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The Main Street Bridge was initially built in 1924 as a structure for vehicles but reconstructed in 1973 to accommodate a growing population and then reconstructed again in 1998. The bridge is one of the six bridges that connects the downtown areas of Little Rock to North Little Rock, an area once known as Argenta. The construction of this bridge is part of a larger history. Prior to its construction, the people of Little Rock crossed into Argenta using a wooden-floored platform reinforced by flexible steel trusses held over concrete piers. In the 1890s, Groton Bridge Company of Groton, New York, was designated to construct a 1,670-foot-long, 24-foot-wide fixed-span bridge near this location. The precursor to today's Main Street Bridge, that structure was designed to be tall enough to allow boat traffic on the river. Known by many as the “Free Bridge” owing to the absence of a toll, that bridge was dedicated on July 5, 1897, with a ceremony attended by an estimated 10,000 to 25,000 people according to estimates in the local newspaper.

This undated postcard from the early 20th century shows how Little Rock's Main Street Bridge once appeared

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1897 news article about the dedication of a previous bridge 

Constructed in 1924, the Main Street Bridge connects Little Rock and North Little Rock and replaced the Free Bridge which was built in 1897. Today, the Main Street Bridge is one of the six bridges in Little Rock that extend across the Arkansas River.

Main Street Bridge

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This walking tour takes users to a variety of Little Rock landmarks along the south bank of the Arkansas River. The tour includes museums and cultural sites such as the Bill Clinton Presidential Library. 

Gideon Shryock, a Kentucky architect, designed the building. He originally envisioned a very opulent Greek revival style building but the plans had to be scaled back a bit. It was constructed between 1833 and 1842. This particular style of building was extremely popular during this time period, especially in the South. It features large white pillars in the front with the large porticos and the interior contains marble fireplaces. The materials used to construct the building were all obtained locally and the bricks that were used were formed by slave labor.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The building would be home to the state capital until 1912 when a new building was constructed. Before this time the building would see a lot of history take place within its walls. Prior to its official completion in 1837, the legislature moved into the building. Due to the loud noises of the construction tensions ran high and a knife fight actually broke out among the legislatures and construction workers. Not much else is reported on the incident, however. The Old State House was the location of the ratification of the Arkansas Constitution in 1874 and during the Civil War, it was used by Union troops for a short period when they occupied Little Rock.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; After the opening of the new capital building, the Old State House became home to many different organizations. It was renamed the Arkansas War Memorial in 1921, becoming a place for patriotic organizations to meet. In 1947, it was designated a museum for Arkansas culture and history and contains several Civil War exhibits, pottery, and quilts. Throughout the 1990s, it underwent a lot of restoration renovations and was deemed a National Historic Landmark in 1997.&nbsp;

The historic Old State House opened in 1836, serving as Arkansas's first state capitol building until 1911. It is now home to a state history museum. A National Historic Landmark, the Old State House is the oldest standing state capitol building west of the Mississippi River. Permanent exhibits in the museum include: Pillars of Power, exploring the history of the Old State House; Arkansas's First Families, featuring 30 Arkansas First Ladies' gowns; Grandmother's Cottage, and a hands-on children's exhibit; the Arkansas Wilderness gallery and the 1836 and 1885 House of Representatives chambers.

Old State House Museum 

The Denckla Block was built by wealthy railroad tycoon William P. Denckla in 1872. It contained offices, shops, and apartments known in that era as "bachelor quarters" as they catered towards single and traveling businessmen. Little Rock became the state's capital city in 1821, and in the 1870s, the city was a thriving and growing economic hub thanks to its river port and railroad connections. William Denckla was one of the builders of the Little Rock and Fort Smith Railroad and owned a number of buildings nearby where the hotel now stands. In constructing the Denckla Block building, Denckla aimed to contribute to the city's economic development and grow his own business prospects.By the mid-1870s, there was a growing need for hotel accommodations for travelers coming to Little Rock. This situation became even more urgent when a fire destroyed the nearby Metropolitan Hotel (the city's only upscale hotel) on December 14, 1876. The manager of the hotel leased the Denckla Block and quickly converted it into a hotel. The name Capital Hotel came from a hotel guest named Mrs. Morehead Wright, who, when asked to suggest a name for the hotel said it was "a capital enterprise located in a capital building…in the capital of the state...and I trust will prove a capital success.” The name stuck and the hotel opened in January 1877. Among the famous guests to stay at the hotel in its early was President Ulysses S. Grant in 1880.For the next 30 years, the Capital Hotel was the city's most prestigious hotel. It became the social and political center of the city and the unofficial political headquarters of the state. The hotel continued to operate under several owners over the years but by the 1960s and 1970s, it began to decline, coinciding with the decline of the downtown area. In the early 1980s, the hotel was restored and it opened in December 1983. It was fully restored again in 2007.

Since its opening in 1877, the Capital Hotel has been one of Little Rock's leading landmarks and is considered one of the finest examples of Victorian architecture in the state. The architecture of this historic building is known for its elaborate, prefabricated cast-iron brick facade that is both decorative and functional as it helps to support the structure. The building features many decorative elements including a one-story portico with Corinthian columns at the main entrance, a porch on top of the portico covered by a canopy with decorative scrollwork, and arched windows separated by squared columns. The building was erected in 1872 and was originally a commercial building called the Denckla Block. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.

Capital Hotel, Little Rock

<a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" title="Link: null">Louise Loughborough</a>&nbsp;recognized the historical significance of four shabby structures in a rundown area of Arkansas's capital city in 1939. For example, the Hinderliter Grog Shop was not only the oldest building in Little Rock, but it was also possibly the meeting place of the last Territorial Legislature. At another site on the block, the founder of the Arkansas Gazette (the oldest newspaper west of the Mississippi) had lived and printed the paper during the 1820s and 30s. The stonemason who built Arkansas' first state house also built one of the homes on the block, and a fourth house was associated with the fifth territorial governor.Loughborough began a one-woman campaign to save the block, lobbying the Arkansas Legislature for funding to restore the buildings and have them preserved as the Arkansas Territorial Restoration. The museum formally opened in July 1941 and&nbsp;Loughborough directed the Arkansas Territorial Restoration for thirty years. In the 1970s, her work&nbsp;evolved from a simple historic preservation project into a full-scale museum. The staff began to update its methods, pursuing professional museum standards and procedures. In 1981, the Restoration became the state's first history or historic site museum accredited by the AAM (American Association of Museums). The Arkansas Museums Association named the Restoration "1981 Museum of the Year."The institution, now as Historic Arkansas Museum, serves as the state's primary interpreter of frontier Arkansas. Each year, the museum's innovative education programs, outreach and exhibits reach more than 90,000 schoolchildren, local citizens and visitors from the other 49 states and from around the world.

The Historic Arkansas Museum preserves and shares the history of the state's frontier period to the American Civil War. Visitors can tour five pre-Civil War houses which have been preserved and restored. These homes and other six galleries of displays share the history of life in Arkansas prior to the war. The museum also features a living history theater and exhibits related to the life of Jim Bowie and other famous Arkansas residents. Guided tours and historic reenactors portray original residents, providing a fun and educational experience for young and old. 

Historic Arkansas Museum

Max Hilb and William Probst built this structure, designed by Joseph Willis, in 1882 for Probst &amp; Hilb Liquor Company.&nbsp;From 1882 to 1887, an ornate two-story space on the second floor of this building served as the social hall for the Concordia Association, an organization established in 1864 to help Jewish immigrant families adapt to their new lives in Arkansas.1&nbsp;In 1901, M. Fletcher and T.J. McCarthy purchased this building and engaged architect Charles Thompson to split the top story into two floors. Fletcher Coffee &amp; Spice Company operated here until 1947. In 1951, George F. Porbeck purchased the building and it housed several different businesses. In 1971, Porbeck's heirs, including Herschel A. Bowman, leased it to the Budget Office Furniture Company.&nbsp; Capital improvement bonds approved by Little Rock voters in 2004 and 2007 made possible the adaptive reuse of the building by the Central Arkansas Library System. Construction was completed in February 2009.2The historic building is now one of three buildings that house the Arkansas Studies Institute (ASI), the state’s largest facility dedicated to the study of Arkansas history and culture. ASI is a partnership between the&nbsp;University of Arkansas at Little Rock&nbsp;and the&nbsp;Central Arkansas Library System. The complex is also home to the Arkansas Humanities Council, Butler Center for Arkansas Studies, UA Little Rock Center for Arkansas History and Culture, and the University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service.3This historic&nbsp;marker was placed with assistance from the Jewish American Society for Historic Preservation and Temple B’Nai Israel.1

The Porbeck & Bowman Building in downtown Little Rock, AR, was built in 1882. This building was owned by William Probst and Max Hilb, two German immigrants who owned a wholesale grocery and liquor distributorship. The original building included a two-story upper floor that was home to the Concordia Association, a Jewish social club. 

The historic building is now one of three buildings that house the Arkansas Studies Institute (ASI), the state’s largest facility dedicated to the study of Arkansas history and culture in the Arkansas Studies Institute building. 

Porbeck & Bowman Building & Historic Marker

In downtown
Little Rock, AR sits a vibrant market district right on the river on President
Clinton Ave. It is located in the oldest area of the city, the Quapaw Quarter.
The area takes up 10 city blocks and it houses a farmer’s market, local
specialty vendors, many restaurants and food vendors, and an amphitheater. It
is considered the cultural center of the city. It is open Monday-Saturday from
7:00am to 6:00pm.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The River Market was once a very
desolate area that was littered with condemned buildings and vacant properties.
In the early 1990s it was evident that revitalization of the area was badly
needed. A $300 million dollar project was put in place that would overhaul and
connect the scenic area to historic attractions are located there. The Central
Arkansas Library, Riverfront Park, and the Clinton Presidential Library are all
within walking distance of the market. This area is one of the many examples
Little Rock has completed showing their commitment to the revitalization of the
community.

The River Market District is located right in the heart of downtown Little Rock. It sits on the banks of a scenic river. It is a cultural epicenter of the city containing a myriad of international food vendors, shops, and a trolley transportation system that runs through the downtown area. It is a very popular spot among locals and tourists. 

River Market District

Sculpture at the River Market features over 80 works of public art, as well as natural terraces and walkways, along the Arkansas River; many pieces are a part of the Vogel Schwartz Sculpture Garden.  Visitors can take guided tours through Sculpture at the River Market to learn more about each piece and the history of this beloved local sculpture park, as well as attend the Sculpture at the River Market’s Annual Show and Sale, which provides this non-profit organization with funds for care and upkeep of the sculpture park.  

Sculpture at the River Market 

A premier performance space in Little Rock’s famous River Front District, the Ron Robinson Theater features programs of every type, including films, musical performances, plays, readings, lectures, and children’s events in 318 seat auditorium.  “The theater is equipped with a state-of-the-art DCI-compliant Barco digital cinema projection system and 32' wide retractable screen; and, a versatile sound system capable of Dolby 7.1 surround audio for movies, with a CL3 digital mixing console with ample inputs for traditional music concerts” (“Ron Robinson Theater”). The theater is also home to the Clinton School of Public Service and the Little Rock Film Festival.


Ron Robinson Theater

The museum originally opened as the Museum of Natural History and Antiques in 1927. Originally located on Main Street in Little Rock, Babcock gifted the museum to City Hall in 1929. The Arkansas Museum of Discovery was shut down in 1935 because the City Hall could not supply the room for its artifacts. It reopened in 1942 at MacArthur Park, where it remained for 55 years. The museum has changed names several times, as it became the Museum of Science and Natural History in 1964, and the Arkansas Museum of Science and History in 1983. When the museum reached its accreditation in 1993, it had amassed over 14,000 artifacts. During the 1970s the museum dedicated itself to creating more museum and outreach programs to better engage and educate the community.   The museum moved to its River Market location and changed its name to The Arkansas Museum of Discovery in 1998 and focused on providing interactive exhibits for youth that focused more on science and technology.The museum merged with the Children’s Museum of Arkansas and became a Smithsonian Affiliate in 2003. In 2011, the museum underwent extensive renovations and became a full-fledged science center.   The museum fills up two floors with dozens of galleries. The main three areas of the museum are the Discovery Hall, Earth Journeys, and Amazing You. Discovery Hall is dedicated to the various physical sciences; Earth Journeys explores natural sciences relative to the Arkansas landscapes; and the Amazing You area focuses on biology and health sciences. The Arkansas Museum of Discovery has made large strides since its founding and is continuing to grow today.

The Arkansas Museum of Discovery was founded in 1927 and is the oldest museum in the state. The museum was created through the leadership of Julia Bernell Smade Babcock and originally designed to help visitors learn about Arkansas's history and the experiences and contributions of state residents. Today the museum serves as an interactive and engaging science center in downtown Little Rock that offers summer camp opportunities, educational school and public programs, Saturday workshops, Science After Dark for adults, Spark!, Tinkerfest, and Wiggle Worms.  

Arkansas Museum of Discovery 

As a child in Dorchester County, Maryland, Tubman was beaten by various masters to whom she was hired out. Early in her life, she suffered a head wound when hit by a heavy metal weight. The injury caused disabling seizures, headaches, and powerful visionary and dream activity, which occurred throughout her entire life. A devout Christian, Tubman ascribed the visions and vivid dreams to revelations from God.In 1849, Tubman escaped to Philadelphia, then immediately returned to Maryland to rescue her family. Slowly, one group at a time, she brought relatives out of the state, and eventually guided dozens of other slaves to freedom. Traveling by night, Tubman (or "Moses", as she was called) "never lost a passenger". Large rewards were offered for the return of many of the fugitive slaves, but no one then knew that Tubman was the one helping them. When the Southern-dominated Congress passed the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850, requiring law officials in free states to aid efforts to recapture slaves, she helped guide fugitives farther north into Canada, where slavery was prohibited.When the American Civil War began, Tubman worked for the Union Army, first as a cook and nurse, and then as an armed scout and spy. The first woman to lead an armed expedition in the war, she guided the Combahee River Raid, which liberated more than 700 slaves in South Carolina. After the war, she retired to the family home in Auburn, New York, where she cared for her aging parents. She became active in the women's suffrage movement in New York until illness overtook her. Near the end of her life, she lived in a home for elderly African-Americans which she had helped found years earlier.Etched into the base of the statue (and repeated on plaque on the pedestal) is a quote attributed to Miss Tubman.&nbsp; “Children, if you are tired, keep going; if you’re hungry, keep going; if you’re scared, keep going. If you want a taste of freedom, keep going.”

Although best known for her efforts to assist slaves escape via the Underground Railroad, Harriet Tubman was also a spy for the Union Army and a tireless advocate for civil rights for women and African Americans after the Civil War

Harriet Tubman Statue-Little Rock

Names of Arkansas Civil Rights activists are on sidewalk markers on Markham Street down to the William J. Clinton Presidential Library. Those featured include the Freedom Riders who came to Arkansas, several activists who participated in sit-in protests in Little Rock.

Arkansas Civil Rights Heritage Walk

Bill Clinton was originally born as William Jefferson Blythe III on August 19, 1946 at Julia Chester Hospital in Arkansas. His father was a traveling salesman and tragically died three months before his son was even born. His mother, Virginia, would go to school in New Orleans in order to study nursing leaving Bill with his grandparents to take care of him. His mother returned to home and even married another man named Rodger Clinton Sr. to which Bill would adopt the surname Clinton at the age of 15. In school, he often became a leader, avid reader of books, and a musician. Bill played the tenor saxophone becoming first chair in the state band’s saxophone section. He attributes two things to why he became a politician: his visit to the White House in 1963 meeting President John F. Kennedy and watching Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have A Dream” speech on television.Bill attended Georgetown University in the School of Foreign Service receiving his Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service document and he also became class president in the years of 1964 and 1965. He also worked as an intern in the office of Arkansas Senator J. William Fulbright from 1964-1967. Bill then won a Rhodes Scholarship and attended University College at Oxford mainly getting degrees in politics. He made a friend named Frank Aller, who was unfortunately drafted to serve in Vietnam and committed suicide in 1971 which had a big impact on Bill. Bill did not get a degree after he left Oxford, but got an honorary one in 1994 during his first term as President. Bill refused to serve in the Vietnam War and notably joined in on the protests calling for an end to the conflict.Bill attended Yale Law School where he would meet his future wife, Hillary, and the two became inseparable once they started dating. He became a coordinator for Senator George McGovern’s presidential campaign in 1972 in order to move in with his girlfriend in California. Bill and Hillary lived in New Haven returning to law school and then moved to Texas so Bill could help campaign for Senator McGovern there working with notable politicians like the future Governor of Texas Ann Richards. After he graduated from Yale Law School, he became a professor of law at the University of Arkansas.Regarding his career in politics, Bill first ran for the 3rd district in the U.S. House of Representatives and even had an early lead thanks to the anti-Republican sentiment following the Watergate scandal, but ultimately lost to his Republican opponent by four points. He moved on to easily win the election as Arkansas’s Attorney General serving from 1977-1979. Bill entered the race for the Governor of Arkansas office becoming one of the youngest candidates to enter the election race and he would win the spot. Due to his young age, he was often nicknamed “Boy Governor.” Bill served two non-consecutive terms as Governor, first, from 1979-1981 and, second, from 1983-1992. It was then that he entered the presidential race in 1992 winning his party’s nomination and defeating incumbent President George H.W. Bush to become the 42nd President of the United States.President Clinton won re-election quite easily against Senator Bob Dole in 1996 and his Vice President was Senator Al Gore of Tennessee. During his two terms as President, Bill was responsible of signing into law the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), pushing for welfare reform, signed the Family and Medicare Leave Act of 1993, provided tax cuts to 15 million low-income families, and passing the Foster Care Independence Act. President Clinton was also impeached based on a scandal where he was accused of having sexual intercourse with a female intern named Monica Lewinsky. The House impeached him on the articles of perjury and obstruction of justice making him the second U.S. President to become impeached in history, but he was found not guilty after all of it.The William J. Clinton Presidential Center holds a variety of exhibits like displaying a timeline of his two terms as President. The full-scale Clinton Oval Office was constructed based on many photos taken of the office to get it exactly replicated in the presidential museum. One thing that seems to be missing is parts of the Monica Lewinsky scandal and his Impeachment which President Clinton was heavily criticized for. The scandal was portrayed as a power struggle between Clinton and Republicans when Republicans took over Congress in 1994. However, there are plenty more personal items like letters to and by the Clinton Family, full-scale models of the Oklahoma City Bombing, a detailed description of Middle East peace efforts, and a display of President Clinton’s presidential limousine.

Located in the heart of Little Rock’s River Market District, the Center is home to the William J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museum, the University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service, and the Little Rock offices of the Clinton Foundation. The library and museum offers archives and galleries. The museum's permanent collection features exhibits that follow a time-line of the historic events that occurred during the eight years of Clinton's presidency. The museum includes an exact replica of President Clinton's Oval Office. Outside, guests can stroll through the William E. “Bill” Clark Presidential Wetlands. They can also enjoy a meal at Forty-Two, the Clinton-themed restaurant on site.

The William J. Clinton Presidential Library contains genealogy and family history information and artifacts about both President Clinton and Friday Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton.  Other genealogical research, often correspondence, for "ordinary people" may be found in  "WHORM," the White House Office of Records Management -a system that contains a variety of series created to organize and track documents.

William J. Clinton Presidential Center

Heifer International traces its roots
back to 1939 when Ohio farmer Dan West first started working for a charity
giving away milk to children in need. He then realized that they needed a cow,
not milk. He came up with the idea to start a charity that gave cows to people
in need. With the support of his neighbors and local churches the charity was founded
as Heifers for Relief Committee and became an official charity in 1942 after
the U.S. Department of Agriculture made it a national charity organization. The
company has grown significantly since they donated their first 17 heifers to
Puerto Rico in 1944. The company has expanded to chickens, pigs, buffalos, and
even bees. They donate to impoverish and war torn regions in order to help them
eradicate poverty and become self-sustaining. They donate on the promise that
the recipients will pay it forward by donating some of the offspring their
donated animals provide. The company purchased a large farm in Perryville,
Arkansas in the 1970s and that is where the headquarters remained.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; What
makes the headquarters of the company really unique is it’s building. The
headquarters was built where an old railroad yard was located. The building was
made using only local materials found within 500 miles of Little Rock. The
building is predominately glass so that workers can use mostly natural light
when working. The building has the highest possible green rating earning the
LEED Platinum Certification. There is also a restored wetlands on the property.
The company now has offices in over thirty different countries and is
continuing to grow and help people all over the world.

	Little Rock is home to the global company, Heifer International. This company is known for its commitment to giving back to the world and local communities by teaching self-sustainability in regards to agriculture and animals. The headquarters, located in downtown Little Rock. The facility contains interactive exhibits, galleries, and tours of the green energy building and surrounding wetlands. It is open Monday through Friday 9:00am to 5:00pm. 

Little Rock Walking Tour - History along the Arkansas River

Main Street Bridge

Introduction

Images

Backstory and Context

Sources

Additional Information