Little Rock, Arkansas


Little Rock is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The population was 202,591 at the 2020 census, while the Little Rock metropolitan area with an estimated 770,000 residents is the 81st-most populous metropolitan area in the United States. The city lies on the south bank of the Arkansas River close to the state's geographic center in central Arkansas. It is the county seat of Pulaski County.
Little Rock was founded in 1821 as the capital of the Arkansas Territory. It is named for a rock formation along the Arkansas River named the "Little Rock" by the French explorer Jean-Baptiste Bénard de la Harpe in 1722. The city played a notable role in U.S. history during the 1957 desegregation of Little Rock Central High School, a key event in the Civil Rights movement. Little Rock is a cultural, economic, government, and transportation center within Arkansas and the American South.
Economically, Little Rock is supported by a mix of sectors including healthcare, banking, transportation, and retail. Companies such as Dillard's and Windstream Holdings are headquartered in the city, and the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences contributes to its healthcare industry and academic research. Its cultural sites include the Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts, Clinton Presidential Center, and Quapaw Quarter. Outdoor spaces such as the Arkansas River Trail and Pinnacle Mountain State Park provide recreational opportunities within and near the city.

History

Pre-Columbian and European exploration

Little Rock was named for a stone outcropping on the bank of the Arkansas River used by early travelers as a landmark, which marked the transition from the flat Mississippi Delta region to the Ouachita Mountain foothills. It was named in 1722 by French explorer and trader, Jean-Baptiste Bénard de la Harpe. Travelers referred to the area as the "Little Rock". Though there was an effort to officially name the city "Arkopolis" upon its founding in the 1820s, and that name did appear on a few maps made by the US Geological Survey, the name Little Rock is eventually what stuck.
The territorial capitol had been located at Arkansas Post in Southeast Arkansas since 1819, but the site had proven unsuitable as a settlement due to frequent flooding of the Arkansas River. Over the years, the "little rock" was known as a waypoint along the river, but remained unsettled. A land speculator from St. Louis, Missouri who had acquired many acres around the "little rock" began pressuring the Arkansas territorial legislature in February 1820 to move the capital to the site, but the representatives could not decide between Little Rock or Cadron, which was the preferred site of Territorial Governor James Miller. The issue was tabled until October 1820, by which time most of the legislators and other influential men had purchased lots around Little Rock. The legislature moved the capital to Little Rock, where it has remained ever since.

Desegregation

were the nine African American students who desegregated Little Rock Central High School in 1957 after the Little Rock School Board voted to begin the area's desegregation, in compliance with Brown v. Board of Education. On September 4, 1957, the first day of school at Central High, a white mob of segregationist protesters physically blocked the nine black students from entering the school. Minnijean Brown, Terrence Roberts, Elizabeth Eckford, Ernest Green, Thelma Mothershed, Melba Patillo, Gloria Ray, Jefferson Thomas, and Carlotta Walls, who had been recruited by Daisy Bates and the NAACP, attempted to integrate Central High School, but Governor Orval Faubus deployed the Arkansas National Guard to support the segregationists, and only backed down after Judge Ronald Davies of U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas granted an injunction from the U.S. Department of Justice compelling him to withdraw the Guard.
Angry white mobs began rioting when the nine black students began attending Central High School. President Dwight D. Eisenhower, on the request of Woodrow Wilson Mann, Little Rock's mayor, deployed the 101st Airborne Division to the city and federalized the Arkansas National Guard to protect the students and ensure their safe passage to the school. Little Rock's four public high schools were closed in September 1958, and reopened a year later. Integration across all grades was fully achieved in fall 1972. The Little Rock school episode drew international attention to the treatment of African Americans in the United States.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of, of which is land and is water.
Little Rock is on the south bank of the Arkansas River in Central Arkansas. Fourche Creek and Rock Creek run through the city, and flow into the river. The western part of the city is in the foothills of the Ouachita Mountains. Northwest of the city limits are Pinnacle Mountain and Lake Maumelle, which provides Little Rock's drinking water.
The city of North Little Rock is just across the river from Little Rock, but it is a separate city. North Little Rock was once the 8th ward of Little Rock. An Arkansas Supreme Court decision on February 6, 1904, allowed the ward to merge with the neighboring town of North Little Rock. The merged town quickly renamed itself Argenta, but returned to its original name in October 1917.

Neighborhoods

Little Rock lies in the humid subtropical climate zone, with hot, humid summers and cool winters with usually little snow. It has experienced temperatures as low as, which was recorded on February 12, 1899, and as high as, which was recorded on August 3, 2011.

Demographics

Race / Ethnicity Pop 2000Pop 2010% 2000% 2010
White alone 98,90490,29785,40154.01%46.66%42.15%
Black or African American alone 73,67981,57281,33940.23%42.15%40.15%
Native American or Alaska Native alone 4505194970.25%0.27%0.25%
Asian alone 2,9925,0987,0991.63%2.63%3.50%
Pacific Islander or Native Hawaiian alone 4354690.02%0.03%0.03%
Other race alone 1502777610.08%0.14%0.38%
Mixed race or Multiracial 2,0262,6316,9581.11%1.36%3.43%
Hispanic or Latino 4,88913,07620,4672.67%6.76%10.10%
Total183,133193,524202,591100.00%100.00%100.00%

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 202,591 people, 80,063 households, and 45,577 families residing in the city.

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 193,524 people, 82,018 households, and 47,799 families residing in the city. The population density was. There were 91,288 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the city was 48.9% White, 42.3% Black, 0.4% Native American, 2.7% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 3.9% from other races, and 1.7% from two or more races. 6.8% of the population is Hispanic or Latino.
There were 82,018 households, of which 30.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 36.6% were married couples living together, 17.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.7% were non-families. 34.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 3.00.
In the city, the population was spread out, with 24.7% under the age of 18, 10.0% from 18 to 24, 31.7% from 25 to 44, 22.0% from 45 to 64, and 11.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $37,572, and the median income for a family was $47,446. Males had a median income of $35,689 versus $26,802 for females. The per capita income for the city was $23,209. 14.3% of the population is below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 20.9% of those under the age of 18 and 9.0% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.

Metropolitan area

The 2020 U.S. Census population estimate for the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR Metropolitan Statistical Area was 748,031. The MSA covers the following counties: Pulaski, Faulkner, Grant, Lonoke, Perry, and Saline. The largest cities are Little Rock, North Little Rock, Conway, Jacksonville, Benton, Sherwood, Cabot, Maumelle, and Bryant.