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Why was LR placed in the middle of the state?


bigboyz05

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The original territorial capital was Arkansas Post, further down the AR River in SE Arkansas. Malaria back then was a scourge and LR was the first place on the river that the elevation changed and mosquitos didn't thrive in lots of stagnant water. In addition what is now downtown LR had a ford (now dredged) that allowed for easy crossing of the river before bridges were built. It was a terrific natural site adn eventually the territorial capital was moved in the 1820s.

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Yeah they didn't pick that site just because it was the center of the state. Although that did help it get picked to be capitol when they decided to move it from Arkansas Post.I'm sure Aporkalypse or someone else can give more details but it was named for a small rock. Which reminds me, I asked in the Pictures of Little Rock topic but didn't get a response. I remember actually seeing the rock and a sign mentioning it. But on this last trip I didn't see it. I wasn't sure if I just didn't see it or what.

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Yeah they didn't pick that site just because it was the center of the state. Although that did help it get picked to be capitol when they decided to move it from Arkansas Post.I'm sure Aporkalypse or someone else can give more details but it was named for a small rock. Which reminds me, I asked in the Pictures of Little Rock topic but didn't get a response. I remember actually seeing the rock and a sign mentioning it. But on this last trip I didn't see it. I wasn't sure if I just didn't see it or what.

You can reach the "Little Rock" through Riverfront Park, it's near the Junction railroad bridge on the water and there's a marker there to mark it and some signs pointing the way to it.

The "Big Rock" is the bluff of Fort Roots which is visible from Riverdale and I think you could see it in the pics I posted of Alltel's HQs.

La Salle named both of these because as you could imagine, sailing up the Arkansas prior to that there was no rock at all, everything east of LR was fertile delta floodplain and still is today. The landscape changes dramatically when you hit LR and there are several large hills lining the River Valley.

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I've always heard this interesting story...I'm not sure of its validity, I have never actually looked it up.

I am from Dallas Co...AR. There's a comunity in the northern part of the county called Tulip. it's roughly halfway between Fordyce and Malvern on Hwy. 9. The story says that Tulip almost became the state capital in a vote, but it lost by 2 votes. I'm not even sure of the time period that was supposed to be in. Aporkalypse, do you know anything about that? Everytime I drive through there, I wonder what it would've been like if it had become the capital.

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I'm no expert on French but don't the adjectives usually come after the noun? But in the cause of Petit Jean it comes first. Maybe it's different with proper nouns and such. I know Arkansas Post was originally something like Post D'Arkansea. But was Little Rock settled by the French?

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I'm no expert on French but don't the adjectives usually come after the noun? But in the cause of Petit Jean it comes first. Maybe it's different with proper nouns and such. I know Arkansas Post was originally something like Post D'Arkansea. But was Little Rock settled by the French?

Not settled but founded. It was uninhabited until it became a rough, frontier outpost as a U.S. territory a few years after the Louisiana purchase. Take the Territorial Restoration tour sometime, it's really neat to see the insides of the homes and hear the stories. The Hinderliter Grog Shop was an inn and tavern.

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Not settled but founded. It was uninhabited until it became a rough, frontier outpost as a U.S. territory a few years after the Louisiana purchase. Take the Territorial Restoration tour sometime, it's really neat to see the insides of the homes and hear the stories. The Hinderliter Grog Shop was an inn and tavern.

Yeah I'd really like to take the tour sometime. By the way did I manage to get a pic of the Hinderliter in my Pics of Little Rock topic? I saw some older buildings but nothing telling me what everything was.

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Yeah I'd really like to take the tour sometime. By the way did I manage to get a pic of the Hinderliter in my Pics of Little Rock topic? I saw some older buildings but nothing telling me what everything was.

I think you did have a picture of it. They are labelled but only from the inside of the complex. It's the oldest building remaining in LR, dating to 1826, Here are a couple of pictures of it..

From 2nd Street...

hinderliterfront.jpg

Facing the interior of the block...

hinderliterBack.jpg

The well...

brickwell.jpg

The kitchen building (always separate in those days because of fires)...

KITCHEN.jpg

A marker on the site marking the meeting of the territorial legislature at the site...

sitemarker.jpg

William Woodruff's home (1827), the original Gazette publisher (oldest newspaper West of the Miss. River). They have a replica printing press there.

woodrufffront2.jpg

woodruffback.jpg

The Brownlee home, residence of a Scottish blacksmith built by his brother, a stonemason, in 1846. This is LR's first brick home...

brickhouse.jpg

The Plum Bayou log cabin dates to 1832 and actually was moved to LR from Scott, a town of 1000 known for its plantation homes 15 miles east of Little Rock. If you go to Scott in addition the plantations such as Marlsgate (a popular wedding spot) and the Plantation Agriculture Museum there is a village with the slaves' quarters, etc still intact. Toltec Mounds is only 10 min or so away (where unfortunately tract housing is going up).

plumhouse3.jpg

plumhouse.jpg

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Thanks for the info and pics Aporkalypse. I guess for some reason I thought it would have been one of the other buildings. But I do remember seeing that white one. The ATR is certainly high up on my list on things I want to do sometime in Little Rock.

The Old Statehouse is worth doing as well. There are usually some rotating exhibits (Arkansas musicians, Fay Jones, etc) but there is consistently a good bit of historical stuff there including a fair amount of Arkansas civil war history.

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The Old Statehouse is worth doing as well. There are usually some rotating exhibits (Arkansas musicians, Fay Jones, etc) but there is consistently a good bit of historical stuff there including a fair amount of Arkansas civil war history.

Once again thanks for the info. I'll keep that in mind when I go back down again. Was I anywhere close to where it is?

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Once again thanks for the info. I'll keep that in mind when I go back down again. Was I anywhere close to where it is?

It's on Clinton Ave just on the other side of the Peabody from the River Market. You can't really miss it, it looks like this...

288.jpg

It has a really impressive history, dating from when construction began in 1833. It was the territorial Capitol and served as the state Capitol until the new one was built in the early 1900s. There was once an Arkansas internal war over two would-be governors (Baxter and Brooks), a gun duel between two state senators, and for many years in early 1900s it was the state medical school. It's also where Clinton gave both victory speeches after being elected. It was completely renovated a few years ago and is in excellent condition now.

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Yeah I heard about Baxter and Brooks. I don't think I remember seeing that so guess I didn't quite walk by that area. Both times I went I just sorta walked around. I didn't really have any set plans on where to go. A lot of it factored around walking around the skyscrapers to take pics. Occasionally seeing something else and walking over to take other pics. So what you see other than the skyscrapers were mainly just luck.

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Yeah I heard about Baxter and Brooks. I don't think I remember seeing that so guess I didn't quite walk by that area. Both times I went I just sorta walked around. I didn't really have any set plans on where to go. A lot of it factored around walking around the skyscrapers to take pics. Occasionally seeing something else and walking over to take other pics. So what you see other than the skyscrapers were mainly just luck.

You just barely missed it, it was just North of the Stephens building and county courthouses you took such excellent pictures of. It is impressive, easily the most impressive historic structure in Little Rock.

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It's on Clinton Ave just on the other side of the Peabody from the River Market. You can't really miss it, it looks like this...

288.jpg

It has a really impressive history, dating from when construction began in 1833. It was the territorial Capitol and served as the state Capitol until the new one was built in the early 1900s. There was once an Arkansas internal war over two would-be governors (Baxter and Brooks), a gun duel between two state senators, and for many years in early 1900s it was the state medical school. It's also where Clinton gave both victory speeches after being elected. It was completely renovated a few years ago and is in excellent condition now.

Aporkalypse, the Old State House is still on W. Markham Street. I don't believe it becomes Clinton Ave. until the River Market.

Another interesting fact about the Old State House is that it's the oldest standing capitol building west of the Mississippi River. It seems that many things in Arkansas hold that distinction. :) The Rose Law Firm in Little Rock is the oldest law firm west of the Mississippi.

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Aporkalypse, the Old State House is still on W. Markham Street. I don't believe it becomes Clinton Ave. until the River Market.

Another interesting fact about the Old State House is that it's the oldest standing capitol building west of the Mississippi River. It seems that many things in Arkansas hold that distinction. :) The Rose Law Firm in Little Rock is the oldest law firm west of the Mississippi.

It's interesting since Missouri was a state before Arkansas was. Also interesting since New Orleans is as old as it is too.

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Aporkalypse, the Old State House is still on W. Markham Street. I don't believe it becomes Clinton Ave. until the River Market.

Another interesting fact about the Old State House is that it's the oldest standing capitol building west of the Mississippi River. It seems that many things in Arkansas hold that distinction. :) The Rose Law Firm in Little Rock is the oldest law firm west of the Mississippi.

I know, I was trying to prevent confusion. Since 3rd becomes Markham west of downtown I don't understand for the life of me why they didn't rename all of Markham that technically would be 1st street Clinton Ave. It would prevent a lot of confusion downtown. I think that was the original plan but the renaming was done at the height of Ken Starr anti-Clinton rhetoric and anti-Clinton sentiment prevailed.

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Speaking of confusion, is it Clinton Ave or 2nd or both?

I hope I can do this without making it worse. Through downtown Markham was essentially what would be "1st street", the one that runs through the River Market and down by the Peabody and Old Statehouse until it ends at Union Station. Only the part of Markham east of Main Street was renamed Clinton Ave.

2nd street is 2nd street, period

3rd street which is large and carries substantial traffic through downtown become Markham Ave around the State Capitol building west of downtown and continued as such until it ends in West LR.

4th is 4th

What would instead be 5th street is Capitol Ave, which runs through the skyscrapers all the way to the Capitol, this is where you took such beautiful shots of the building

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I hope I can do this without making it worse. Through downtown Markham was essentially what would be "1st street", the one that runs through the River Market and down by the Peabody and Old Statehouse until it ends at Union Station. Only the part of Markham east of Main Street was renamed Clinton Ave.

2nd street is 2nd street, period

3rd street which is large and carries substantial traffic through downtown become Markham Ave around the State Capitol building west of downtown and continued as such until it ends in West LR.

4th is 4th

What would instead be 5th street is Capitol Ave, which runs through the skyscrapers all the way to the Capitol, this is where you took such beautiful shots of the building

Okay, not sure why I thought Clinton was supposed to be 2nd. No wonder I saw signs for both. Maybe I should check Google Earth some more to get a better idea of some of the layout.

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  • 5 years later...

I hope I can do this without making it worse. Through downtown Markham was essentially what would be "1st street", the one that runs through the River Market and down by the Peabody and Old Statehouse until it ends at Union Station. Only the part of Markham east of Main Street was renamed Clinton Ave.

2nd street is 2nd street, period

3rd street which is large and carries substantial traffic through downtown become Markham Ave around the State Capitol building west of downtown and continued as such until it ends in West LR.

4th is 4th

What would instead be 5th street is Capitol Ave, which runs through the skyscrapers all the way to the Capitol, this is where you took such beautiful shots of the building

Wasting time here and came across this. Not to confuse anything about where Markham Street is, begins, stops and restarts, but there is a slight correction to your post.

You are correct in that traveling east, Clinton Avenue becomes Markham Street at Main Street. From Main Street, Markham Street continues westward and ends at Union Station at Victory Street. There are signs which say "To Markham Street" at the end of Markham . One would then take Victory Street to Third Street where a right turn is made onto Third Street. Third Street, however, never becomes Markham. Third Street becomes Boone Street just west of the bridge over the railroad tracks. Boone Street connects Third Street to Markham just before the Arkansas School for the Blind.

Useless information I know but I had to add this.

Now if someone could just explain how and why Rodney Parham Road can make so many 90 degree turns and retain the same name, please do so. Also, who is or was Rodney Parham?

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