A New American Town - Bentonville, Arkansas
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A New American Town - Bentonville, Arkansas
Hidden Gems of Bentonville: Museum of Native American History
Bentonville is home to the Museum of Native American History (MONAH), known for its collection of thousands of artifacts from indigenous cultures across the Americas, and always free admission.
Join us as we talk to MONAH about what makes the museum so special, what you can't miss, and why it needs to be apart of your Bentonville itinerary.
Find out more about MONAH here: monah.org
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Welcome to A New American Town. I'm Natalie with Visit Bentonville. In this episode, we're taking you inside one of Bentonville's most meaningful cultural destinations the Museum of Native American History, or MONA. Whether you're planning a trip to Northwest Arkansas or a local looking for something new, this is a place that offers deep history, immersive storytelling and unforgettable experiences. We're joined by leaders from the museum, jaslyn Sanderson and Elena Littlefeather, to talk about what makes the museum special from must-see artifacts and interactive exhibits to the curated collection of art, books and handmade pieces that you'll find in the shop. It's a conversation about honoring Indigenous stories, making meaningful connections and discovering something powerful right here in Bentonville. Plus, it's always free. Folks enjoy this conversation from a remote location after having some technical difficulties with our audio. Thanks so much for joining us. In this episode, we're taking you inside one of Bentonville's most meaningful cultural destinations the Museum of Native American History, or MONA. Whether you're planning a trip to Northwest Arkansas or you're a local looking for something new, this is a place that offers deep history, immersive storytelling and unforgettable experiences. We're joined by leaders from the museum, jaslyn Sanderson and Elena Littlefeather, to talk about what makes the museum special from must-see artifacts and interactive exhibits to the curated selection of art, books and handmade pieces you'll find in the shop. It's a conversation about honoring Indigenous stories, making meaningful connections and discovering something powerful right here in Bentonville. Plus, it's always free. Thanks for joining us. Yeah, thanks for having us. I'm so excited to kick this conversation off. We are going to be focusing highly on your spring visit and looking for a place to learn about history and celebrating Native culture right here in Bentonville.
Speaker 1:So my first question is if someone's never been to Mona before, what is a couple words that you would use to describe it? We'll start with you Jaslyn. Oh gosh, I would say, how many words are we talking? That's a good elevator, like elevator pitch, elevator pitch, I don't know. I mean, since we're a museum here in Bentonville that tells like no other story, like any other museum in Bentonville, but also almost across the country. I mean, there's not really many museums out there that cover Indigenous history from all the Americas and covering like basically all time zones, right? So from 24,000 years all the way up until present, we tell a very unique story, so it's pretty precious to us. Yeah, elena, do you have anything to add? Oh man, that was a really good answer. It wasn't a few words, though I think that you know a good word to describe it is just home Me as an Indigenous woman. I really struggle finding areas that I find myself in as an indigenous woman, and when I'm at the museum I feel like I'm with my people. So that's my answer. That's so sweet. I love that you hit on indigenous culture across the Americas. Can you dive a little bit more into that? Yeah, so our story quite literally covers all the Americas.
Speaker 1:One of my favorite things to ask kids as they come in on a field trip is how many Native cultures do you think there are today in the United States? And they always answer things like five, 10, maybe somebody says 100. But their minds are literally blown whenever I say there are 575. And that's only including federally recognized. It's not including tribes of the past or tribes that are like unfettered, so like state recognized. They're still fighting for recognition. And then in Canada there are over 630. And in Latin America there are over 800. So that's a big story we have to tell, and of course we can't tell all of those, but we give it our best shot. Wow, yeah, my mind is also blown. I am one of those kids that would have said five or 10. That's amazing.
Speaker 1:Do you guys constantly look for new artifacts? How do you get new artifacts? Yeah, I mean, we're always kind of on the search for something that's going to add to our story. So recently we just exchanged some beautiful artifacts out with the University of Arkansas. They have an amazing collection, but they don't really have a public gallery, so we're pretty fortunate in having a great partnership with them. So we put some new artifacts on display and we will continue to do so over the next couple of weeks. So it's a great time to just kind of refresh and come see the museum again. If you haven't been before, you'd just see absolutely new things all the way around. You wouldn't even know, but we've got some amazing artifacts from the Pacific Northwest, like Alaska, canada area, that are now on display, that were in the university's archives. Oh, that's so special.
Speaker 1:Yeah, elena, I have a question for you as an Indigenous woman. How is your experience at MONA different than other Native American history museums? Different than other Native American history museums, aside from the fact that we do cover all the Americas, because I think that's a huge topic that a lot of us gloss over. We like to think that Indigenous people belong in just the United States. But that's not true at all, but it's also just.
Speaker 1:We are so focused on the artistic reflection of it. You know, we start in the Paleo period where we start to see a lot of points and arrowheads and the hat rattles, and then we kind of go and develop into the Mississippi and where we see wonderful pottery. Arkansas is severely overlooked with pottery and I didn't know it until I moved here. But we have such a rich history with that so it's really fun to see that. And then when we get further along into the galleries, see that. And then when we get further along into the galleries we see a lot of textiles and clothing, and so it's really fun to just take a second to really appreciate the basics of art. You know, especially like how much we have. It's so nice to see all together.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and you've done a beautiful job incorporating that in the gift shop. You've had other conversations before and I'm always blown away with how intentional you have been with gathering all of the pieces and a majority of the artwork and books and things are from Native people, correct? Yes, that's true. Yeah, reminding what your favorite gift shop item is, oh, my goodness, it used to be jewelry, because I love jewelry. But right now I'm a little bit hyper fixated on um, a rug. That's not on display but it is for sale and it is a 1940s painting, um Navajo textile. So that one has a special place in my heart because I come from a family of weavers. So I just I look at it and I think, oh, you're just cute. Yeah, that's so cool. Yeah, I love the textiles that are on display at Mona as well. It's not just pottery and arrowheads. That was probably one of my most surprising things to see was all of the beautiful tapestries on display and rugs. They're really, really special.
Speaker 1:What kind of experiences can first-time visitors expect from hands-on experiences? Immersive? Do you guys do guided tours or is it more self-paced? Well, I mean we do have like the audio guide, you know, which is a great guided tour for somebody who's a nice introvert like me. You know we um, but you get to pick and choose what you want to learn about Um. And then also, one thing that first timers don't always know, but it is an exciting thing to come across, is you get to go on an arrowhead hunt at the end of your visit. So everybody gets an arrowhead and it's super, super fun. So it's always great to see kids do that for the first time, because they get so excited and they come show like the whole staff Look at what I found and we always, you know, applaud them on. Yeah, it is so cute. I've been inside when families are like just wait, we have an Arrowhead tour. Or like no, we can't like leave yet. Or the kids are like let's just go do it now. It really does create so much excitement and I love that. It gets kids involved too, with families and not only kids I shouldn't say kids, but I love big kids too. Yeah, exactly.
Speaker 1:Um, why do you think mona is such a hidden gem in bentonville? Oh, my goodness, I think it's just because we're so niche. We tell us very specific story for um, for a lot of tribes, and so not many people really think about it when it comes to, like, so many bigger museums, because, of course, they deserve the recognition that they have. But you know, we're very specific about how we tell the stories and we always say that yeah, we're a hidden gem, but we don't want to be hidden anymore. So every time people visit, it's really appreciated if you leave a review because we need that. Yeah, well, and it's so expansive, it's not small at all and I feel like when people go they're like, wow, I didn't know about this place and it is so special.
Speaker 1:There's a specific speciality about the land that you're on. Do either of you want to talk more about that? Yeah, so right, whenever you walk in and you can see it on our website too. But we have a formal land acknowledgement, basically recognizing the land that we reside on and call home is once home to many Indigenous people, primarily the Caddo, Osage and Quapaw. We're actually on Osage hunting grounds right here, but Arkansas more broadly is home to those three tribes, as well as many tribes of the past that you know. It's kind of difficult to name today because in history they were constantly evolving and changing groups and we don't know the names that they called themselves, and so we still recognize, of course, all of those amazing you know tribes and nations and even just little villages that you know called themselves a community. So I mean, like we're pretty, you know, respectful of that, and we want to honor them with everything that we're doing here at the museum. Yeah, you do a great job.
Speaker 1:The murals outside are absolutely stunning. And if you don't know Mona's there, and then you pass it and you see the beautiful colorful artwork, you're like, oh my gosh, wow, yeah, was that done by a local artist? Well, she's not necessarily local, I think. Shoot, does she live in Oklahoma? Yes, so semi-local, I guess you know kind of, but her name is Jane Nicole Hatfield and she is an amazing artist that we brought in several years ago now. That mural has been there a while, but she did a portrait of Chief Joseph, of Indigenous Goddess Number Nine and Maria Tallchief, and so her art style is just so vibrant, right? Um, and hold on, I don't want to mess up her, her tribal affiliation, because I feel like so, oh, I don't, I believe, I believe I'm gonna put my neck out there. I believe she's kaiwa and comanche. I think you're gonna double check that. We're gonna double check that. Um, you're right, we're going to double check that. We're going to double check that. You were right. Oh, yeah, danico Hatfield is firewood for Angie. That's awesome.
Speaker 1:Well, how did Mona get started and why is it here in northwest Arkansas? Well, we are founded by one individual. His name is David Vogel. He's a member of the Cherokee Nation and local here to Bentonville, which is why it's here, so we're very fortunate in working with him Even today. He started this collecting 20, 25 years ago. He opened the museum in 2006, and it was across from his house. Then, in 2008, we came to the location that we're at right now and we've expanded on basically all sides of the building since then, and he is still adding artifacts today.
Speaker 1:How many artifacts you have? Do you know? Over 10 000 at this point? Is it all on display or do you have archives? We do have archives, but the majority of it is on display. There's very little in the archives. Primarily, most of them are rugs. We have almost like 60 or 70 rugs in our collection, but we can only have eight on display at a time because of space. Yeah, so, yeah, are there any specific exhibits that visitors tend to gravitate towards? Yeah, we have several. I love that.
Speaker 1:I would say the winter counts are probably the most talked about, though. We have two winter counts in our collection and there are less than 100 winter counts in existence today. So there's Lone Dog's Winter Camp, which is basically a record of 70 years of history from like an eyewitness account, where they would draw a pictograph to represent the most important event to happen in that tribe per year. So it's a pretty powerful you know piece that's in her collection and the other one I represents like 120, 150 years. It starts before Lone Dogs and goes after, but they're both like so powerful because you can see, you know, like the thought process and you can almost envision the community coming together and talking about like the most important event to happen to them and then then choose that event recorded in history, um, and you can see their exact you know recordings, um, today, which is super special. Yeah, that is really special. Make sure that we continue to know the story and tell the story of the indigenous people. It's awesome.
Speaker 1:Similarly, with the gift shop, the trading should I call it the trading post? Yeah, is there a specific item that a lot of people gravitate towards? I think that the gift shop's main purpose is to make sure that we connect history to present day, because there is a misconception that indigenous people are no longer here. So the gift shop serves as one, a celebratory place of, you know, admiring all of the art that is being made, but also a safe space for people to come together and ask us questions about what's going on, what are some current events that are happening? And so, to answer your question, I think that the bookshop is really really the main focus. When people want to go out and want to learn more about Indigenous perspectives on, you know, ecology or you know, like, water rights and things like that. It's really important to go over there to just kind of browse through. And even if you just want to go in there for fun, we have tons of folklore stories and you know just, there's so much in there.
Speaker 1:What is your favorite overlooked item?
Speaker 1:My favorite overlooked item oh my goodness. Oh my goodness. Not necessarily overlooked, because people will see it and they're always intimidated by it, but my favorite thing is we offer crickets as a snack to eat, and everyone's always freaked out about it, but I think it's so fun and they're quite delicious, but those are my favorite, and every time I see little kids I'm like do you want some? Oh my gosh, jasmine. Do you have a favorite item that's maybe overlooked? Or in the shop? Or in the shop? In the shop, oh god. Maybe in the gallery? Now I'm curious, I don't know. I mean, there's a ton of fantastic things that I think people see on multiple visits. You know, they may not notice their first time, but the second time they're like has this always been here?
Speaker 1:Like in the galleries, my favorite items are the Peruvian textiles. They're so cool and they are almost 2,000 years old, and so I mean, that alone is mind-blowing to me, and I think people don't realize or appreciate that, but maybe I'm just a textile person. But in the shop, I mean, like Perkitts is a really great option. I would say we have some really great T-shirts in there that I don't like. Um, that are are done by natives, which is a brand owned and operated by Stephen Pulchard. He is, um Iowa Chalk Talk, I believe. So, yes, um, and I don't know, he is just a creative mind and we've got some fun designs in there. Um, yeah, also, I have to highlight and when we were talking about the books, the recipes are super good, yes, and we also just got a new board game then, which is really cool. We did get a new board game.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I love the way you guys partner with communities, not only by bringing artifacts to light and telling the history of that, but also how you continue to bring them to the gift shop and and sell things that are still being made by incredibly talented indigenous people. It's, it's so special, um can, how can visitors take what they learned here and carry it with them home in a meaningful way, aside from the gift shop? Do you want to go first? Sure, I mean like I think we could all use a little bit more history and knowledge into our lives. I mean there's something special about learning something you had no idea even existed in the world. Learning something you had no idea even existed in the world, and then like taking that home and taking that knowledge and, you know, putting it forward in your life.
Speaker 1:Whether it's just a fun fact, you can tell at a party, or maybe it is something a little bit more emotional and deeper connecting, and maybe you know that's part of your own family's history or something you discover down the line and it's you know we have a shared history and we have to. You know, collectively, it's our responsibility to keep that passed on. So I think you know what we tell in the galleries is you know our shared history and you know we respect that and it's our responsibility. Well, that was a really cute answer. I think that you know just not even just's our responsibility. Well, that was a really cute answer.
Speaker 1:Do you have anything to add? I think that you know just, not even just with our museum in general and with our, like, indigenous background and history, but like to always challenge yourself. Every time you visit or you visit someplace else that talks about history in general, come inside, take a moment to reflect and think about what more can I learn from this and what can I do about it, if there's anything to be done. Yeah, that's good. Well, before we wrap up, I usually love to ask our guests what's on their Bentonville bucket list. So if you haven't done it yet, tell me.
Speaker 1:Or if there's something that needs to be on a visitor's bucket list, tell me. Oh, my goodness, I have to admit something I'm a really bad tourist in our own home. Yeah, so there's probably a lot on that list. Like I need to try every single restaurant that we've got. Um, but I absolutely love sending our visitors over to eighth street market because they have no idea they exist. Yeah, um, because I know everybody knows like downtown is great. There's a ton of things to do downtown, but 8th Street has some cool stuff too, so that's where I always send people.
Speaker 1:But I myself need to be a better friend we can get together. Oh yeah, I'm like Jasmine, I don't like to leave my house. I need to go and get out more. But something that's on my personal bucket list is there's a coffee shop I think it's Airship where you walk on a trail and then eventually you'll find it. Yeah, that's what I think. Yeah, you have to do that. Wow, that's like huge Cool. Well, I have so many more questions I wish I could ask, but unfortunately we're out of time. Thank you guys so much for joining us. If you guys want to learn more information, don't forget. Visit Bentonville is here to help you navigate things where to eat, where to stay and what's going on in our new American town. Check out the show notes. To follow us on social media, follow our newsletter and check out our website at visitbentonvillecom. Thanks so much for listening.