About Us
The Eureka Springs Oral History Project: My Eureka Story records, organizes, and makes accessible stories and related photographs that offer glimpses into life in our unique town. The Carnegie Public Library strives to shine a light on the experiences of historically under-represented groups whose stories have little documentation.
Library staff conducted a dozen long-form interviews throughout the summer of 2022. The project continues to collect and make accessible 3 to 5-minute stories and related photographs with support as an OurStoryBridge project.
We aim to collect stories from the many folks who made Eureka their home in the 1960s and '70s as part of the Back-to-the-land movement; for work with dynamite blasting and construction work on Beaver Dam, the Christ of the Ozarks statue, and the Passion Play; and the freedom to live in an community of artists and creatives. The project is also working to record Eureka's uniqueness as a long-time inclusive destination for folks in the LGBTQ+ community.
What's your Eureka Story?
I didn't really come out until yesterday. Well, that's not true. It is true in a way; everyday you have to come out. I mean come out for what's true, for what is loving, for what is right, against suppression. You have to stand up every day and you have to be willing to learn. So I come out every day.
- Trella Ann Laughlin