Tag Archives: Butler Center for Arkansas Studies

The Memphis Sound is topic of September Legacies & Lunch today at noon

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cals_int_sponsor_butlerCivil rights, the cold war, and the transformation of the plantation economy. It is in light of these historical topics that Jeannie Whayne, University of Arkansas history professor, will frame her talk, “The Memphis Sound and Northeastern Arkansas in the 1950s and 1960s,” at Legacies & Lunch, a free monthly program hosted by the Butler Center for Arkansas Studies, on Wednesday, September 4, at noon in the Main Library’s Darragh Center, 100 Rock Street.

whayne-j-12Whayne will talk about growing up in northeast Arkansas and picking up Memphis radio and television broadcasts. She will address this experience in the context of regional and world events. One example is Sputnik Monroe, a Memphis wrestler who seemed to personify the Russian menace but in fact supported civil rights by promoting matches between black and white wrestlers at a time when the sport was highly segregated.

Legacies & Lunch is free, open to the public, and supported in part by the Arkansas Humanities Council. The program is held from noon – 1 p.m. on the first Wednesday of each month in the Main Library’s Darragh Center. Attendees are invited to bring a sack lunch; drinks and dessert will be provided.

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. The Butler Center’s research collections, art galleries, and offices are located in the Arkansas Studies Institute building at 401 President Clinton Ave. on the campus of the CALS Main Library.

For more information, call 918-3086.

Arkansas Sounds lineup announced

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arkansas_sounds_2013There’s something about the Arkansas River that makes free live music sound even better. DeQueen native Collin Raye and a tribute to Delight native Glen Campbell will headline the Arkansas Sounds Music Festival, a free annual event hosted by the Butler Center for Arkansas Studies, a department of the Central Arkansas Library System (CALS). On Friday and Saturday, September 27-28, the festival will feature Arkansas music and musicians both past and present at programs for all age groups at the River Market Pavilions, First Security Amphitheatre, and the Main Library.

Music in a large variety of genres and styles will showcase Arkansans’ love of music.

Friday, September 27 at the River Market Pavilions

Time Band Musical Genre
6 p.m. The Smittle Band jazzy Americana
7:15 p.m. Tav Falco & Panther Burns southern gothic roots/rockabilly
8:30 p.m. Dan Hicks & the Hot Licks gypsy jazz

Saturday – First Security Amphitheatre

Noon The Sound of the Mountain instrumental progressive rock
1 p.m. The 1 oz. Jig funk
2:15 p.m. Messy Sparkles electro-pop one man DJ
3:30 p.m. Big Piph (Epiphany) progressive hip-hop
4:45 p.m. War Chief Americana rock and roll
6 p.m. Mountain Sprout hillbilly bluegrass
7:15 p.m. Bonnie Montgomery country honky tonk
8:30 p.m. Glen Campbell Tribute
9:30 p.m. Collin Raye modern country

Three programs for children and teens are scheduled at the Main Library beginning at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, September 28.

10:30 a.m. Ages Up to 6 years The Kinders Concert 3rd Floor Youth Services
1 p.m. Ages 7-12 Hip Hop Songwriting and Production workshop Level 4 Teen Center
2 p.m. Ages 13-19 Hip Hop Songwriting and Production workshop Level 4 Teen Center

Additional programs are scheduled during September at different venues in downtown Little Rock.

Friday, Sept. 13 – 5 p.m.
Second Friday Art Night performance by Michael Carenbauer
Butler Center Galleries, 401 President Clinton Avenue

Thursday Sept. 19 6 p.m.
Cocktail party to celebrate the release of Encyclopedia of Arkansas Music
Main Library’s Darragh Center, 100 Rock Street

Monday, Sept. 23  6 p.m.
Songwriters Showcase
Main Library’s Darragh Center, 100 Rock Street

Tuesday, Sept. 24  7 p.m.
Performance honoring Clark Terry
Mosaic Templars Cultural Center, 501 W. 9th Street

Thursday, Sept. 26 6 p.m.
Tav Falco book signing, with the Arkansas Literary Festival
Main Library’s Darragh Center, 100 Rock Street

The Arkansas Sounds Music Festival and all related events are free and open to the public. For a complete schedule, see www.arkansassounds.org. To volunteer for the Arkansas Sounds Music Festival, contact Angela Delaney at adelaney@cals.org or 918-3095. For more information, visit www.cals.org.

Today at noon at Legacies & Lunch: Oakland-Fraternal Cemetery

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OakFratFor over 150 years, the Oakland-Fraternal Cemetery has been a final resting place for Little Rock citizens. This City of Little Rock cemetery is the focus on the August “Legacies and Lunch” program today at noon at the Bulter Center.  Jan Davenport, historian of the Oakland-Fraternal Cemetery will be the speaker.

The 160 acres on which Oakland-Fraternal was located was purchased from Mary Starbuck, the widow of Paul R. Starbuck, by the City of Little Rock in March 1863. This became the city’s largest cemetery. Gradually, the total acreage declined as unneeded property was sold. Oakland-Fraternal now includes over 10,000 monuments and sculptures on its 92 acres. As the public cemetery for over one hundred years, the cemetery is representative of Little Rock’s social fabric. United States Senators and Congressmen, Governors, Mayors, merchants, doctors, and educators are all interred in Oakland-Fraternal.  The cemetery is actually comprised of seven different cemeteries which are collectively known by the name “Oakland-Fraternal.”

Legacies & Lunch, a free program offered by the Butler Center for Arkansas Studies on the first Wednesday of each month, will feature Jan Davenport, historian of the Oakland-Fraternal Cemetery, on Wednesday, August 7, noon – 1 p.m. in the Main Library’s Darragh Center, 100 Rock Street.

After years of resting quietly, history is being uncovered at the Oakland-Fraternal Cemetery, as caretakers restore and research aged headstones. The cemetery is Little Rock’s best-kept historical secret and the final resting place for people ranging from working-class families to an assassinated judge. In her talk, “Gone but Not Forgotten: 150 Years at the Oakland-Fraternal Cemetery,” Davenport will discuss her efforts to raise awareness of the cemetery and the stories of the people resting there.

The Butler Center for Arkansas Studies is a department of CALS. It was founded in 1997 to promote the study and appreciation of Arkansas history and culture. The Butler Center’s research collections, art galleries, and offices are located in the Arkansas Studies Institute building at 401 President Clinton Ave. on the campus of the CALS Main Library.

For more information, call 918-3086.

Hogs Broadcasters focus of new book from Butler Center Books

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bc-purvisRazorback football season is just a few short weeks away.  As thoughts start turning to the gridiron, it is time to think about the legacy of the Arkansas Razorbacks.
Established more than sixty years ago, the Razorback broadcasting network was a pioneering effort in collegiate sports. With announcers such as Bud Campbell and Paul Eells at the microphone, it has become an enduring feature of life in Arkansas. The Razorback network, from its modest beginning to its growth into a major force in sports broadcasting, is the basis of Voices of the Razorbacks, by Hoyt Purvis and Stanley Sharp, which has just been released by Butler Center Books.

The Razorback broadcasting network helped build interest in the Razorbacks and a loyal following for them but also forged strong links among Razorback fans and the broadcasters who became “voices” of the Razorbacks. A sense of kinship developed within the audience, and the broadcasts of Razorback sports became an essential part of the state’s culture.

Although an announcer today may say, “This is the Razorback Sports Network from IMG College,” the Arkansas broadcast network is a direct descendant of the Razorback network Bob Cheyne assembled in the early 1950s at the direction of Athletic Director John Barnhill. There had been earlier broadcasts of Razorback sports, including games announced by Bob Fulton in the 1940s, but the Razorback network Cheyne developed help turn broadcasters into cultural icons.

Voices of the Razorbacks traces the history of the broadcasters and the memorable events and highlights over the decades, and it features interviews with many of the key figures in that history. It is hard to find anyone in Arkansas, or Razorback fans anywhere, without special memories of listening to or watching broadcasts of Razorback games. Voices of the Razorbacks brings all those memories back.

Co-author Hoyt Purvis has taught journalism, international relations, and political science at the University of Arkansas since 1982. He established the first sports journalism course at UA and taught it for twenty-five years. Co-author Stanley Sharp of Booneville, Arkansas, has followed Razorback sports all his life and has a master’s degree in journalism from UA.

            Voices of the Razorbacks is available from River Market Books & Gifts, 120 River Market Ave., and from the University of Arkansas Press, Butler Center Books’ distributor. Butler Center Books is a division of the Butler Center for Arkansas Studies, a department of the Central Arkansas Library System (CALS). The Butler Center’s research collections, art galleries, and offices are located in the Arkansas Studies Institute building at 401 PresidentClinton Ave. on the campus of the CALS Main Library. For more information, contact Rod Lorenzen at (501) 320-5716 or rlorenzen@cals.org.

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.

CALS Legacies & Lunch today at noon explores early banking

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cals_int_sponsor_butlerStereotypes hold that rural people in early Arkansas kept their money under their mattresses. Maybe they had the right idea back then. The Butler Center for Arkansas Studies will host “The High Costs of Arkansas’s Early Banks,” a free talk by Dr. Scott Lien, as part of its monthly Legacies & Lunch lecture series, Wednesday, July 3, at noon in the Main Library’s Darragh Center, 100 Rock Street.

Lien will discuss Arkansas’s experiences with the state’s first two chartered banks, from the days before the Civil War. The banks offered help to some while foreclosing opportunities for others. Lien is a history professor at Lyon College in Batesville. His research focuses on how democracy has affected opportunities of all Americans.

The Butler Center’s Legacies & Lunch program is free, open to the public, and supported in part by the Arkansas Humanities Council. Attendees are invited to bring a sack lunch; drinks and dessert will be provided.

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. The Butler Center’s research collections, art galleries, and offices are located in the Arkansas Studies Institute building at 401 President Clinton Ave. on the campus of the CALS Main Library.

For more information, call 918-3086.

June 2nd Friday Art Night is busting with Fun

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2nd Friday Art NightJune is Busting Out All Over with great art and music downtown on 2nd Friday Art Night.  Visual art, music, refreshments, a trolley for transportation can all be yours for the low price of FREE.  The festivities run from 5pm to 8pm, unless otherwise noted.

Among the highlights:

  • Old State House Museum (300 West Markham) will feature Geoff Robson and David Gerstein performing duets for violin and cello.
  • Historic Arkansas Museum (200 East Third) will celebrate the opening of its new Arkansas Made Gallery; in addition there will be live music by Parkstone.
  • Edge Gallery (301B President Clinton Ave) will be featuring contemporary art.
  • Butler Center Galleries (401 President Clinton Ave) is showing Creative Expressions; Arkansas Arts Educators; From the Vault: Works from the CALS Permanent Collection; and Old School: Remembering the Brinkley Academy
  • Courtyard Marriott Downtown (521 President Clinton Ave) is teaming up with Spirited Art Little Rock and hosting a painting class in its cafe beginning at 6:30pm.
  • Hearne Fine Art (1001 Wright Ave, Suite C) will host an opening reception for Reflections In Silver: Silverpoint Drawings by Aj Smith & Marjorie Williams-Smith.
  • studioMain (1423 South Main Street) they are featuring a UALR Student Furniture Showcase.  This has become an annual exhibit of furniture pieces created by students of the UALR Applied Design program.