Quezi

Arkansas Capitol Building - courtesy adam*b - CC-BY

Little Rock is the capital and largest city in the state of Arkansas.  It became capital of the Arkansas Territory in 1819 and of the state of Arkansas in 1836.  The city takes its name from a little rock, called La Petite Roche (the “little rock”).  The rock was used as a landmark by early Arkansas River traffic and became a known river crossing.

Little Rock is a good city for history buffs.  While Downtown, visit the Old State House Museum.  It is Arkansas’ original state capitol and the oldest surviving state capitol west of the Mississippi River. It now houses a museum of Arkansas history.  Nearby is the current capitol building, erected over a century ago as a replica of the US Capitol in Washington and has been used in many movies as a stand in.

The arts are well represented with the Arkansas Arts Center and its well known collection of works on paper.  Other museums cover everything from science to Arkansas history, ancient history, military, and the Civil Rights Movement.  The Clinton Library is a must see attraction and it’s perfect for those who like to take it more slowly.

For a relatively small town, Little Rock has several good places for upscale shopping and many interesting retail shops in the River Market District which encompasses much more than the original River Market that was housed in a single building. The area now reaches several blocks in all directions and is home to numerous stores and restaurants. The Clinton Library is at the east end of the River Market District.  Little Rock is also the home of Walmart.

Also, for a small town, there is a remarkable collection of top notch restaurants ranging from traditional Southern Home Cookin’, through Mexican, European and most of the world’s cuisines.

Little Rock has hot, humid summers and cool to chilly winters.  The average January high temperature is 50 F (10 C) and a low of 31 F (-1 C).  July average high temperature is 93 F (34 C) and a low of 72 F (22 C).

Little Rock is a reasonably safe city.  Just take the normal precautions you would in any urban area.

Little Rock is served by Little Rock National Airport.  Public transportation is bus, limited streetcar service and taxi.

Little Rock population is 189,515 (2008).

1 is the international calling code for the United States

501 is the area code for Little Rock

For more information about Little Rock