Discover 5 hidden attractions, cool sights, and unusual things to do in Harrison (United States). Don't miss out on these must-see attractions: Mystic Caverns, Lyric Theater, and Boone County Courthouse. Also, be sure to include Evans-Kirby House in your itinerary.
Below, you can find the list of the most amazing places you should visit in Harrison (Arkansas).
Table of Contents
Mystic Caverns
Mystic Caverns and Crystal Dome are show caves located between the cities of Jasper and Harrison, in the state of Arkansas, U.S. on the Arkansas Highway 7 Scenic Byway near the defunct amusement park Dogpatch USA. Sometimes called "the twin caves" because they are within 400 feet of each other, the two caves maintain a year-round temperature of 58 °F, contain more formations per foot than any other caves in Arkansas, and are open for public tours year-round except during the January flooding season.
A third cave on the site, Not Much Sink cavern, has been deemed too dangerous to allow public tours.
Mystic Caverns, which has operated commercially since the late 1920s, is older than any other commercially operated cave in Arkansas, with the exception of Onyx Cave in Eureka Springs, and perhaps nearby Diamond Cave in Jasper, which has been toured since 1925. Crystal Dome was discovered in the mid-1960s during landscaping operations at Dogpatch USA. Great care was taken to preserve this pristine cave, and as a result 90% of it is still being formed. Tours began in the Crystal Dome in 1981.[1]
Address: 341 Caverns Dr, 72601-4987 Harrison
Lyric Theater
Theater in Harrison, Arkansas. The Lyric Theater is a theater located on W. Rush Street in Harrison, Boone County, Arkansas. Designed and constructed by J. W. Bass of Detroit, the Lyric was built in 1929 and adorned with murals by J. W. Zelm. The theater was built as the first cinema in the area to show talking pictures and operated under the same family's ownership until 1977, though as a franchise of different chains.
Following its closure due to an inability to compete with the larger movie theaters, the theater was scheduled for demolition. After more than two decades of disuse, the Lyric reopened as a live performance venue in 1999 when the Ozark Arts Council purchased it for $150,000 and began operating the space. Renovations focused on updating the space for modern use without losing the historic character, including the murals, and these efforts were recognized by the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program. The theater has been lauded as the "Roots Music Palace of the Ozarks."[2]
Address: 113 W Rush Ave, 72601-4218 Harrison
Boone County Courthouse
Courthouse. The Boone County Courthouse is a historic courthouse in Harrison, Arkansas. It is a two-story brick structure, designed by noted Arkansas architect Charles L. Thompson and built in 1907. It is Georgian Revival in style, with a hip roof above a course of dentil molding, and bands of cast stone that mark the floor levels of the building. It has a projecting gabled entry section, three bays wide, with brick pilasters separating the center entrance from the flanking windows. The gable end has a dentillated pediment, and has a bullseye window at the center.
The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.[3]
Address: 100 North Main Street, Harrison
Evans-Kirby House
The Evans-Kirby House is a historic house at 611 South Pine Street in Harrison, Arkansas. It is a two-story wood-frame structure on a sandstone foundation, with a busy roofline and asymmetrical massing typical of the Queen Anne style. The roof is punctuated with five dormers of different sizes and shapes, and the walls are finished with clapboards and decoratively-cut shingles. The porch is adorned with spindled friezes and brackets. The property also includes a period barn/carriage house and garage, the latter over an original smoke cellar. The house was built in 1895 for Dr. E.L. Evans, who sold it in 1906 to his brother-in-law, Dr. Frank Kirby.
The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005.[4]
Harrison Courthouse Square Historic District
Courthouse. The Harrison Courthouse Square Historic District is an area of Harrison, Arkansas. It is known by residents simply as "the Square". The Harrison Courthouse Square Historic District includes the 1911 Boone County Courthouse, two pharmacies, several clothing stores and restaurants, and a Marine Corps museum. The District also has a bank and the Lyric Theater. The District is the site of several annual festivals, including Crawdad Days and the Fall Festival. Several war memorials stand on the Courthouse lawn. The Square is known as the site of the shooting of famous outlaw Henry Starr.
Most of the square's buildings were built between 1895 and 1948, earlier buildings having been predominantly wooden in construction. The district that was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1999 has 54 historically significant buildings, including most of those facing the 1911 courthouse, and a few on the immediately adjacent city blocks.[5]