Portal:Arkansas
The Arkansas Portal  Arkansas (pronounced /ˈɑrkn̩ˌsɑː/) (are-can-saw) is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Arkansas was admitted to the Union on 15 June 1836 becoming the 25th US state. On 6 May 1861, the state seceded and was the tenth state to join the Confederate States of America. Arkansas shares a border with six states, with its eastern border largely defined by the Mississippi River. Its diverse geography ranges from the mountainous regions of the Ozarks and the Ouachita Mountains, which make up the U.S. Interior Highlands, to the eastern lowlands along the Mississippi River. The capital and most populous city is Little Rock, located in the central portion of the state. With the exception of Hawaii, Arkansas is the smallest state entirely west of the Mississippi River. The Mississippi River forms most of Arkansas's eastern border, except in Clay and Greene counties where the St. Francis River forms the western boundary of the Missouri Bootheel, and in dozens of places where the current channel of the Mississippi has meandered from where it had last been legally specified. Arkansas shares its southern border with Louisiana, its northern border with Missouri, its eastern border with Tennessee and Mississippi, and its western border with Texas and Oklahoma. Arkansas is a land of mountains and valleys, thick forests and fertile plains. Northwest Arkansas is part of the Ozark Plateau including the Boston Mountains, to the south are the Ouachita Mountains and these regions are divided by the Arkansas River; the southern and eastern parts of Arkansas are called the Lowlands. All of these mountains ranges are part of the U.S. Interior Highlands region, the only major mountainous region between the Rocky Mountains and the Appalachian Mountains. The highest point in the state is Mount Magazine in the Ouachita Mountains; it rises to 2,753 feet above sea level.
Selected articleThe Tower Building of the Little Rock Arsenal is a building located in MacArthur Park in downtown Little Rock, Arkansas. Built in 1840, it was part of Little Rock's first military installation. Since its decommissioning, The Tower Building has housed two museums. It was home to the Arkansas Museum of Natural History and Antiquities from 1942 to 1997 and the MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History since 2001. It has also been the headquarters of the Little Rock Æsthetic Club since 1894. The building receives its name from its distinct octagonal tower. Besides being the last remaining structure of the original Little Rock Arsenal and one of the oldest buildings in central Arkansas, it was also the birthplace of General Douglas MacArthur, who became the supreme commander of US forces in the South Pacific during World War II. It was also the starting place of the Camden Expedition. (more...) Selected picture A rally at the state capitol of Arkansas in Little Rock, in the year 1959, protesting the race integration of Little Rock Central High School. Selected biographyMaya Angelou (pronounced /ˈmaɪ.ə ˈændʒəloʊ/), born Marguerite Ann Johnson on April 4, 1928, is an American autobiographer and poet who has been called "America's most visible black female autobiographer" by scholar Joanne M. Braxton. She is best known for her series of six autobiographical volumes, which focus on her childhood and early adulthood experiences. The first, best-known, and most highly acclaimed, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1969), focuses on the first seventeen years of her life, brought her international recognition, and was nominated for a National Book Award. Angelou has been highly honored for her body of work, including being awarded over 30 honorary degrees and the nomination of a Pulitzer Prize for her 1971 volume of poetry, Just Give Me a Cool Drink of Water 'fore I Diiie. Angelou was a member of the Harlem Writers Guild in the late 1950s, was active in the Civil Rights movement, and served as Northern Coordinator of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Since 1991, Angelou has taught at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, as recipient of the first lifetime Reynolds Professorship of American Studies. Since the 1990s she has made around eighty appearances a year on the lecture circuit. In 1993, she recited her poem "On the Pulse of Morning" at President Bill Clinton's inauguration, the first poet to make an inaugural recitation since Robert Frost at John F. Kennedy's inauguration in 1961. In 1995, she was recognized for having the longest-running record (two years) on The New York Times Paperback Nonfiction Bestseller List. With the publication of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Angelou was heralded as a new kind of memoirist, one of the first African American women who was able to publicly discuss her personal life. She became recognized and highly respected as a spokesperson for black people and women. Angelou's work is often characterized as autobiographical fiction. Angelou has, however, made a deliberate attempt through her work to challenge the common structure of the autobiography by critiquing, changing, and expanding the genre. Her books, centered on themes such as identity, family, and racism, are often used as set texts in schools and universities internationally. Some of her more controversial work has been challenged or banned in US schools and libraries. (more ...) Did you know...
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Spotlight cityLittle Rock is the capital and the most populous city of the State of Arkansas. It is also the county seat of Pulaski County and had a city population of 184,422 in the 2006 census estimates. It and North Little Rock, Arkansas are co-principal cities of the six-county Little Rock-North Little Rock Metropolitan Statistical Area, an area with a population of 652,834 people, according to 2006 census estimates. The MSA is in turn included in the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Pine Bluff Combined Statistical Area, which had a population of 829,032 in the 2006 census estimates. Located near the geographic center of Arkansas, Little Rock derives its name from a small rock formation on the south bank of the Arkansas River called La Petite Roche (the "little rock"). The "little rock" was used by early river traffic as a landmark and became a well-known river crossing. (more...) Things you can do
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