Highest-rated specialty museums in Arkansas by visitors

In 1683, Elias Ashmole, an Oxford graduate and true polymath, founded the Ashmolean, the modern world's first public museum. Stocked with his private collection of artifacts, curios, and special scientific equipment, the goal of the museum was to create a center for practical research and the advancement of knowledge. This, Ashmole felt, was a goal "very necessary to humaine life, health [and] the conveniences thereof."

According to figures from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, there are more than 35,000 museums in the United States today. Their collections encompass everything from modern art, like at the MoMA in New York City, to mustard, like at the National Mustard Museum in Middleton, Wisconsin, and everything in between.

Museums are anchors of our communities. The American Alliance of Museums reports that museums support more than 725,000 jobs and contribute upwards of $50 billion to the U.S. economy each year. Three-quarters of Americans agree that museums are an important part of our civil society and have an important role in promoting knowledge and civic engagement.

Beyond their educational and economic significance, museums are just plain fun. Whether you have a developed interest in natural history or just want to learn a little bit more about funerary history (the National Museum of Funeral History in Houston), there's sure to be a museum that strikes your interest. There's simply nothing else quite like spending an afternoon learning about famous figures, arts and crafts, military history, or what else you fancy.

Here, Stacker compiled a list of the highest-rated specialty museums in Arkansas on Tripadvisor as of Aug. 13, 2025. Keep reading to see what unique museums are in your home state. Then, make sure to plan a visit. With many museums facing funding cuts due to the current administration's efforts to dismantle the Institute of Museum and Library Services, who's to say how much longer these treasure troves will be available to us?

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#29. Bud Walton Arena Hall of Champions Museum

- Rating: 4.7/5 (34 reviews)
- City: Fayetteville
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#28. Four States Auto Museum

- Rating: 4.0/5 (42 reviews)
- City: Texarkana
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#27. Ponca Elk Education Center

- Rating: 4.4/5 (54 reviews)
- City: Ponca
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#26. Chaffee Barbershop and Military Museum

- Rating: 3.9/5 (38 reviews)
- City: Fort Smith
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#25. Drennan-Scott Historic Site

- Rating: 4.7/5 (29 reviews)
- City: Van Buren
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#24. Mena Kansas City Southern Depot

- Rating: 4.3/5 (54 reviews)
- City: Mena
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#23. Josephine Tussauds Wax Museum

- Rating: 2.9/5 (314 reviews)
- City: Hot Springs
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8 / 29

#22. Hemingway-Pfeiffer Museum and Educational Center

- Rating: 4.9/5 (68 reviews)
- City: Piggott
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#21. Historic Dyess Colony: Boyhood Home of Johnny Cash

- Rating: 4.7/5 (87 reviews)
- City: Dyess
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#20. Mark Martin Museum

- Rating: 4.6/5 (32 reviews)
- City: Batesville
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#19. Fort Smith Trolley Museum

- Rating: 3.8/5 (120 reviews)
- City: Fort Smith
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#18. Eureka Springs Historical Museum

- Rating: 4.0/5 (156 reviews)
- City: Eureka Springs
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#17. Pioneer Village

- Rating: 4.3/5 (36 reviews)
- City: Searcy
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#16. Arkansas Railroad Museum

- Rating: 4.7/5 (49 reviews)
- City: Pine Bluff
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#15. Witt Stephens Jr. Central Arkansas Nature Center

- Rating: 4.4/5 (53 reviews)
- City: Little Rock
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#14. Museum of Automobiles

- Rating: 4.4/5 (98 reviews)
- City: Morrilton
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#13. Sultana Disaster Museum

- Rating: 4.7/5 (64 reviews)
- City: Marion
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#12. Arkansas Air Museum

- Rating: 4.3/5 (59 reviews)
- City: Fayetteville
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#11. Daisy Airgun Museum

- Rating: 4.5/5 (180 reviews)
- City: Rogers
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#10. Mountain Valley Spring Water Visitor Center & Museum

- Rating: 4.2/5 (194 reviews)
- City: Hot Springs
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#9. Historic Arkansas Museum

- Rating: 4.4/5 (188 reviews)
- City: Little Rock
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#8. Ka Do Ha Indian Village

- Rating: 4.0/5 (199 reviews)
- City: Murfreesboro
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#7. Buckyball At Crystal Bridges

- Rating: 4.5/5 (109 reviews)
- City: Bentonville
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#6. Esse Purse Museum & Store

- Rating: 4.7/5 (223 reviews)
- City: Little Rock
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#5. Tiny Town

- Rating: 4.4/5 (85 reviews)
- City: Hot Springs
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#4. Retroverse Museum (Formerly The Galaxy Connection)

- Rating: 4.4/5 (213 reviews)
- City: Hot Springs
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#3. Peel Museum & Botanical Garden

- Rating: 4.2/5 (179 reviews)
- City: Bentonville
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#2. Ozark Folk Center State Park

- Rating: 4.6/5 (454 reviews)
- City: Mountain View
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#1. Gangster Museum of America

- Rating: 3.9/5 (669 reviews)
- City: Hot Springs
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This story features data reporting by Wade Zhou, writing by Madison Troyer, and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 51 states.