FORT SMITH – From 1875 to 1895, across the wild Oklahoma Territory west of Fort Smith, U.S. marshals often dealt with danger. In those two decades, 65 deputies from the West Arkansas District lost their lives in the line of duty.
Their mission enforcing frontier law is only one chapter in a 234-year saga, vividly retold with abundant hands-on activities at the new United States Marshals Museum.
Opened July 1 on Fort Smith’s riverfront, the action-packed attraction showcases the U.S. Marshals Service, the oldest federal law-enforcement agency. It was created in 1789, the year that George Washington became the nation’s first president.
Arkansans’ knowledge of U.S. marshals is likely to center on the late 19th-century era of Fort Smith-based Isaac C. Parker, nicknamed the “Hanging Judge,” who tried and sentenced desperadoes captured by his district’s deputy marshals. Or perhaps Bass Reeves, the onetime slave and the first Black man commissioned to serve as a deputy U.S. Marshal west of the Mississippi River. Or their knowledge may be spun from the exploits of fictional television and movie marshals, like Matt Dillon of “Gunsmoke” and Rooster Cogburn of “True Grit.”
“Although very important, only about 20% of our 18,000-square-foot permanent exhibit features people and events from the Wild West era of Judge Parker,” says Ben Johnson, president and CEO of the museum. “The remainder covers a wide variety of people, events and activities from the remaining two centuries of American history.”
Fort Smith’s quest of nearly two decades to create the Marshals Museum began in 2004 with an application to a federal selection committee. The attraction’s mission was spelled out as “telling the rich story of America’s oldest federal law enforcement agency, the Constitution and the rule of law through immersive and interactive exhibit experiences that will educate and entertain visitors of all ages.”
LOW-SLUNG SILHOUETTE
In 2007, Fort Smith was chosen as the site over a half-dozen other locations around the nation. In 2009, local planners unveiled a star-shaped design later discarded in favor of the present low-slung silhouette.
In 2010, the fundraising total reached $6 million. In 2013, the 16-acre site along the Arkansas River was selected, but a dispute with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers delayed work. After resolution late in 2015, the museum’s opening was announced for Sept. 24, 2019.
Following further delays, a building permit was issued in 2018 with a value of $19 million. In 2019, a fund shortage of $15.5 million was reported. But new efforts added enough money to complete the long-awaited $50 million project.
125,000-PLUS VISITORS
Johnson expects the museum to attract 125,000 or more guests during the first year, and “we anticipate that 50% or more of our attendance during these 12 months will originate from outside the state of Arkansas, both nationally and internationally.”
Before heading into the museum’s five themed exhibit areas, visitors can pay their respects in the Hall of Honor to the more than 400 marshals who’ve died in the line of duty over 234 years. Their names are mounted on a wall, near which a bent piece of steel salvaged from the 2001 World Trade Center attack is displayed. Marshals were among the law-enforcement personnel killed or injured.
Entering the main galleries, visitors learn that the Marshals Service is sometimes called “the other duties agency.” That’s because “the Judicial Act of 1789 defines the job of a marshal very broadly. This allows the government to use the service in many ways, some of them surprising.”
In 2014, for example, the Marshals Service was given the task of auctioning nearly 30,000 bitcoins that the government had seized on a black-market website. The virtual coins were sold for nearly $18 million. A number of bitcoin auctions since then have brought similarly large sums.
The 2022 federal budget appropriated nearly $1.5 billion for operation of the Marshals Service. Other statistics amplify its wide scope: a daily average of 337 fugitives arrested, 2,700 federal judges protected by marshals, 99,607 arrest warrants cleared in 2021, $1.8 billion from seized asset sales distributed to crime victims in 2021.
‘TO BE A MARSHAL’
In the first gallery, called “To Be a Marshal,” an illustrated timeline stretches from 1789 to the 21st century. Visitors learn that a head marshal is appointed for each of today’s 94 federal court districts, with 3,561 deputy marshals and criminal investigators under their supervision.
One of the museum’s most eye-catching displays dominates “The Campfire: Stories Under the Stars,” the second gallery. Four marshal figures from four historical periods are gathered ’round a campfire. The oldest wears a colonial-era wig, while the newest is fitted with a baseball cap. One is Black, and one is a woman.
The four characters share stories of their service while silhouettes projected on the background rock wall vary from an American flag to an antique firearm. A sign headlined “The Marshal Mindset” lists three qualities: creativity, flexibility, humanity. Another sign in the gallery asks viewers: “What other questions do you think make up the Marshal Mindset?” and “How do you think the Marshal Mindset has changed over time?”
“Frontier Marshals,” the third gallery, is likely to be most familiar to Arkansas visitors, given its focus on the Western District of Arkansas in the era of “Hanging Judge” Parker.
A crowd favorite in the first couple of weeks has been the gallery’s Old West saloon. It lets visitors play an interactive card game involving good guys and bad guys from those rough-and-tumble times. The inspiring story of Bass Reeves is told in another display.
The fourth gallery, “A Changing Nation,” gives visitors an interactive chance to perform a marshal’s duties. One mission involves pursuing a criminal suspect by running on a treadmill in front of a video screen that shows the culprit fleeing along a street. A sign warns: “Please be aware that the simulation is a strenuous activity that requires physical exertion and moderate stamina.”
‘MODERN MARSHALS’
In the final main gallery, “Modern Marshals,” members of the service speak onscreen about why their work matters in the 21st century. Also pictured are the faces and names of the FBI’s 15 most-wanted criminals. The scoreboard-style posting indicates when any of them have been captured by deleting their images.
The museum’s amply stocked gift shop purveys themed coffee mugs as well as a liquor flask with a marshal’s insignia. Among offerings for youngsters are a toy rifle and temporary tattoos. The stock of clothing includes bandanas, socks and caps.
“So far we’ve heard positive feedback about all the items in our Outpost store,” Johnson says. “But people always love a good T-shirt.”
U.S. Marshals Museum exhibits include “The Campfire: Stories Under the Stars,” which features four marshal figures from four historical periods gathered round a campfire. (Special to the Democrat-Gazette/Marcia Schnedler)
The Wall of Honor at the U.S. Marshals Museum lists marshals who have died in the line of duty since 1789.U.S. Marshals Museum
789 Riverfront Drive, Fort Smith
Hours: 9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily
Admission: Adults: $13; those 65 and up: $11; teenagers and youngsters ages 6-17: $8; children under 6: free
usmmuseum.org
(479) 242-1789
