A 5k run, ruck march, address by a Holocaust survivor, and a military equipment display are part of the “Darby Days” weekend event in late April organized by the Fort Smith Museum of History, Fort Smith National Historic Site, the Darby House and the city of Fort Smith.
The events, designed to honor veterans, are also part of the city’s America’s 250th Celebration. The Darby Day events on April 25 includes a weapons demonstration, a military timeline presentation, and presentation by the Miss Laura’s Brothel Museum staff about women during wartime. Following is the Saturday schedule.
• 10 a.m.: Veteran’s Honor ceremony and flag raising, with Keynote speaker Lydia Klimuk, a Holocaust survivor, at the Fort Smith National Historic Site (NHS)
• 11 a.m.: Meet and greet with veterans at the NHS
• Noon to 2 p.m.: “From flintlocks to M4s,” an historic weapons demonstration
• 1 p.m.: presentation of “Services for Service Men: The Untold History of Women’s Roles in War Time,” conducted by the Miss Laura’s Brothel Museum and held at the NHS
“We’ve also partnered with retired Rangers and the Ranger Legacy Foundation to add two Ranger events for this weekend: a Ranger Breakfast on Saturday morning and a “Black and Tan” on Saturday night as well,” noted a statement from the museum. “The speaker for Ranger Breakfast is Tom Hames, his father served with Col. Darby.”
There will be free entrance to the history museum on Saturday, and several food trucks will be available. There also will be living history and military encampments around the museum and NHS, including a military vehicle collection from WWII to Desert Storm. The program is free to the public. Link here for more info on the weekend events.
The General Darby Challenge will be held April 26 and will begin at 7 a.m. at the Cisterna Plaza in downtown Fort Smith. A statue of Darby on his motorcycle is in the plaza. According to the museum, the military-style ruck march and race honors Fort Smith native General William O. Darby and “celebrates the enduring bond between Fort Smith and its Italian sister cities, Cisterna and Nago-Torbole.”
“The 2026 Challenge will also honor Master Sergeant Joshua Lloyd Wheeler, a member of the Cherokee Nation and a native of Sequoyah County, Oklahoma, who was killed in action in Iraq during Operation Inherent Resolve,” according to the museum press release. “A member of the elite Delta Force, MSgt. Wheeler was the first American service member killed by enemy fire while fighting ISIS militants.”
2026 is the first year for the expanded Darby Days, and the third year for the Darby Challenge. Museum Executive Director Caroline Speir said the goal is to continue to grow the weekend event and “build the connections” between the city and its links with U.S. military history.
Link here for more info and to register for the challenge.
DARBY HISTORY
Darby was born and raised in Fort Smith. He is credited with creating, organizing, and leading the first corps of Army Rangers — called “Darby’s Rangers,” and immortalized in a film of the same name starring James Garner as Darby. He was also known for riding a motorcycle during his service in Europe.
On April 23, 1945, during the waning days of World War II, Col. Darby found himself with an unexpected mission. Robinson Duff, the brigadier general and assistant commander of the U.S. 10th Mountain Division, was wounded in an enemy attack leaving it to Darby to take over and lead his “Task Force Darby” to the Po River valley bridgehead in Italy.
While conferring with his men one week after assuming command, Darby was one of two killed by an 88mm enemy shell that burst in the middle of the assembled officers and non-commissioned officers. Several others were injured. Task Force Darby continued on with the mission, and two days later, all German forces in Italy surrendered. Darby, who was 34 when he was killed, was posthumously promoted to brigadier general on May 15, 1945.
He was buried in Cisterna, Italy, but four years later, his body was exhumed and reinterred at Fort Smith National Cemetery. A statue of Darby in Cisterna Park was unveiled in April 2016.
