CALS Roberts Library

03/13/2026

Friday, March 13
5:00pm - 8:00pm
Main Library - Central Arkansas Library System
1st Floor
The event is free to attend, and parking is free with validation in the library lot/deck (as space is available). Street parking is also free after 6:00 p.m.
New location: Join us inside the CALS Main Library! We’re excited to show off some of the library’s newly renovated space. Boulevard Bread Company's location inside the library will also be open with a limited menu, so you can purchase your favorite snack, treat, or coffee. Also, DJ CatDad will be rocking out the tunes. Come hang out, connect with the community, and enjoy the new space. We can’t wait to see you there! (Note: Library services will not be available after the library closes at 6:00.)
At our monthly 2FAN event, attendees will be greeted in the first-floor Shaylea Harding Lobby with local artists selling their work, art demonstrations, a craft table, a DJ or performer playing music, and light refreshments and libations. Arkansas artists will be selling ornaments, paintings, jewelry, greeting cards, clothing, photography, totes, prints, purses, treats, chocolates, pottery, wood, magnets, stickers, and more. You just never know what unique gift you will find!
PLUS: 2nd Friday Knit Night (part of 2FAN). Bring your WIP (work in progress) and hang out for an evening of social knitting. Don’t know how to knit? We'll teach you. Supplies provided.
Made possible by generous funding from the CALS Foundation and the Windgate Foundation.
For more information about all downtown 2FAN activities, visit the 2nd Friday Art Night page. For any questions or concerns, please contact Shannon Boguslawski Holmes at sholmes@cals.org or 501-320-5792.

03/13/2026

This is who you might run into at the CALS Roberts Library!

Want to preserve and digitize your own family photos? Make an appointment at the DIY Memory Lab and we'll walk you through the whole process🌟

Make an appointment at https://robertslibrary.org/memorylab/ 🖥️

03/12/2026

Legacies & Lunch - April 2026
Violence and the Law in Jim Crow Arkansas
Wednesday, April 1, 2026, 12:00 – 1:00 PM
CALS Main Library Darragh Center, 5th Floor
⁠
Join us for Legacies & Lunch in CALS Main Library's Darragh Center (5th floor). Thanks to the CALS Foundation, we are now offering free lunch on a first-come, first-served basis to in person attendees! ⁠
⁠
This conversation brings together historian John Kirk and attorney/author Scott Stern to examine how justice was dispensed in Jim Crow Arkansas, with state-sanctioned capital punishment taking the place of extralegal lynchings.

𝐫𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫: https://events.cals.org/event/15970654
⁠
Meals are limited and will be offered on a first-come first-served basis. We cannot accommodate dietary restrictions or allergies and registration does not guarantee lunch will be available.

03/11/2026

Join us!

🚨 NEW LOCATION UNLOCKED.

This month's 2nd Friday Art Night is inside CALS Main Library — freshly renovated and ready for you. Here's what's waiting:
🎵 DJCatDad spinning the hits
🛍️ Arkansas artists selling paintings, jewelry, pottery, treats, prints, and more
🧶 Knit Night — beginner-friendly, supplies provided
💐Bouquet Bar
☕ Boulevard Bread Company open with a limited menu
🎟️ Free admission! Parking is free with validation in the library lot/deck, and street parking is free after 6PM.

The vibe is good. The space is fresh. The art is local. Don't miss it!
Learn more: https://www.facebook.com/events/1547025649701367

03/10/2026

Friday, March 13
5:00pm - 8:00pm
Main Library - Central Arkansas Library System
1st Floor
The event is free to attend, and parking is free with validation in the library lot/deck (as space is available). Street parking is also free after 6:00 p.m.
New location: Join us inside the CALS Main Library! We’re excited to show off some of the library’s newly renovated space. Boulevard Bread Company's location inside the library will also be open with a limited menu, so you can purchase your favorite snack, treat, or coffee. Also, DJ CatDad will be rocking out the tunes. Come hang out, connect with the community, and enjoy the new space. We can’t wait to see you there! (Note: Library services will not be available after the library closes at 6:00.)
At our monthly 2FAN event, attendees will be greeted in the first-floor Shaylea Harding Lobby with local artists selling their work, art demonstrations, a craft table, a DJ or performer playing music, and light refreshments and libations. Arkansas artists will be selling ornaments, paintings, jewelry, greeting cards, clothing, photography, totes, prints, purses, treats, chocolates, pottery, wood, magnets, stickers, and more. You just never know what unique gift you will find!
PLUS: 2nd Friday Knit Night (part of 2FAN). Bring your WIP (work in progress) and hang out for an evening of social knitting. Don’t know how to knit? We'll teach you. Supplies provided.
Made possible by generous funding from the CALS Foundation and the Windgate Foundation.
For more information about all downtown 2FAN activities, visit the 2nd Friday Art Night page. For any questions or concerns, please contact Shannon Boguslawski Holmes at sholmes@cals.org or 501-320-5792.

03/10/2026

New Blog Post!

"Discovering Family"

https://robertslibrary.org/blog/discovering-family/

03/05/2026

🧵Memories of the Ottenheimer Brothers & the Rocket Plant on 10th & Spring Street🪡
Tuesday March 24, 2026
CALS Main Library Darragh Center
6:00 - 8:00 PM

Ladies Garment Manufacturing Company helped elevate the Ottenheimer Brothers’ name in the worlds of business and philanthropy, but the story is incomplete without recognizing the women who shaped, sustained, and strengthened that legacy. Join CALS Butler Center genealogy and local history specialist Rhonda Stewart to learn about the women within the Ottenheimer orbit, including family members, employees, and community leaders, whose contributions and influence were essential to the company’s success and lasting impact. This program draws on research support provided by Carla Hines Coleman and Jim Pfeiffer.

register here: https://events.cals.org/event/15761577

Registration is not required and refreshments will be provided. Validated parking is available in the CALS Main Library surface lot or CALS Parking garage.

03/03/2026

New Blog Post!

"Words Become Matter, on View Now"

https://robertslibrary.org/blog/words-become-matter-on-view-now/

02/24/2026

New Blog Post!

"Black Family Expo 2026: Cultivating Community"

https://robertslibrary.org/blog/black-family-expo-2026-cultivating-community/

02/17/2026

New Blog Post!

"Preserving Our Traditions"

https://robertslibrary.org/blog/preserving-our-traditions/

02/15/2026

Legacies & Lunch, March 2026
𝐋𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐑𝐨𝐜𝐤'𝐬 𝐕𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐭
Wednesday, March 4, 2026, 12:00 – 1:00 PM
CALS Main Library Darragh Center, 5th Floor
⁠
Join us for Legacies & Lunch in CALS Main Library's Darragh Center (5th floor). Thanks to the CALS Foundation, we are now offering free lunch on a first-come, first-served basis to in person attendees! ⁠
⁠
This talk with historian Carlie Cowgill explores the history of commercial s*x in Little Rock from the Antebellum period through World War I, situating local developments within broader national trends of vice regulation and moral reform.

Register: https://events.cals.org/event/15738834
⁠
Meals are limited and will be offered on a first-come first-served basis. We cannot accommodate dietary restrictions or allergies and registration does not guarantee lunch will be available.

02/13/2026

2nd Friday Art Night (2FAN)
February 13, 5:00-8:00 p.m.
CALS Roberts Library, 401 President Clinton Ave.

Opening in the Underground Gallery: Arkansas Women to Watch 2026: Words Become Matter. This is the latest exhibition in the Women to Watch series organized by the Arkansas Committee of the National Museum of Women in the Arts (ACNMWA) for the National Museum of Women in the Arts in Washington DC, the only major museum worldwide solely dedicated to championing women through the arts. This exhibition (on view through April 18) will feature artists’ books—pressed, painted, and/or folded—from three nationally recognized Arkansas artists.

Join poet and community artist Toni Garcia-Butler (he/they) for a zine-making party. Through facilitation, Garcia-Butler encourages self-empowerment through DIY publishing, personal narrative, and creative joy. Come learn how to make your own zine, or just gain inspiration from viewing previous creators’ zines. All are welcome to join in on the fun—supplies provided and maybe a few freebies as well!

At our monthly 2FAN event, attendees will be greeted with local artists selling their work, art demonstrations, social knitting, a craft table, a DJ or performer playing music, and light refreshments and libations. Stop by each second Friday to chat with local artists, shop locally from Arkansas makers, take in some music, and sip wine with friends!

Arkansas artists will be selling paintings, jewelry, greeting cards, ornaments, clothing, photography, totes, prints, purses, treats, chocolates, pottery, wood, magnets, stickers, and more. You never know what unique gift you will find!

PLUS: 2nd Friday Knit Night (part of 2FAN). Bring your WIP (work in progress) and hang out for an evening of social knitting. Don’t know how to knit? We’ll teach you. Supplies provided.

Made possible by generous funding from the CALS Foundation and the Windgate Foundation.

The event is free to attend, and parking is free with validation in the library lot/deck (as space is available). Street parking is free after 6:00 p.m.