Miss Laura's Social Club is one of Fort Smith's most distinctive landmarks: a baroque Victorian house built in 1900 that served as a brothel during the frontier era and now operates as the city's official visitor centre. The building sits at the end of First Street in the Belle Grove Historic District, near the old red-light district that once lined the riverfront.
The house itself is well worth a look even if you don't go inside — the ornate gabled facade, decorative woodwork, and wraparound porch are a good example of the high Victorian style that the prosperous class of Fort Smith's frontier era favoured. Inside, the visitor centre staff can point you toward the major historic sites, and there are exhibits on the building's original history. The juxtaposition of the building's past and present use is very much part of the point.