arkansas museum of natural resources

Had a lot of fun in this museum. Kids would love the inside and the grounds. Outside has oil drills and drilling towers. Worth the visit for all ages.

We are locals and have been multiple times- there is ALWAYS something interesting going on here! Friendly and helpful staff are always available. The Goat Woman's Wagon, Seasonal light show at Christmas, Chatauqua (living history characters), Great photo ops everywhere! Tinkerfest for local crafters- and the county oil history is also told here too!

The Arkansas Museum of Natural Resources is a great place for kids and grown ups. It is a good source of entertainment & education. We like to go there at least yearly. School groups frequent the museum and it is interesting for our out of town visitors as well.

Visited the museum last year and saw only the inside. Returned a second time to see the outside exhibits and possible new exhibits inside. Well worth the visit. Had new exhibits inside with videos, etc on the history of the area. When revisiting some of the regular exhibits saw things we missed last year. The museum has both scientific info on the oil industry and an excellent and interesting history of the south Arkansas oil boom. This time enjoyed seeing the oil field equipment displays outside to include different types of drilling derricks, etc. This museum really is a little jewel with things for all ages and its free!

All in all it's an interesting museum, focusing on the oil boom in South Arkansas. You've got your history displays, science displays on oil and bromine, environmental conservation and your social science displays on how people reacted to the oil boom, what life was like, crime and shortages, that sort of thing, all very good. Interactive exhibits which are ideal for kids, but I had fun as well, I enjoyed the oil speculation video game! 2-3 hr visit, would recommend, especially to friends with children.

This place has grown a lot over the past 20 years with outdoor exhibits of oil drilling and pumping units and educational indoor displays. There are hands on activities to keep folks engaged for an hour or two. Don't miss the annusl Christmas light display. It gets bigger and better every year! Chataqua is another fun experience with actors portraying famous folks through history.

Visited the museum with a family reunion group. The museum gives an excellent history of the Arkansas oil boom of the 1920's with photos, videos and a recreated boom town to include a newspaper office, hotel, jail, etc. There is narration in several of the 'buildings' which present conversations and history. The exhibits take you back to that time period and give you a sense of what it was like in Arkansas during the oil boom. In addition, there are sections on the history and use of oil an brine and a kids section. There is an outdoor park with oil field equipment, etc. which we did not have time to see. Expect we will return next year to see the outside exhibits. The attendants were friendly and knowledgeable. Admission is free. This museum is a little jewel and well worth a visit.

Museum had some interesting exhibits. It was nice to step back in time. The kids really enjoyed it and it's FREE!!

We were not expecting to go to this attraction, but our relatives took us here. It was me, and my two kids ages 13 and 10. It starts out with displays of the different resources and the tools used to 'harvest' these resources. You take an elevator and on either side as you go up it shows and talks about how 'bryne' and oil were made. When you step out of the elevator on the second floor, you start your actual tour with the tools and life of the people. There was even a small 'old' time town. I and my aunt and uncle could have spent hours there, but the kids weren't too interested in that stuff. They found their way to the kids interactive section. They spent a lot of time in this section. I found it very interesting that we learn about a lot of American history and expansion, but don't really hear anything about the oil 'boon' in Arkansas. Since El Dorado is such a small town and there isn't much to do, I found this very interesting and well done. Even though the kids didn't seem to enjoy the history part of the museum, they asked to go back to it many times while were in l Dorado.Oh and the museum is FREE!!!! Donations are accepted. My kids even dug into their own wallets and donated money. The staff there was helpful and EXTREMELY knowledgeable about the the history and the resources of Arkansas and the area. They answered many questions.

My family lived in the oil fields of this area and a visit to this museum brought back memories of both my grandfathers. They had told me stories of giant, open air oil storage pits in the '30s and I found photos at the museum of those pits. Grandpas don't fib! The museum is well laid out and very descriptive of the industry.

We have been here numerous times and each time we enjoy it more than before, and the activity section is always changing. They have a great picnic area in which we have taken advantage of numerous times. My wife and myself have as much fun as the kids, which is all upper teens. Fun for all and lots of learning. Cannot bet the price, only a donation.

It is so real. My grandfather was in this oil boom. I don't remember any of this so it is really nice to see how it was.

A very well thought out and beautifulpiece of Arkansas history. A great place for families, kids, and awesome experience for those who go!

Was very well laid out and informative. Better than expected and they rotate special exhibits in the front.

Recently I took a motorcycle trip on scenic highway 7 through El Dorado Arkansas on my way to Hot Springs Arkansas. On this route I stumbled across The Museum of Natural Resources in Smackover, Arkansas. I never knew it existed and I'm glad I stopped... As you pull into the facility your eyes are drawn to a large wooden derrick and several large storage tanks. The building is very impressive looking as well. As you enter the massive entry hall you are greeted by not just the friendly staff, but two very large wall drawings that depict life during Smackovers oil boom. The attendee begins by welcoming you to their beautiful museum and informs me that the museum is free to tour but complimentary donations are appreciated. She then guided me to the right where all the exhibits are and tells me it is self guided. I check out all the cool exhibits that explain how oil was found, how it is produced and the products that are made from it, and then find myself in a small town inside the museum (pretty cool). The town buildings depicted how the buildings looked in the boom era. They had a hotel, resturant, printing shop and even a jail-house. At the end of the town you are guided to an elevator that not only takes you upstairs but its an exhibit in itself... Once you are done with the tour you are encouraged to stroll the shady grounds outside to see other exhibits (wooden derrick, storage tanks, etc). It is a very relaxing walk along the paved trail so its handi-cap accessible as well. They really did a great job putting this museum together, but thats all I'm gonna tell you about so I encourage you to go check out this museum. It is a great learning experience if you have family members or friends that don't know how oil is found, captured and produced into the many products that we use each and every day... By the way, I found myself droping a $20 in the donation jar on my way out...