Fordyce Bathhouse Visitor Center to close to install new exhibit

Little Rock, Arkansas – Hot Springs National Park’s Fordyce Bathhouse Visitor Center and Museum will be shuttered so that a new interpretive exhibit can be put in place.

The museum and visitor center will be closed from January 17 through the middle of February 2023.

The 1989 exhibits were replaced with new ones, according to a press release, when the Fordyce Bathhouse reopened as the park visitor center.

The exhibits highlight the park’s famed thermal water, the significance of geology in creating the thermal springs, the development of Bathhouse Row, and the history of access to public health and bathing over the past nearly 200 years. They include interactive models, historical photos, artifacts from the museum collection, and more.

The historic elements of the Bath Halls on the first floor, the dressing Rooms on the second story, and the entire third floor will be preserved despite the replacement of the current displays on the first and second floors.

“We are excited about the new exhibits,” said park superintendent Laura Miller. “We have learned so much more about how the thermal water system functions over the past 30 years and we know visitors will love the more engaging and interactive features.”

The Fordyce Bathhouse will reopen in February, and as information on the Grand Reopening becomes available, it will be made public.