Historic Dyess Colony: Boyhood Home of Johnny Cash is set to open to the public Aug. 16.
The restoration of both the Dyess Administration Building and the Johnny Cash Boyhood Home has been spearheaded by Dr. Ruth Hawkins, director of Arkansas Heritage Sites at Arkansas State University. … “We have done a feasibility study for the Historic Dyess Colony: Boyhood Home of Johnny Cash, which projects 50,000 visitors annually, spending approximately $10 million each year in the northeast Arkansas region, and creating more than 100 new tourism-related jobs.”
… The mayor of Dyess sees a bright future for the town. “I think it’s going to do a lot for the whole county,” Larry Sims shares. “People from all over the world will be coming to see Dyess and it’s going to make quite a difference for our area. They’re going to have a good experience while learning what life was like all those years ago.”
… Money for the Historic Dyess Colony project has come from several sources – including an annual Johnny Cash Music Festival now in its fourth year. The event, which takes place at Arkansas State University’s Convocation Center, features country music artists who donate their performances and in many cases their travel expenses as well. Proceeds from the annual celebration have raised $1.9 million dollars towards a goal of $3.2 million for the Johnny Cash Boyhood Hometown Project.
Read more at ArkansasMatters.com.