MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History

The MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History is located in MacArthur Park in Little Rock, Arkansas. It is located in a building that was constructed between 1837-1840, part of an arsenal built by the U.S. Government. It was used by the Confederates during the War Between the States and was transferred to the city of Little Rock by the government in April 12, 1893. It was to be used perpetually as a public park. The park was named for General Douglas MacArthur in 1942.

The Museum of Arkansas Military History was opened May 19, 2001. In the years before that, it had been the Arkansas Museum of Science and History. It is the only surviving structure of the Little Rock Arsenal.

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The MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History is on 9th Street, just east of downtown Little Rock in the Quapaw Quarters. You can take the 9th Street exit off Interstate 30. The museum is free, but asked for donations. You need a car to get there.

The address of the museum is 503 East 9th St, Little Rock AR 72202, 501-376-4602, website: MacArthur Museum

These are some views of inside the MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History taken on August 29, 2003. There are exhibits relating to the Civil War, World War I, World War II, Jeeps, Women's Aesthetic Club Formation, Spanish-American War, Boy Scouts and the Korean War. It is a small but first class museum.

During World War II, James Allison, a sports writer for the Houston Press, saved war images that were not printed in the paper and amassed over 4,600 photos of the war. Allison donated these photos to the Arkansas Museum of Science and History in August 1977 and they are now displayed in this museum as well.

General Douglas MacArthur returned to Little Rock for the first time since his birth on March 23, 1952 at the age of 72. He had been relieved of command by Truman a year earlier. On his return trip, he went to the church where he was baptized in 1880, Christ Episcopal Church in Little Rock. 25,000 people greeted him at that time. He only spent about a half day in the city before he left for New York.

Although small by museum standards, each room is nicely arranged for a learning experience and each room has its unique displays. The history of the Boy Scouts, the Korean War, history of one of the first women's organizations west of the Mississippi River - Women's Aesthetic Club - are among the displays.

There are many examples of military uniforms, including original Civil War uniforms, nurse uniforms, military weapons including ammunition, newspaper articles, etc.

This large public park contains several monuments to various wars over the decades, including the Spanish-American War. Especially interesting to me was a White Pine tree grown from a seedling from a 1,000 year old White Pine in Wisconsin.

The White Pine is a seeding of the largest white pine in America, located in Nicholet Park, Wisconsin. The tree, donated by the Living Museum of Trees, was grown from one of the last pine cones produced from the one-thousand-year-old parent tree named for Douglas MacArthur in 1945.

The main weapon used by U.S. submarines during World War II was the MK-14 torpedo, which is displayed on the south lawn of the MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History. There are signs depicting submarine statistics during the war.