Tag: Butler Banner Summer 2020

Three months have passed since my last report. Things have changed—some for the better, and others not.

Sadly, we lost two major figures in the Arkansas history community in the last few weeks: Richard C. Butler Jr. and John G. Ragsdale Jr. They each had a profound effect on the development of the CALS Butler Center for Arkansas Studies.

Many are discussing current issues of police violence, inequality in opportunities and pay, and other problems facing the African American community in the nation and in Arkansas. Olly Neal’s autobiography, just published by Butler Center Books at the Central Arkansas Library System, confronts these same concerns, providing historical context for the protest movements of today.

One recent addition to the CALS Butler Center’s digital collection gives insight into the educational systems in Little Rock in the first years of the twentieth century. The Amazer Vol. I was the first yearbook, and perhaps the only yearbook, produced by the students of Arkansas Military Academy (AMA). This private school was established in Little Rock as a boys’ university training school in response to overcrowding and other problems in the public schools of the city.

In the CALS Galleries at Library Square, our retail gallery features artwork and handicrafts by scores of Arkansas artists.

Among them, Marlene Gremillion stands out not only for her talent across many artistic media but also for her energy, warmth, and astonishing output.

Those who have visited the gallery celebrations for Second Friday Art Night may be familiar with her friendly face,

Several years ago we put together a compilation of the home movies in our collection. Spend about half an hour to see how Arkansans in past decades (from about 1930 to 2010) were spending their ordinary and extraordinary days. To experience it with music and audio, go to our website.

Much of our history remains invisible to us. This is not due to a lack of original sources or a paucity of published works on particular subjects. Rather, this invisibility is based upon our ways of conceiving the past.

For example, I was once in conversation with a man on the prevalence of anti-Confederate sentiment in Arkansas during the Civil War.

Opening Friday, June 12, in the Galleries at Library Square, West Gallery, are the exhibitions Mid-Southern Watercolorists 50th Annual Juried Exhibition and the Founders of Mid-Southern Watercolorists: Celebrating 50 Years of Watercolor. At this time, due to CALS building closures in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, they are available for viewing by appointment only—email gallery@cals.org to make an appointment to enter the CALS Bobby L.

You might call it falling down a rabbit hole, but I like to think of it as jumping. You know what I mean…you look at something on the internet and your mind starts churning with questions. Falling implies no control or decision on your part. Jumping is definitely your decision. You are in complete control!

Personal archiving can be scary and overwhelming. You probably have boxes and boxes of photos and papers and letters in attics, basements, and garages. Family papers can be spread over the households of several family members in multiple locations. And it can be an intimidating process because you want to make sure you do it right the first time.

Truth be told, we are all thieves.

In fact, thievery is the means by which cultures develop and change. William Shakespeare, credited with being one of the most original voices in English-language literature, famously stole the plots—and sometimes large stretches of dialogue—from numerous other sources. In fact, he wrote only two plays that scholars recognize as largely original,