John Paul Hammerschmidt represented Arkansas’s Third District in the United States Congress for well over 20 years. He remains a beloved figure throughout the state and is an icon in Northwest Arkansas. I recently had the great honor of speaking at a lecture series named for him at North Arkansas College in his hometown of Harrison.
The Congressman maintains an office on the campus, and it is a museum in its own right. The memorabilia on display is truly a political and historical treasure. Signed photographs from Presidents beginning with Dwight Eisenhower through George W. Bush are on the walls. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
From a photo of the late Congressman William Jennings Bryan Dorn of South Carolina (grandfather of Patrick Kennedy, director of public programs and public policy at the Clinton School) to pictures with various personalities on Air Force One and Air Force Two, to letters, clippings and pens used by Presidents for bill signings, it is a walk through American history.
If you are ever in or nearby Harrison, (Boone County) visit the North Ark campus and see the Hammerschmidt collection. It’s worth every minute of your time, While you are on the campus, also take a look at what I believe is Arkansas’s best outdoor ampitheatre located adjacent to the Hammerschmidt Center. I just wish the Clinton School had one like it.
Responses