Rogers Historical Museum is the recipient of the 2023 Southeastern Museums Conference (SEMC) Gold Award for Gallery Installations, Under $1,000 Budget Category. The SEMC Technology Competition recognizes excellence in the use of technology within Southeastern United States museums and celebrates the accomplishments of innovative work.

The award-winning entry is a music interactive included in the museum’s temporary exhibit, “A Parade of Apple Blossoms.” This exhibit highlighted the Apple Blossom Festivals of the 1920s that were a grand celebration of the apple industry in northwest Arkansas. These festivals featured elaborate costumes, Apple Blossom Queen contests, period music, regional tours, and more that turned Rogers and the surrounding area into “A Parade of Apple Blossoms” each spring.

The award-winning entry is a music interactive included in the museum’s temporary exhibit, “A Parade of Apple Blossoms.” This exhibit highlighted the Apple Blossom Festivals of the 1920s that were a grand celebration of the apple industry in northwest Arkansas. These festivals featured elaborate costumes, Apple Blossom Queen contests, period music, regional tours, and more that turned Rogers and the surrounding area into “A Parade of Apple Blossoms” each spring.
 
Museum Director Serena Barnett says, “The RHM staff and I are so honored that our exhibit music interactive was chosen as the gold winner in the SEMC Technology Competition this year,” Barnett explained. “During the early development of the “A Parade of Apple Blossoms” exhibit, the museum’s exhibits team discovered sheet music in the permanent collection of four songs written in the 1920s relating to our region’s apple industry and Apple Blossom Festivals," she continued. "We knew then that we needed to find a way to share this historic music in the exhibit. These songs not been played or heard by anyone in nearly a century and we wanted to celebrate these musical contributions from our region’s apple heritage.”