W.H.H. Clayton Birthday Celebration

Fort Smith historical entertainers will help the Clayton House showcase its new gazebo with music, poetry, and drama from 11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. Saturday, October 15 in recognition of William Henry Harrison Clayton’s birthday. The free event will feature music and historic ballads by Herschel Parker, a visit from Deputy U.S. Marshal Bass Reeves, new poetry about the work of Clayton and Judge Parker to bring justice to the border by Cowboy Poet David Carter, and the premier of "The Arrival of Judge Parker," a historic vignette by Dave Ross with local actors. Hot dogs and dessert will be served, and historic reenactors will stroll the Victorian manor’s grounds ready to discuss Fort Smith’s frontier history. Activities for children include watercolor painting, Victorian "grace hoops," croquet and more. The historic house museum, family home of the U.S. District Attorney of Judge Parker’s court, will be open for tours. Museum tour fee for adults: $2.50; for children 12 and above: $1.50. Come see what this 1882 Victorian house can teach and reveal about Fort Smith history and the Victorian era. For more information, call 783-3000; email [email protected], or visit our website: www.claytonhouse.org.