Nov. 23 will be the last day the Drennen-Scott Historic Site will be open for public tours before it closes for the winter season.

 

Current hours are 1- 5 p.m. Thursdays and 10 a.m.-5 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.

 

The Drennen-Scott Historic Site, located at 221 N. 3rd Street in Van Buren, serves as a museum and educational facility for the University of Arkansas - Fort Smith. Tours begin at the Visitor Center on the property.

 

Tom Wing, DSHS site director and assistant professor of history at UAFS, said the site will be open only for special events after Nov. 23. It will reopen in March, with the first “Crawford County Chronicles” program slated for March 2 and the official public reopening of the site planned for March 6.

 

The “Crawford County Chronicles” series, which Wing offered for the first time this year, featured monthly speakers with topics of historical interest to the region. Wing said the series required advanced registration and was so popular he turned people away each month. He plans to offer the programs multiple times next year to accommodate more attendees.

 

UAFS acquired the Drennen home and acreage in 2005 and received several grants to restore the property and house, which dates back to the 1800s. The site opened to the public in May 2011. John Drennen was a founder of Van Buren, politician, Indian agent, landowner and businessman.

 

For more information, contact Wing by telephone at 479-262-2750 or by email at tom.wing@uafs.edu.