our social media pages. Facebook is Fort Smith Museum of History, Instagram is @fsmuseumhistory, twitter is @FSMuseumHistory. Following is a message posted today in regard to the steps we are taking to support our responsibilities to public and staff health.

The following is an important announcement regarding the temporary closure of the Fort Smith Museum of History in response to the Coronavirus pandemic and the precautions we feel are important to institute at this time.

**Fort Smith Museum of History: Important Announcement**

Effective Monday, March 16, the Fort Smith Museum of History will be closed to the public and is suspending public and group tours, programs, events, public meeting room use, and outreach through the end of March. We will continue to monitor the COVID-19 situation and plan to determine at the first of April what further actions we will take to carry out our responsibilities toward the health and safety of our staff and the public.

This is especially important, as the Fort Smith Museum of History's visitor demographics cluster around local and regional visitors, out-of-state travelers, and children, all of whom we want to protect and many that could be vulnerable.

We understand this situation is not ideal and apologize for any inconvenience it may cause, but the public's health and the health of our staff are our priority.

While the museum is closed, we encourage you to visit the museum's website fortsmithmuseum.org, to read about our regional history and follow our exhibits and upcoming events. We will maintain a social media presence, so look for us there! Any upcoming events that have been cancelled will be rescheduled. If you are a ticket holder to any of these events, a refund will be issued if you would like or if you cannot attend the rescheduled date. As the staff will continue to work during this time on upcoming projects, we are available to you by phone @ 479-783-7841, on social media/messaging, or by email at info@fortsmithmuseum.com from 10-5, Tuesday- Friday to answer any questions or concerns you may have, or to assist with research.

Thank you for your patience. Stay healthy.

Caroline Speir, Director, Fort Smith Museum of History