Monthly Archives: November 2015

Suffragist Clara McDiarmid focus of Old State House Museum Brown Bag lecture today at noon

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OSH Brown BagToday at noon, the Old State House Museum Brown Bag Lunch Lecture Series continues with Danyelle McNeill, Digital Archivist at the Arkansas History Commission, who will share her research on Clara McDiarmid, one of Arkansas’s most influential reformers in the nineteenth century.

She will be talking about Clara McDiarmid, her life and family and her work with suffrage and temperance. Much has been written about Clara, some accurate and some not so accurate.

 

The Old State House Museum is an agency of the Department of Arkansas Heritage.

Little Rock Look Back: New USS Little Rock Launched

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USS LR afloatEarlier this year, on July 18, the new U.S.S. Little Rock (LCS9) was christened and officially launched in a ceremony in Marinette, Wisconsin.

Among those in attendance at the ceremony will be Little Rock Mayor Mark Stodola and US Senator John Boozman.   Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus, who served on the original U.S.S. Little Rock during the Vietnam War, was also present at the ceremony.

The U.S.S. Little Rock will be the nation’s ninth littoral combat ship.  It has been built for the U.S. Navy by Lockheed Martin and Marinette Marine Corporation (MMC) at the MMC shipyard in Marinette, Wisconsin.

The  christening ceremony celebrated the ship’s physical transition from land to sea.  The ceremony will be a symbolic transition from a hull number to a ship with a name and spirit of its own.

Following Janee Bonner’s shattering of the champagne bottle on the hull, the U.S.S. Little Rock was side launched into the Menominee River.  A side launch is unique, because the ship enters the water broadside. It is mostly used on inland waters, rivers and lakes.

In June of this year, representatives from the U.S. Navy came to Little Rock for the unveiling of the crest for the new U.S.S. Little Rock.

There will be a commissioning ceremony in November 2016. At that time, the ship will formally join the Fleet and become sovereign U.S. territory wherever she sails.

Veterans Day Sculpture Vulture, Kathleen Caricof’s Stars and Stripes sculpture in War Memorial Park

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Veterans Day is a good day to visit Kathleen Caricof’s Stars and Stripes in the Sturgis Veterans Plaza at War Memorial Park.  This 36 by 40 feet stainless steel sculpture welcomes visitors to the park and was dedicated in 2008 in conjunction with the 60th anniversary of War Memorial Stadium.

There are five interlocked stars which represent the five branches of the military: Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and Coast Guard – both the active duty and the reserve segments of each branch as well as their affiliated guard units.

The gleaming stainless steel is both light and durable to represent the strength and vitality of the men and women who protect the United States and have done so for centuries.

Caricof, a member of the National Sculptors Guild, was selected for the commission after a national competition by the War Memorial Stadium Commission.  She has several other pieces in Little Rock including several in Riverfront Park and the Vogel Schwartz Sculpture Garden.

On Veterans Day, visit the Little Rock museum which pays tribute to Arkansas’ veterans

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With today being Veterans Day,  it is a good time to remember the museum in Little Rock dedicated to preserving Arkansas’ rich military history.  Though most City of Little Rock offices are closed today for the holiday, the MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History is open.

Located in the historic Arsenal Tower in MacArthur Park, the MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History honors the Arkansans who have served in the armed forces.  Exhibits feature artifacts, photographs, weapons, documents, uniforms and other military items that vividly portray Arkansas’s military history at home and abroad.

Exhibits include:
  • Undaunted Courage, Proven Loyalty: Japanese American Soldiers in World War II
  • From Turbulence to Tranquility: The Little Rock Arsenal
  • Capital In Crisis and Celebration: Little Rock and the Civil War
  • Alger Cadet Gun
  • Camden Expedition
  • David Owen Dodd
  • Through the Camera’s Eye: The Allison Collection of World War II Photographs
  • By the President in the Name of Congress: Arkansas’ Medal of Honor Recipients
  • Conflict and Crisis: The MacArthur- Truman Controversy
  • Duty, Honor and Country: General Douglas MacArthur
  • The Sun Never Sets on the Mighty Jeep: The Jeep During World War II
  • War and Remembrance: The 1911 United Confederate Veterans Reunion
  • First Call – American Posters of World War I

The MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History is a museum of the City of Little Rock.  It is led by executive director Stephan McAteer who works with the MacArthur Military History Museum Commission.

Hours of Operation
Monday – Saturday; 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Sunday; 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Happy Birthday Maestro Mann!

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philipmannToday is the birthday of Arkansas Symphony Orchestra Music Director/Conductor Philip Mann!

Hailed by the BBC as a “talent to watch out for, who conveys a mature command of his forces,” he has led the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra as Music Director since 2010.  In his tenure the ASO has seen audience and artistic growth, new energy, and financial health under his tenure.

As winner of the Vienna Philharmonic’s Karajan Fellowship at the Salzburg Festival, Mann has relationships with orchestras and operas worldwide: including the Cleveland Orchestra, l’Orchestre symphonique de Québec, Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, Georgian State Opera, and the National Symphony of Cyprus. His recent Beethoven 9 was described as “Titanic” and his Canadian debut with the OSQ was dubbed by Le Soleil as a “Tour de Force” and led to an immediate reengagement in 2013. Mann has worked with leading artists such as Joshua Bell, Sharon Isbin, Dmitri Alexeev, Midori, and Marvin Hamlisch and has given premiers of major composers including John Corigliano, Jennifer Higdon, Michael Torke, Lucas Richman, and many others. He maintains a lively schedule as a guest conductor having conducted at New York’s Avery Fischer Hall and London’s Barbican Center.

Elected a Rhodes Scholar, Mann studied and taught at Oxford, and has served as assistant conductor to Franz Welser-Möst, Simon Rattle, Leonard Slatkin, Jaime Laredo, Mario Venzago, Bramwell Tovey, Pinchas Zukerman, and many others. At Oxford, he won the annual competition to become principal conductor of the Oxford University Philharmonia. Under his leadership, the Philharmonia’s performances and tours received international press and acclaim.

His complete bio of impressive accomplishments can be read here.

Special Tales from the South tonight at Wildwood with Nancy Nolan and friends

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talesfromsouthWildwood welcomes Tales from the South and a Tin Roof Project featuring Nancy Nolan this Tuesday, November 10th. The event includes a Community Conversation featuring exhibiting artist Nancy Nolan, Dave Anderson, Park Lanford, and Ken Clark of Chenal Family Therapy. Live music will be performed by Joshua Asante, lead singer in Amasa Hines and Velvet Kente bands.

Tuesday, November 10, 2015

6pm:  Dinner with Music performed by Joshua Asante (Amasa Hines, Velvet Kente)

7pm:  Storytelling by Nancy Nolan

7:30:  Community Conversation   

To purchase tickets, click here.

$15 General – Storytelling & Community Conversation Only 

“Tales From the South” is a radio show created and produced by Paula Martin Morell.“Tales from the South” is a showcase of writers reading their own true stories. While the show itself is unrehearsed, the literary memoirs have been worked on for weeks leading up to the readings. Stories range from funny to touching, from everyday occurrences to life-altering tragedies. 

Special Veterans Day concert at the River Market by Central High School Band and Flagline

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centralentranceIn honor of veterans and those currently serving, the Little Rock Central High School Band and Flagline members will host a free, special concert this Veterans Day, November 11, 2015. The performance will take place at 11 a.m. in the east pavilion of the River Market. The first 100 veterans who attend will receive a commemorative token from Central’s band.

Known for their innovative technique and marching style, Central’s band has been invited to perform across the country, most notably during the last inauguration ceremony of President Barack Obama. They were also featured at the finishing line of this year’s local Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. Now, they’ve been extended an invitation to participate in a Pearl Harbor Memorial Concert in Hawaii on November 23, 2016. The concert honors military heroes, survivors and veterans of Pearl Harbor. Next year marks Pearl Harbor’s 75th anniversary.

With financial support, the students will be able to experience a “once in a lifetime” opportunity in Hawaii. If you would like to help support the band’s efforts, you may make a tax deductible donation to LRCH’s Band Program, 1500 S. Park Street, Little Rock, AR 72202; or online at http://tinyurl.com/pu8q8lj (a small fee is applied to online donations). You will also be able to make donations during the November 11, 2015 performance at the River Market.

Central’s band will also host a Battle of the Bands fundraiser at Quigley Stadium at noon on November 15, 2015, featuring the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff’s Musical Marching Machine of the Mid-South, along with invited bands from the Memphis and Dallas areas. Tickets are $10