Category Archives: Museum

How Much Ground, Would a Groundhog Hog, If a Groundhog Could Hog Ground?

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We talk about Groundhogs once a year. But how much do we know about them?

Today (Groundhog Day) and Saturday (Groundhog Day +2), the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission is offering a program on Groundhogs as part of the Arkansas Wildlife Series.  It will take place at the Witt Stephens Jr. Nature Center in downtown Little Rock at 11am both days.  There is no fee to participate.

Arkansas Wildlife Series: It’s a woodchuck, it’s a whistle pig—it’s a GROUNDHOG! Groundhogs make lousy weatherman but they do play a vital role in nature. Discover more about this true hibernator and take a stroll to his downtown burrow! Celebrate Groundhog month by discovering natural signs of weather forecasting.

As the AG&FC notes, the groundhog makes a lousy weatherman, but it does play a vital role in nature. Celebrate Groundhog Day by learning weather forecasting through natural signs

2011 a Record Year for Zoo Attendance

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Over 300,000 people visited the LR Zoo in 2011, which was the highest attendance in over ten years.  Daily attendance was 286,815, which was a 16.7% increase over 2010.  When special events were factored in, the attendance figures rose to 307,437.

According to Zoo director Mike Blakely, “There’s no doubt that the public is very excited about the new penguin exhibit and that more people are returning to the Zoo to see the penguins,” he said. “The Zoo also features more daily activities and events such as the Wild Wonders Animal Show and animal encounters that give guests an up-close-and-personal learning experience with animals.”

He Did Return

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Today marks the birthday of one of Little Rock’s most reluctant native sons.  Douglas MacArthur was rarely at a loss for words, opinions, or nerve.  But when it came to admitting he was born in Little Rock, he was, reticent.

MacArthur was born in Arkansas by mistake. His mother, the product of multiple generations of Virginia breeding, had wanted all of her children born in Virginia. His father, being a career military man, was stationed in a variety of places outside of Virginia. Thus, the problem.

Mrs. MacArthur was not able to get back to Virginia from her husband’s new assignment in Little Rock. So on January 26, 1880, Douglas MacArthur was born in Little Rock at the U.S. Army Arsenal.  He would be baptized at Christ Episcopal Church, but the family left Little Rock in June 1880.

MacArthur would not visit Arkansas again until 1952 when he was testing the waters for a potential Presidential bid.  At the time, Little Rock had its first (and to date only) Republican Mayor in Pratt C.  Remmel.  The park which now stood where the former military arsenal was located had been named in MacAthur’s honor in 1942.

In the 1952 visit, MacArthur made a speech from the Foster Bandshell in MacArthur Park. He also visited Christ Episcopal Church, though the existing building had been built after his baptism.

The only structure remaining from the Arsenal, the Tower Building, is purportedly the building in which MacArthur was born.  Since 2001, that building has housed the MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History.  That museum is dedicated to telling Arkansas’ military history past from territorial days onward. While it does have an exhibit about MacArthur, the museum is not solely dedicated to him.

A previous tenant of the building, the then-Museum of Science and Natural History, hosted the premiere of a movie about General MacArthur entitled MacArthur. Gregory Peck played the five star general and attended the premiere.  Though partially inspired by the success of Patton earlier in the decade, this film was not as successful.

General MacArthur is also featured as one of the twenty-five Medal of Honor recipients with Arkansas connections.  The Arkansas State Capitol features a memorial to the honorees.

Flashback Friday: MOD Reopening

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Last Saturday, the Museum of Discovery reopened after several months of renovations.  The doors opened at 9:00am and by 3:00pm the crowds were still streaming through.  The crowd was a diverse mix of ages, races and and neighborhoods who were interacting with the exhibits and each other.  Here are some photos from opening day.

A New Discovery Has Arrived!

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The Museum of Discovery opens today!  The mission of the Museum of Discovery is to ignite a passion for science, technology and math in a dynamic, interactive environment.

In order to carry out this mission, the museum’s space has been completely remodeled and exhibits have been replaced.  There are now nearly 90 customized, state-of-the-art, interactive science and technology showpieces in three new galleries focused on health, physical and earth sciences.

The first thing visitors will notice is that the Museum of Discovery has a new entrance.  There is now a street-level front door on President Clinton Avenue.  In 1927, when it was founded as the Museum of Natural History and Antiquities, it was in a storefront on Main Street.  Since it moved to Little Rock City Hall in 1930, it has never had a street front entrance. The museum now has “curb appeal.”

Under the leadership of Executive Director Nan Selz, the renovated space boasts almost 6,000 additional square feet, primarily in the front entrance and reception area. The new space has a contemporary look and feel. A new theater, conference room and multi-purpose classrooms provide new teaching spaces and rental opportunities.

Also new to the museum is its tinkering studio, the first of its kind in Arkansas. Inside the 450 square-foot workshop, visitors will get the chance to create, invent and discover. The studio will serve as a model for future tinkering labs at partnering discovery network museums.

The museum’s new Explore Store will house a wide variety of inventive items that are both educational and fun that will serve as a way to continue one’s museum experience, and to encourage learning and creative play.

Funding has been provided by the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation, a national philanthropic organization founded in 1954 by the late media entrepreneur for whom it is named. The Museum was awarded a $9.2 million grant which funded the new construction, the renovation of the old facility and the purchase of all-new exhibits.

Museum hours are:

Tuesday through Saturday 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Sunday 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Monday Closed (Open on Monday holidays)

Admission: $10 ages 12 and older, $8 ages 1-11, Free under age 1

iPhotos 2011: The Good

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Like many people, the Little Rock Culture Vulture has an iPhone and takes many iPhotos. Today’s entry, and the next two, will highlight some of his favorite personal iPhotos taken in Little Rock during 2011. The are divided into the Good, the Odd and the Arty.

Today focuses on The Good. These 11 from ’11 are presented chronologically.

Allsopp Park snow - February 2011

 

A sidewalk near MacArthur Park at night - March 2011

Kids playing by Dickinson Fountain at Arkansas Arts Center - April 2011

 

Jordan Johnson in a rare moment of sitting still on grounds of Clinton Library - May 2011

 

Ducks crossing street in downtown Little Rock - May 2011

 

Little Rock Sky - June 2011

 

After at party in black box at Arkansas Repertory Theatre - June 2011

 

Setting sun reflected on Arkansas River - June 2011

 

Downtown reflection - June 2011

Bill Worthen joining with a band at 2nd Friday Art Night at Historic Arkansas Museum - July 2011

 

Snow along Kavanaugh - December 2011

 

Coming Soon: Mosaic Templars Holiday Open House (Dec 4)

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Join the Mosaic Templars Cultural Center in a one-of-a-kind holiday celebration. Watch the museum come alive for our Holiday Open House event on December 4, 2011 starting at 1:00pm and running until 5:00pm.

This fun event will feature holiday performances by local choir and theatre groups as well as a special presentation featuring Mosaic Templars own Act Out Loud students. We will also have a Kids’ Holiday Craft Corner with a variety of holiday activities including holiday refreshments.

Please bring toys to donate to the Say’s Stop the Violence toy drive to benefit children in the local community. This event is free and open to the public.

For more information about our Holiday Open House event, visit mosaictemplars.com or call 501-683-3593.

The Mosaic Templars Cultural Center is a museum of the Department of Arkansas Heritage.