Tag Archives: Arkansas State Capitol

LR Cultural Touchstone: Ellen Turner Carpenter

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Mrs CarpenterEllen Turner Carpenter was born on July 30, 1916 on West Ninth Street.  At the time of her death at the age of 93, her life had come full circle.

As a young girl, she was an active participant in the thriving African American life along west Ninth Street in downtown Little Rock. She attended many events at the Mosaic Templars Hall which sat at Ninth and Broadway.

A longtime Little Rock educator, she became the moving force behind preserving the Mosaic Templars building in the 1980s.   In 1992, she became president of the Mosaic Templars Building Preservation Society, which worked to preserve the Mosaic Templars building in Little Rock to create a museum for black history in Arkansas. Mrs. Carpenter served as president of the society until her death.

In the 1990s, the City of Little Rock purchased the building to keep it stable while the Preservation Society sought to raise the funds.  Due to lobbying efforts led by Mrs. Carpenter, the State of Arkansas purchased the building from the City with the intention of turning it into a museum under the auspices of the Department of Arkansas Heritage.  At a ceremony in 2003, Vice Mayor Willie Hinton handed the keys of the building to Governor Mike Huckabee with Mrs. Carpenter nearby beaming.  Governor Huckabee appointed her to the state advisory committee for this new museum.  She would serve as chair of that committee.

On March 16, 2005, tragedy struck.  The building burned to the ground.  That afternoon at a press conference at the State Capitol, leaders expressed their resolve that the project would move forward with a new building following the original design.  One of the speakers that afternoon was Mrs. Carpenter. She started out in her usual quiet voice. But as she recalled her youth spent at the Mosaic Templar’s building, the years melted away. She demonstrated some of the step dancing she had done as a teenager.

On September 20, 2008, she presided over the grand opening of the new Mosaic Templars Cultural Center. It was the culmination of 15 years of official work and many more years of dreaming.  At the ceremonies, she declared “We made it!” “We made it! We made it!”

Mrs. Carpenter remained an active supporter of the MTCC until her death on July 27, 2010, just three days shy of her 94th birthday.

Throughout her life she wore many hats (including numerous ones to church on Sunday). She was an educator, neighborhood organizer, and public servant. Everyone who met her was positively impacted by her.  Due to her vision and endurance, thousands each year are still positively impacted by her when they visit the Mosaic Templars Cultural Center.  Fittingly, the conference room at MTCC is named in her memory.

 

Architects of Little Rock the focus of June’s Legacies & Lunch

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Architects of LR bookCharles Witsell and Gordon Wittenberg, retired principals of Little Rock architecture firms and co-authors of the newly released Architects of Little Rock: 1833-1950, will discuss Little Rock’s architectural history at Legacies & Lunch on Wednesday, June 4, noon-1 p.m. in the CALS Main Library’s Darragh Center, 100 Rock Street.

Witsell and Wittenberg are retired principals of WER Architects/Planners (Witsell, Evans and Rasco) and WD&D (Wittenberg, Delony and Davidson). Architects of Little Rock: 1833-1950 profiles thirty-five architects, including George R. Mann, Thomas Harding, Charles L. Thompson, and more. Famous buildings such as the Arkansas State Capitol, St. Andrews Cathedral, the Pulaski County Court House, Central High School, and Robinson Auditorium are showcased as well. Copies of the book will be available for purchase; Wittenberg and Witsell will sign copies after their talk.

Legacies & Lunch, the Butler Center’s monthly lecture series, is free, open to the public, and supported in part by the Arkansas Humanities Council. Programs are held from noon-1 p.m. on the first Wednesday of each month. Attendees are invited to bring a sack lunch; drinks and dessert are provided. For more information, contact 918-3033.

Book on LR Architects celebrated tonight

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Architects of LR bookTonight, the Historic Arkansas Museum will be hosting a lecture and book signing for the recently released Architects of Little Rock: 1833–1950, penned by Little Rock architects, Charles Witsell and Gordon Wittenberg.

The evening will begin at 5:30 with a special presentation and lecture discussing the book. Speakers will include Bill Worthen, Historic Arkansas Museum; Tom Adams, WD&D; John Greer, WER Architects/Planners; Bobby Roberts, Central Arkansas Library and a special presentation will be given by Wesley Walls, President AIA Arkansas.

A reception and book signing will begin immediately following the lecture. All are invited to attend this special evening. “There are many ways of knowing the built environment. In their Architects of Little Rock, Mr. Witsell and Mr. Wittenberg explore the always complex relationship between buildings and the visionary thinkers—sometimes ordinary craftsman— who produced them. In so doing, they not only have uncovered the design rationales and circumstances of production that influenced a wide spectrum of Little Rock architecture but moreover have written a significant work of architectural scholarship that addresses the history of the architect’s profession,” Ethel Goodstein-Murphree, architectural historian and professor of architecture, University of Arkansas.

Architects of Little Rock: 1833–1950, is being released this month. The book is co-written by Little Rock architects, Charles Witsell and Gordon Wittenberg and edited by Marylyn Jackson Parins. Architects of Little Rock provides biographical and historical sketches of the architects at work in Little Rock from 1833 to 1950. It is the story of the people behind the city’s most important buildings. Thirty-five architects are profiled, including George R. Mann, Thomas Harding, Charles L. Thompson, Max F. Mayer, Edwin B. Cromwell, George H. Wittenberg, Lawson L. Delony, and others. Famous buildings, including the Historic Arkansas Museum, the Old State House, the Arkansas State Capitol, St. Andrews Cathedral, Little Rock City Hall, the Pulaski County Court House, Little Rock Central High School and Robinson Auditorium are showcased, bringing attention to and encouraging appreciation of the city’s historic buildings.

Charles Witsell and Gordon Wittenberg are retired principals of the Little Rock architecture firms WER Architects/Planners (Witsell, Evans and Rasco) and WD&D (Wittenberg, Delony and Davidson), respectively.

Legacies & Lunch: Lessons from an Old School

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legaciesThis month, the Butler Center’s Legacies & Lunch series not only looks at a chapter in Arkansas history, but it explores the challenges of researching and writing history.
Grace Blagdon and David Ware will discuss the Brinkley Academy, a major part of African American educational history in Arkansas. Blagdon, whose father was the school’s principal, will share what she has learned from surviving students. Ware, historian of the Arkansas State Capitol, will touch on the challenges he and Blagdon faced in creating an exhibit, Old School: Remembering the Brinkley Academy, from the school’s few remaining historical materials.
Legacies & Lunch is free, open to the public, and supported in part by the Arkansas Humanities Council.
This month, Legacies & Lunch moves to a new location.  With the opening of the new CALS Ron Robinson Theater in the Arcade Building, the program will take place there.  It is easily accessible from the Main Library’s parking lot. Attendees are invited to bring a sack lunch; drinks and dessert will be provided.

The program is held from noon-1 p.m. on the first Wednesday of each month.

The Butler Center for Arkansas Studies is a department of the Central Arkansas Library System (CALS). It was founded in 1997 to promote the study and appreciation of Arkansas history and culture.

Korean War focus of 3 Exhibits this week

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koreanwarThis week there are exhibits on the Korean War on display at three different locations in Central Arkansas — the Butler Center for Arkansas Studies, Arkansas State Capitol and Arkansas Department of Veterans Affairs.  This year marks the 60th anniversary of the ending of the three year conflict.
The Korean War has often been overshadowed by other conflicts, such as World War II and the Vietnam War. Much of the history of the war exists only in the memories and mementos of its veterans. Approximately 6,300 Arkansans served in the war, including six who received the Congressional Medal of Honor.

In addition to the displays this week, the Butler Center for Arkansas Studies is gathering Arkansas-related Korean War materials to preserve this important history.

On Wednesday, July 24 at 10am, there will be a ceremony at the Arkansas State Capitol in the second floor of the rotunda.

The Butler Center is located at 401 President Clinton Avenue in Little Rock.
The Arkansas Department of Veterans Affairs is located at 2200 Fort Roots Dr # 65  in North Little Rock.

Sculpture Vulture: Kevin Kresse’s Breaking the Cycle

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IMG_6022 The newest sculpture to be placed in Riverfront Park is Kevin Kresse’s Breaking the Cycle.  Is is located near the belvedere in the park (which is visible in the background of the photo below).

The sculpture depicts an older man (ostensibly a grandfather) being pushed in a wheelbarrow by a young boy.  The artist’s son, Roman, served as the model for the young boy.

Kresse’s piece was donated by Lisenne Rockefeller. Mrs. Rockefeller and Kresse have worked together before.  He sculpted the official bust of her late husband which is on display at the State Capitol.

In addition to this piece, Kresse’s art can be found throughout Little Rock, the state of Arkansas and the United States.

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June 20 Architeaser: Old Game & Fish Building

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Today’s architeaser features two friezes from the old Arkansas Game and Fish Commission Building behind (to the west) of the Arkansas State Capitol.

Originally built to house the Game and Fish Commission offices, the building has been subsumed by the One Capitol Mall complex (aka Big Mac). The Game and Fish Commission offices are now out in west Little Rock near I-430.

One frieze depicts a woman feeding a deer, a family of deer, and a bow hunter. The other frieze depicts a modern fisherman with rod and reel and an 19th century boy sitting along a river bank with a cane pole.
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