Historic Washington State Park

K Jordan

2024-05

Stayed two nights at the "jail". Turned out to be a fun and educational trip. The Jailhouse Bed and Breakfast is updated, but still full of history. Nice clean rooms. Very pleasant staff. No ghosts on our stay. The entire site is one big history lesson that is well worth the trip. Slow down and step back in time. You'll be glad you did.

Kenneth Davis

2024-04

This is an amazing historic state park that extends over several blocks of this small town. In effect the town is THE park.There is a lot to see here. Pack a picnic lunch and plan on spending several hours looking around. It really is an impressive set of old buildings that have been restored to their 1800's apperances. There are some massive old Grand Champion Trees in town that are worthy of checking out.Start at the courthouse where you can pick up a map of the town for a self-guided walking tour.I wish we could have had more time to spend here today. Well.....we will have to make another trip to Arkansas to see this place again.

Kitty Harvill

2024-04

I was there for a Plein air painting event and had a wonderful time. It was during the Jonquil Festival with volunteers in period costumes. Everything was so well organized and managed. I highly recommend a visit to this state park.

Jason Armstrong

2024-04

This is a nice way to spend a Saturday we came down to the festival and walk around the town looking at all the old building and museum. This place could be a complete reenactment place for the 1800 were everyone could dress up and learn about the period.

Tena Jones (Explored and Conquered)

2024-01

We didn't have much time to spend here, and now I KNOW we have to come back! This is definitely a park to spend the entire day at. We weren't able to take advantage of the carriage ride nor the tour guide, but for the prices, we will definitely do these next visit! Because we didn't do the tour guides, we were only able to view the buildings from the outside, and I will say without a guide, I KNOW we missed several of the buildings. We were able to walk around inside the new courthouse which is now the gift store/museum. There was so much to see inside and read about! We started here and tried to follow the map we received inside. We drove by several of the places which my pictures are too blurry to post. The ones were stopped at, I'll include pictures below. The largest magnolia tree you'll ever see is here, and it was beyond words! It felt like you were walking into a secret garden entrance, I totally could've had a picnic lunch here! The blacksmith shop is where the bowie knife was first made. The guy in there was incredible to visit with and we enjoyed his demonstrations! The school and some of the other buildings were nice to see. We seen the "moon" tree and a couple other historic trees in the area! Everything is rather easy to get to once you know where you are going. We'd like to see the candle shop, print shop, and fire dept for sure next visit. We're looking into staying at the Jailhouse BnB and enjoying a meal at the Tavern.

Karen Beis

2023-05

This place was awesome. I had the most fun I think. They offer tours of the different buildings and it was the coolest thing to go through and see. We did not have time to stay the whole day so we missed parts of the tours. But we will definitely go back to revisit and experience that aspect. Also, it is Home to the awesome maker of the Bowie Knife. Pretty cool stuff if you like history. Staff were super informative and very friendly. You could tell they enjoyed being there. They all Offered help and discussion as soon as you walked past the door. And there is a neat little gift shop at the end. We loved this place. Highly recommend a visit, take the day if you want to do the different tours.

Michelle Mankowski

2024-04

We had a wonderful time in this little town. Everyone are so amazing. Jerry, the Blacksmith, was great. Gave us insight to blacksmithing and of his magic water. They have the most beautiful, enormous Magnolia tree I have ever seen. I even dripped some candles. We are so happy we stopped by. The home of the Bowie knife. Thank you,Michelle and Joe

Heather monty

2023-05

The people that work this park are very knowledgeable and so helpful! We stayed at the Jail b&b - nice place and breakfast was great ! We did several tours. The food at the Tavern was very good also. We had a very good time here ! My car messed up and we were stranded- Mrs. Sheila went above and beyond to help us out. If you have AT&T cell service expect very very minimal service here.

Sovren Sybrant

2023-11

Washington Arkansas is an incredible spot to vacation or visit for both families and on your own. The staff are very friendly and knowledgeable. The sites are beautifully preserved and there’s an overall atmosphere of pastoral America. I highly recommend making the trip!

Ken H

2023-05

Beautiful little town where almost the entire town is part of a state park. We'll definitely be going back and taking more time to walk through and tour the sites and learn more of the history. Well worth a side trip to see this historical place.

Randy Bullock

2023-05

It is a beautiful state park but unfortunately the way that they allow you to see inside the houses is a little disappointing. They have different tours that you can go on at different times during the day Each tour has 3 places that you get to visit and go inside. It is worth seeing if you are in the area. There is a lot to see without going on a tour.

Mandy J. Hoffman

2024-03

At first impression, this doesn’t seem like much. But taking 2 of the guided tour options really was worth the time and money. We were able to learn and ask a lot of questions. Our guide, Michael, was very knowledgeable and personable and made our time there both informative and enjoyable.

Brandi Edwards (Sunrises2Sunsets.net)

2024-03

Save a half day to walk around and enjoy this entire city. The courthouse is free to tour. The other individual building tours can be purchased in a separate package. I didn't care to tour the insides of the buildings, but we did and it was cool. My favorite part was walking around the old time town and seeing the trees, especially the insanely large magnolia tree.

Lisa Hlavinka

2024-04

I had so much fun walking my dog around the town. I could not take any tours as I arrived too late in the day, but if you like old homes, you will love this place! There was an owl hooting when I visited the Pioneer Cemetery at dusk. Spooky!

Donna Schillinger

2022-05

I could write so much about this place, but mostly about it's potential. It literally has as much to offer as Colonial Williamsburg, just not quite as old as that. But at present because of covid, in part, just a few buildings are open. They offer several tours a day, which are well worth your time, there is an excellent restaurant, I added pictures of the food which was superb and reasonably priced, and they have a very nice bed and breakfast and the old jailhouse. It is a full breakfast and quite a value at $110 a night for queen room. My son loved the huge magnolia tree and the blacksmith who is a very nice guy and addition to being highly skilled. If you have never been to this park and you love history, this is a must-see. It's just 15 minutes off of I-30, so people crossing country should plan to do lunch here and take about an hour or two to take in the park. It is free to enter, but tours do have a small price. I hope everyone who has made it this far in this review will determine to go see this place and encourage the Arkansas Parks Department to put more money toward this park with such amazing potential.

David Brown

2022-05

Nice historical town. Interiors of almost all the buildings are only accessible when on a guided tour Our poor timing made it difficult to do a guided tour, so all we could do was view the outside of the buildings. The blacksmith shop is open without taking the tour. However the shop is closed between noon and 1 pm.

Charles Dolen

2022-05

You need to check this place out and expect to be there all day. The whole town is a step back into the past. Be sure and go by the blacksmith for a great demonstration. There are also some notable trees that are majestic.The tour guides where very good.

David McDaniel

2024-04

Very unique state park. The town itself is a good portion of the park. Unfortunately most of the park and museums are only available as paid tours due to COVID? Blacksmith shop was neat.

Torrey Anderson

2024-04

Loved being in the presence of do much history

chad skabronski

2023-05

It's a big place to visit. It's like a city block. Lots of information from the past. The courthouse has a giftshop and is well preserved.

Terri Koshy

2024-02

I love Old Washington!! I have some special memories here. My grandma retired from there after 19 years as a tour guide in 1987. I grew up spending the night with her many weekends & going to work with her. So much fun. I knew everyone! Washington has changed a lot. Her house next door to the State Capital is no longer there. They used to share the same driveway. The Catawba tree and broken sidewalk is still there though!

Rachel Lytle

2024-03

The jonquil festival is always a treat,vendors,food, music, kids entertainment and exhibitions to appeal to all ages. This place has so much history. My favorite tree,a massive magnolia, is here too!Dog-friendliness: Well behaved dogs (and owners) welcome.

Josnie Stewn

2023-06

We rode in here without realizing it's a historical park town. The houses and buildings are the park. You walk and ride a horse to see the town and visit the businesses that are open that particular day. We saw a working printing press and blacksmith shop from the 1800s. Simply amazing.

Jean Hinton

2023-05

We really enjoyed visiting this park. The grounds are well cared for. It was fun learning about the history of the area.

Carrie Verdin

2021-05

Wonderful little historical town. The people are so friendly. Unfortunately we were unable to go into the buildings but still a nice experience.

clint curran

2024-04

Phenomenal History ~ Great Architecture ~ Bowie Knife Show was in town with Doug Marcaida and Jason Knight ~ Wonderful Place to be on a cold rainy Saturday.

d Saints

2023-11

This is a beautiful place to a visit. The people are nice. I will definitely revisit this place.

Wheelchair RV Life Autumn

2023-05

This is been my favorite part of Arkansas! Especially getting to the James Black blacksmith shop. It was absolutely incredible to step right in to a piece of History and I highly recommend it

Jane Waterson

2023-12

My husband, Audie Waterson, said he wanted to "hide" this holiday season. When I asked him what he had in mind, of course he had no idea. SO... I went to work finding a place to hide, and found the perfect place: Old Washington Historic Park, now known as Historic Washington State Park. I made the reservations, then told Audie Waterson what I had done. I don't think he was too keen on the idea, but that changed quickly.I made reservations for 3 nights in the Jailhouse Bed and Breakfast, the old county jail which had been modernized and turned into a B&B. The first night, there was only one other person staying there. We met her the next morning and discovered she was a history buff visiting from Oregon. The next two nights, we were the only ones in the jail. Except for the ghost, of course, but he/she didn't bother us. Breakfast each morning was absolutely wonderful.We did the carriage ride the first afternoon then booked guided tours for the next two days. We were the ONLY people to take these tours because it was the slow season. Ashley helped us plan our visit. Our guides, Michael on Wednesday and Sheila on Thursday, personalized these tours and let us take as much time as we wanted and ask as many questions as we wanted at each house and exhibit (Audie had many more than I). We were able to go into each and every building, home, and business in the park, except the Presbyterian Church because the key wouldn't work. We are going back to see the Church.I've lived in Arkansas my entire life, but I learned more about my state in the past three days than I ever knew was possible. I printed a page on an ancient printing press, watched a blacksmith fabricate dinner bells and ornaments, and toured a home where Albert Pike himself had been a guest many, many times. There was even a bust of Albert Pike in the 1836 Courthouse on the second floor. WOW! Just WOW!We left Washington this morning and drove to Millwood State Park (never heard of that park until we saw the sign) and we were amazed at the size of the lake -- 29,000+ acres! -- then drove to the Crater of Diamonds State Park. I'd never been there before, either. We didn't dig, but we picked up souvenirs and decided we needed to return, and SOON.This place needs to be on every Arkansan's bucket list. Take plenty of time so you can see everything Washington has to offer, or you'll just have to return. We completed this entire adventure on a single tank of gas, and we took a LOT of detours!

Jeffery Copelin

2023-05

Great place with an amazing amount of history and historical buildings still in place. Plenty of events happen here. You just need to check their calendar on their website. They have live music sometimes and all kinds of fun for both adults and kidsPlayground: There is no playground but when events happen there is plenty of activities for childrenRestrooms: Two sets of bathrooms in facilities and one set of Porta John'sDog-friendliness: They allow dogs in and all around the parkPicnic area: Plenty of wood picnic tables