Stone County Museum

Stone County Special School District #30 circa 1928

Building History | Donations | Hours of Operation

Building History

In 1928 the building was built to replace its forerunner, the Stone County Academy that stood near the site. It was deemed the Special School District #30 because it combined some local districts including Mountain View, Oyler’s Chapel, Richwoods, and Levisy Flat. For ten years, it was the sole facility for the entire school grades one through twelve.

In 1938, the gym was built and the high school moved to that location. About 1943, the elementary school moved into new facilities located across the campus near the future football field. This left the original building to house the primary grades one through three for around thirty years.

The building remained mostly unchanged inside and out after that time until 1974. At that time a new elementary school was built at a new location leaving the building abandoned for the first time. Unfortunately, a use for the building was planned as a kindergarten and band hall which required many changes including the removal of the original windows and doors.

The building was used until 1984 when the high school moved to the current campus. At that time, the building was bought by the Stone County Historical Society, the City of Mountain View, and Stone County.

Current Use

Currently, the building houses the Stone County Museum, the Loy and Freda Daum Massey Research Room, and rents a room to the Mountain View Art Guild. In December 2004, the building was placed on the Arkansas Register of Historic Places. In the spring of 2006, the museum was expanded to include a larger research room and more space for Stone County artifacts donated or on loan to the museum.

Future Plans

The Stone County Historical Society plans to restore the building's exterior to the original condition with hopes of a nomination to the National Register of Historic Places. This work will include replacing windows and doors with reproductions of the originals. Future interior renovations will include the restoration of the Edwin Luther Auditorium to include a stage and seating. The room can be used for community activities including plays, class reunions, meetings, etc.

Donations

In addition to family histories, books, and artifacts, monetary donations are welcome. Currently the Society is in grave need of a new roof for the building. The cost of a new roof exceeds current available funds. Several donations have been made for help with replacing the roof and toward replacing windows and doors. The Stone County Historical Society is a non-profit organization. All monetary donations are therefore all tax deductible. If you have any donations to make, please contact by e-mail at Stone County Historical Society or P.O. Box 210, Mountain View, AR 72560.

Hours of Operation

The museum is open from mid April through the end of October. Volunteers host the museum on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday from 1-4 PM. Sometimes our volunteers are unable to fulfill their commitment to work. If you are coming for a visit from out of town and want to visit the museum, please let us know. We will make sure a volunteer is available to assist you.