Lost Little Rock

Images of America: Arkansas

by Ray Hanley

Little Rock is a sprawling city of about 200,000 at the center of a metropolitan area of more than 500,000 people, with many residing in bedroom communities in adjoining counties. Arkansas's capital city is much like the rest of Middle America with its outlying suburbs, gated communities, and shopping centers miles from the historic core. A century ago, however, Little Rock was markedly different and served a population of fewer than 50,000. The majority of citizens lived within blocks of the town center and did business downtown along rows of shops that, in many cases, dated to the late 1800s. Images of Lost Little Rock uses vintage photographs to reflect upon earlier times and the rich retail landscape that once filled the town. By exploring the legacies of buildings that have since been demolished, repurposed, or destroyed by fire, these images provide a sense of Little Rock's lesser-known heritage.

131 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 8, 2015

Reviews

[Kimberly]

Very interesting

I really enjoyed this little snapshot into my hometown past. I found out what certain places used to look like and even recognized a few buildings that were taken down during my life so far. Many of these photos had buildings that my parents and grandparents have told me about before.

[Tania]

Images of America is a great series, illustrating times gone by across the country. In the case of Little Rock, Arkansas, much has changed over the last 150 years and historic preservation, according to this volume, is not as prevalent as in other cities. Many of the places captured in Lost Little Rock are only found in pictures today; so many of the entries describe an old building, business, or home and then mention it was replaced by a parking lot. Entire street fronts have been converted to either modern buildings, parking lots, or parking garages, and so this is a special look back at what the city once looked like. The author included a good selection of images with detailed descriptions and clearly researched the progression of the city over the years. Sights are grouped into geographic areas by chapter.

[RebL]

The newest, and probably most interesting, of the "old photos of Little Rock" books I've been going through lately. Certainly more inclusive of the different sections of Little Rock, and contains more facts about each photo.