By Cody Berry

After spending many, many hours scanning, organizing, and labeling pictures I’ve discovered in the museum, I’ve come across several old photos of things I recognize. The people in the photos — not so much. One of the cool things about living in such a well-preserved Southern town is that for the most part, when looking back through time, the buildings look the same and only the names have changed. 

One idea discussed when planning exhibits was to do something on Benton’s historic downtown area. So over the summer, I selected some fantastic shots taken in downtown Benton and took some myself of the same places. When putting them side by side, it’s incredible to see how they have changed, but also still remain the same buildings that built this town.

The Benton Commercial Historic District consists of over fifty buildings dating from the late 19th century to the 1990s. The oldest of which is probably the Bell Building, built in 1888 for Dr. J. K. Bell who ran a general store there at one time. It’s the one with the mural on it, thanks to Dianne Roberts and Mark Davey, painted in 2014. 

According to the original town plat at the Gann Museum, the whole downtown area has remained largely unchanged since 1836. If you go through downtown Benton, look up at the tops of the buildings and you’ll see a timeline of our history and the names of those who made it all happen. You’ll see names like Ashby, Hughes, Bell, Gingles, Stinson, and Kelley. By mixing vintage and new photographs of the same areas today, I think folks will enjoy seeing what has changed and what hasn’t. The exhibit will also highlight the history of key buildings in downtown Benton like the Courthouse, the Masonic Hall, the IOOF/Stinson Building, the Benton State Bank building, and the three theaters. Did you know the downtown area has been home to three movie theaters? The Palace, the Royal, and the Victory, which operated in the Bell Building. 

“Only The Names Have Changed” will open October 3rd and run the rest of the year at The Gann Museum.

Citations:

¹ Cody Lynn Berry, “Benton Commercial Historic District,” CALS Encyclopedia of Arkansas, and Rachel Silva, “Walks Through History Benton Commercial Historic District,” March 21, 2015, p. 10