Preserving the Memory of Place

As we examine the desegregation of Little Rock Central High School, it is appropriate to look at some of the efforts that have been made to preserve the memory of the event and the physical reminders of the people and places who were so important during the crucial time.

Little Rock Central High School itself is, of course, the primary resource associated with the event. Built in 1927, Central High reflects an impressive combination of the Collegiate Gothic and Art Deco styles of architecture designed by some of the most prominent architects of the day: John Parks Almand, Lawson L. Delony, George R. Mann, Eugene John Stern, and George H. Wittenburg. At $1.5 million, it was the most expensive school ever built in the U.S. at the time of its construction and the National Institute of Architects dubbed it “America’s Most Beautiful High School.”

Central High's importance was recognized by its listing in the National Register of Historic Places on August 19, 1977, and even more by its May 20, 1982, designation as a National Historic Landmark, the highest recognition afforded by the Department of the Interior to sites outside of the National Park Service. That changed in 1998 when President Bill Clinton designated the high school and nearby properties as a National Historic Site to “preserve, protect, and interpret for the benefit, education, and inspiration of present and future generations … its role in the integration of public schools and the development of the Civil Rights movement in the United States.” The National Park Service – initially in the restored Magnolia Gas Station and now in a Visitor Center completed in 2007 – manages the National Historic Site while Little Rock Central High School, appropriately, still operates as a working educational facility.

In addition, the Central High School Neighborhood Historic District was listed in the National Register on August 16, 1986, and expanded on June 4, 2012, making historic preservation tax credits and grants available to help preserve the area that gives context to the high school. On May 23, 2017, a bill was filed in the U.S. Congress to add the seven buildings directly across the street from Central High to the National Historic Site.

Another key site associated with the desegregation of Little Rock Central High School is the L.C. and Daisy Bates House at 1207 W. 28^th Street in Little Rock, which served as the de facto command center for the Little Rock Nine. The owners were the publishers of the Arkansas State Press, in many ways the voice of the desegregation movement in Arkansas, and Mrs. Bates was the president of the Arkansas Chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. After angry mobs turned the Little Rock Nine from their initial attempts to enter the school, President Dwight Eisenhower federalized the Arkansas National Guard and ordered troops of the 101^st Airborne Division to Little Rock to enforce the desegregation order. On the morning of September 25, 1957, the Little Rock Nine gathered with friends and parents at the Bates House before being escorted into Central High by troopers of the 101^st, who escorted them back to the Bates House that evening. The simple Ranch-style house on 28^th Street would remain a hot spot through the 1957-58 school year, with two crosses burned in the yard and bullets fired into the house from a passing car. Because of its significance during the Little Rock desegregation crisis, the Bates House was designated a National Historic Landmark on January 3, 2001. It is still privately owned and may be turned into a museum.

A very visible tribute to the brave young men and women who desegregated Central High can be found on the grounds of the Arkansas State Capitol in Little Rock, where Governor Orval Faubus had fought to keep them out of the school. Sculptor John Deering became interested in creating a sculpture depicting the Little Rock Nine following the 40^th anniversary celebration of their efforts in 1997. He received permission for the sculpture by 1999 and he and his wife Kathy began working on the nine individual statues that would collectively be known as “Testament,” a project that would take five years to complete. The overall project cost $360,000, with the state providing $211,269 and the remainder coming from private donations.  The sculpture was dedicated on August 30, 2006, and remains one of the most-visited sites in the Capitol complex.