Two Rivers Museum
Introduction
Text-to-speech Audio
Images
Storefront.
Bishop Bros. Sept. 1908 This plaque is located on the East corner of the building.
This plaque is located on the west corner of the building.
Please Register. This is now located above the sign in book.
Bridal Shoes.
Antique Wedding Dress.
Walter Matthews display. Famous MLB player from Ashdown, AR.
K.C.S Railroad Station
Railroad bagging rates.
Water Jug used by KCS section crew in the 1940s. A.L. Lewis Station Master.
-circa 1910-
-circa 1906-
Switch Tower & inc Blacking Plant of Frisco & K.C.S. -circa Dec. 1, 1905-
Frisco Train Depot -circa 1903-
Frisco Engine #1037 on Trestle #6323
We called it "The Dinky Train," A diesel engine, one baggage car, and one passenger car. It is right on time, twice a day, with newspapers, mail, and folks riding a short line.
Kansas City Southern Railroad Depot, Ashdown.
1928 Flood. Front Street, Ashdown-Morgan Home in the background.
1928 Flood. Commerce & Keller Streets, Ashdown
1928 Flood. Front Street, Ashdown-Hymee Dupree on left.
Flood Commerce & Hwy 71 -circa 1920s-
1928 Flood. Corner of 2nd & Commerce Streets, Ashdown. (Note corner of Christian Church)
Horse-drawn hearse story and picture in action
Embalming tools.
Embalming tools.
Horse-drawn Hearse. Glass side to view the inside
Front View of Horse Drawn Hearse
Classic toy car collection.
Edison Mercury Shaver
The Story of the Government that Almost Didn't Happen.
Machine Gun 1915 Era, Banned during the '30's. It is illegal to posses, confiscated by law enforcement. Permanently Disabled. Donated by the Little River County Sheriff's Office December 31, 2012.
Mailboxes
Mailboxes and Ogden Post Office
(Don't) Post Office Structure
Guns
Porcelain Doll Collection
Misc.
Misc.
Little River County Bank Stock.
Toland Store sold everything from dry goods to groceries.
1928 Census.
Ashdown Returns to Normal After Battle: Many Interesting Sidelights.
Personal Planner.
Supreme Court Case, A. Goldsmith vs First National Bank of Ashdown, Arkansas.
Statement of Condition from First National Bank.
First National Bank Keller & Main Street. circa 1920.
Street Scene Ashdown, AR
A Look at the Past
Eaton's Grocery Store
Ogden Post Office
Wooden Mail Boxes used in first post office in Ashdown.
Wooden Maiboxes
Stamp Catalouge
Outline of Little River County
2 centuries of frontier history at Arkansas Post. Treasured Memories of Ashdown's Past
Southern Seedsmen's Association
Backstory and Context
Text-to-speech Audio
The Two Rivers Museum is located on the corner of Constitution Avenue and Main Street, in Ashdown, Arkansas. It was opened in 2005 by the Little River Historical Society, to help preserve the history if the surrounding area and the building it’s located in. It got its name from being in-between the Little River and Red River. The museum is running completely by volunteers, who sign up for certain days a week and they must volunteer at least 3 hours a month. All of the exhibit or display items have all been donated by surrounding business, local people, schools, and churches. Everything in the museum was donated by someone.
Before it was converted into the museum, it went through a few different owners to be different stores. “The Two Rivers Museum is located in the Bishop building in the Ashdown Commercial Historic District. The building is a renovated hundred-year-old storefront that was once a pharmacy and, more recently, an antique store. The Bishop building, built in 1908, is a two-story brick structure with a flat roof and a parapet. The structure was part of the American movement commercial style A cornerstone is on the east façade. While the building has had multiple owners, it has maintained its original brickwork and frame. On May 20, 2008, the building was added to the National Register of Historic Places as a part of the Ashdown Commercial Historic District.”1
There are many exhibits and displays inside, you will find time will fly by as you start to take a look around. They have added new displays in the past few years and some of them are listed next. Some of the displays are Porcelain doll collection, Walter Ray Matthews, a horse-drawn hearse, and many other things. This mentions more of the thing you’ll see inside. “The museum has an extensive collection of artifacts, most of which are associated with the history and people of Ashdown, and more broadly with Little River County. Exhibits about individuals involved in the military, Kaufman Seeds, and other primary industries in the area tell the story of the development of Ashdown. The various exhibits display the history of early residents of Ashdown, including the stories of farmers, lawyers, doctors, and railroad workers. Significant portions of the museum are dedicated to war. The military display is titled “Freedom’s Heroes.” Military artifacts emphasize World War I and World War II; uniforms, medals, and guns from citizens of the area are on display. Another exhibit honors the late Henry Kaufman, an immigrant of German-Jewish descent who founded Kaufman Seeds in Ashdown. Some of the large pieces available for viewing include a large Black hearse, a wooden embalming table, and an old wooden post office.”1 They also have the annual Christmas at the Museum Land of Trees. This is where different organizations around the county decorate a small Christmas tree that is displayed at the museum.
Little River County’s Two Rivers museum was created to preserve the history of the county. There are displays from events that happened before the museum was opened. The Ashdown Telephone Exchange, the wooden post office, a Black horse-drawn hearse, Walt Matthews, and many others. These are the reasons that it was opened, it could display these items from them and others after there over, closed, or retired.
There were many displays when the museum hadn’t been open very long and has been adding displays ever since. The displays range from Civil War era items to famous people who lived or went to school in the county. It’s located in a storefront that has held many different stores and is well over a hundred years old on the corner of Main Street and
Sources
1. Eric Nicholson, “Kaufman Seeds, 68-year Fixture in Ashdown, Closing,” Captialpress.com, December 13, 2018, Accessed March 14, 2019, https://www.capitalpress.com/ag_sectors/kaufman-seeds--year-fixture-in-ashdown-closing/article_b52ec3ed-4170-5372-9060-bc98ebfc1854.html.
2. Hannah Wahls, “Two Rivers Museum,” Osage - Encyclopedia of Arkansas, June 16, 2017, Accessed February 22, 2019, http://www.encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?entryID=5838.