Located just five minutes away from campus, Pioneer Village is an excellent place to visit. The village was opened in the 60s and its goal was to recreate and preserve antiquities from the nineteenth century. Currently, visitors can walk around the village and enjoy the atmosphere of the way life was more than 100 years ago in Arkansas.
Different buildings that reflect the lifestyle of the pioneers’ days comprise the village. It includes a jail, school, post office, smokehouse, barn and blacksmith shop. It is important to highlight that visiting the village is more than just looking at the buildings; the village has residents dressed appropriately for that time period, providing visitors a richer experience.
Even though the village may be easy to miss when driving by on Higginson Street, it is an accessible place to visit on a Saturday and is ideal for an outdoor activity to help relax from schoolwork while learning valuable information about Arkansas’ life.
The village offers an opportunity to learn about the history of White County. For example, The White County Courthouse, built in 1871 is said to be the oldest functional courthouse in Arkansas and has an elaborate clock tower that resembles the Liberty Bell and dates back to 1855. Also this was a period in which explorers were pushing the frontiers.
The village is currently located at 1200 Higginson St. across the street from the Searcy Parks and Recreation Sports Complex. The Friends of the Pioneer Village collect funds every year to maintain the facility, which has seen many recent improvements. Additionally, the White County Master Gardeners take care of the village’s grounds, showing how much the people from Searcy value the historical importance of the village.
According to their Facebook page, the village is a project of the White County Historical Society, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving and promoting the history of White County. They are open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday.
