Category Archives: History

Tis the Season (for Spiced Peacans)

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The tree being hoisted into place in the Capital Hotel

Music, design and history converge this evening when Capital Hotel hosts A Capital Christmas today.

The festivities begin at 5:30pm when the UALR Flute Ensemble is in concert in the hotel lobby and the gingerbread village is officially unveiled.  At 6:30 pm, the tree will officially be lit.  Also during the evening, dancers from Ballet Arkansas’ production of The Nutcracker will be on hand.

Throughout the Christmas season, there will be performances of music groups at the Capital Hotel. 

Music and Choir Performance Dates

 •Cavalry Academy on Fri, Dec 2nd at Noon

 •Mann Magnet MS on Mon, Dec 5th at 11 am

 •AR Northeast Community College on Mon, Dec 5th at 1 pm

 •Riverview High School on Tues, Dec 6th at 11 am

 •Sylvan Hills on Wed, Dec 7th at 11 am

 •Abundant Life on Thurs, Dec 8th at Noon

 •Maumelle Middle School on Fri, Dec 9th at 11 am

 •Holy Souls on Mon, Dec 12th at 11:30

 •Episcopal Collegiate on Tues, Dec 13 at Noon

 •Searcy High School on Wed, Dec 14th at 11 am

 •Booker Arts on Wed, Dec 14th at Noon

 •Robinson Middle School on Thurs, Dec 15th at 11 am

 •Hornaments on Saturday, Dec 17th at 5 pm

CALS is a Library Star!

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The Central Arkansas Library System (CALS) has been listed as a Star Library in the Library Journal Index of Public Library Service. The index measures the service levels of the nation’s 7,153 public libraries, based on circulation, visits, Internet use, and program attendance. CALS, with a total score of 773, was one of only twenty Southern libraries to receive the Star recognition.

Rankings were based on 2009 data released by the Institute of Museum and Library Services in July, 2011. CALS is listed twenty-fifth out of 107 libraries that fall within an expenditure range of $10 million to $29.9 million. In 2009 CALS’s budget was $13,750,000.

Since opening as the Little Rock Public Library in 1910, CALS has added branches and services, evolving to meet the needs of patrons and becoming one of the largest systems in the mid-South. Innovations such as the bookmobile service that began in 1938 gave way to branch libraries, interlibrary loan, and online access to information.  Though many libraries are seeing reduction in funding, circulation and attendance, CALS has had twelve years of increases in circulation and attendance, and because funding sources are tied to property taxes, has not had to reduce service or staff.

Director Bobby Roberts states, “It is an honor to have our work acknowledged by such a prestigious magazine as Library Journal. I believe CALS is the best library system in the South because the taxpayers have approved the funds to allow us to provide excellent service and resources that our patrons want and need.”

The Main Library campus offers an extensive Reference department, computer lab, specialized Arkansas research resources, art galleries, a used book store, two cafés, and a new area specially designed to accommodate the needs and interests of teens.

 

CALS libraries in Little Rock include:

  • Main Library, 100 Rock Street
  • Dee Brown Library, 6325 Baseline Road
  • Fletcher Library, 823 North Buchanan Street
  • Oley E. Rooker Library, 11 Otter Creek Court
  • Terry Library, 2015 Napa Valley Drive
  • Thompson Library, 38 Rahling Circle
  • Williams Library, 1800 Chester Street
  • McMath Library, 2100 John Barrow Road.
  • CALS also has branches in Jacksonville, Maumelle, Perryville and Sherwood.

QQA Preservation Conversations Continue Tonight

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The Quapaw Quarter Association continues its monthly education series this year entitled “Preservation Conversations.” They take place the third Monday of each month at historic Curran Hall, which serves as the QQA headquarters in addition to being the Mayor’s Official Reception Hall.

Tonight is the November conversation – “Period Furnishings and Colors.” It will be presented by Becky Witsell.  For 30 years, Witsell has combined her love of art, architecture and history in the field of preservation restoration.  Among the many, many projects with which she has been associated are the State Capitol, the Little Rock Zoo carousel horses, the Old State House, St. Edward Catholic Church, The Cathedral of St. Andrew, Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, First United Methodist Church and countless homes.

Beginning at 5:00, Curran Hall will be open for patrons to enjoy a glass of wine, programs start at 5:30 p.m. and last for one hour.  After the official program concludes, all are invited to keep the conversation going and enjoy a discounted dinner at nearby Copper Grill, 300 East Third Street.

The Quapaw Quarter Association is a non-profit historic preservation advocacy organization whose mission is to promote the preservation of the historic buildings and neighborhoods of Greater Little Rock. Rhea Roberts is the Executive Director.

Sculpture Sunday: Stars and Stripes

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As part of the Veteran’s Day weekend, today’s Sculpture Sunday showcases 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 which will be featured in future entries.

 

Clinton School presents “A Tragedy of Democracy: Japanese Confinement in North America” at Butler Center

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In a collaboration between the Clinton School of Public Service and the Butler Center of Arkansas Studies, author Greg Robinson will discuss his book A Tragedy of Democracy: Japanese Confinement in North America on Thursday, November 10.

The book looks at the transnational history of the wartime confinement of people of Japanese ancestry. Winner of the 2009 History Book Prize for Asian American Studies, the book offers newly uncovered material that extends existing accounts of the camp experience of Japanese Americans during World War II and breaks new ground by examining those events alongside the treatment of ethnic Japanese in Canada, Mexico, and Latin America. An associate professor of history at the Université du Québec à Montréal, Robinson is also author of By Order of the President: FDR and the Internment of Japanese Americans.

The Butler Center for Arkansas Studies will host a pre-reception at 5:00 p.m. in Concordia Hall at the Arkansas Studies Institute, where The Art of Living, an exhibit featuring art from the World War II Japanese American internment camp in Rohwer, Ark., is currently on display.

Thursday, November 10, 2011
5:00 p.m.-Pre-reception at Concordia Hall in the Arkansas Studies Institute (across the street from the CALS Main Library)
6:00-7:00 p.m.-Lecture at the Darragh Center at the Main Branch of the Central Arkansas Library System

*Reserve your seats by emailing publicprograms@clintonschool.uasys.edu, or calling 501-683-5239.

Little Rock History: 180 years of Little Rock

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Last week (November 2) marked the 1835 incorporation of Little Rock as a City.  However, today marks the 180th anniversary of Little Rock first being incorporated as a town by the Arkansas Territorial Legislature.

The first Mayor of the Town of Little Rock was Dr. Matthew Cunningham; he was elected January 2, 1832.  The first City Council meeting took place at his house.  In 1931, a plaque was installed at that site to mark the historic event. (Though it implies that the first city council meeting took place in 1831 not 1832.)

Bennett’s Military Supply is now located on the spot at what is now 3rd Street and Main Street.

Mayor Cunningham, MD

Prior to serving as the first Mayor, Dr. Cunningham had already made quite a few other “firsts” in Little Rock.  He was the first physician to take up residence in the settlement known as Little Rock arriving in February 1820.  His wife, soon joined and became the first female resident of Little Rock.  She had children from her first marriage, but after arriving in Little Rock, she and Dr. Cunningham had their first child together — Chester Cunningham, who became the first baby born in Little Rock.

Dr. Cunningham, Mrs. Cunningham and Chester Cunningham are buried next to each other in Mount Holly Cemetery.  Interestingly, Dr. Cunningham was involved in a 30 year land ownership dispute with Chester Ashley and Roswell Beebe who also donated the property on which Mount Holly sits.

Graves of Matthew Cunningham, Eliza Cunningham and Chester Cunningham

Quapaw Quarter Association Annual Meeting

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Little Rock’s Quapaw Quarter Association will host its Annual Membership Meeting tonight.  A highlight of the evening will be the presentation of the Greater Little Rock Preservation Awards.  Preceding the awards presentation will be remarks by Kirk Huffaker, Executive Director of the Utah Heritage Foundation.

The meeting takes place at the Historic Arkansas Museum in the Ottenheimer Theatre.  Following a 5:30 reception, the business meeting will take place.  Ron Maxwell and Kathy Webb have been chosen to be new members of the QQA board.  Other new members are Gabe Holmstrom, Greg Nabholz, Shana Woodard and Ron Woods.

The Quapaw Quarter Association is a non-profit historic preservation advocacy organization whose mission is to promote the preservation of the historic buildings and neighborhoods of Greater Little Rock.

The QQA grew out of an effort to identify and protect significant historic structures in Little Rock during the “urban renewal” days of the early 1960s, making it one of the oldest preservation organizations in the nation.

Throughout its existence, the QQA has been a driving force behind historic preservation in Greater Little Rock, which now boasts over 250 individually-listed National Register properties as well as 15 National Register Historic Districts.

In addition to advocacy on local preservation issues, the QQA’s programs include its online newsletter, the Chronicle; an annual Spring Tour of Historic Homes; public workshops; and an historic house marker program.  Rhea Roberts is the executive director.

In 2007, the QQA entered into a contract with the City of Little Rock to manage the city’s Visitor Information Center at Historic Curran Hall.  The ca. 1842-43 Greek Revival-style house also serves as the Mayor’s Reception Hall and is available for rental for private receptions and events.