CALS Roberts Library

CALS Roberts Library Explore Arkansas History & Art ๐ŸŽจ | Connect to Your Family's Story ๐Ÿ“š | Discover Local Artists ๐Ÿ–ผ๏ธ | Preserve Your Past ๐Ÿ”

CALS Roberts Library houses CALS Galleries & Bookstore at Library Square, CALS Butler Center for Arkansas Studies, and CALS Encyclopedia of Arkansas. CALS Galleries & Bookstore at Library Square is open Tuesday through Saturday 10am to 5pm. CALS Butler Center for Arkansas Studies is open Tuesday through Friday 10am to 5pm. For information about accessing ARCHIVAL/MANUSCRIPT collection, visit www.RobertsLibrary.org. CALS Encyclopedia of Arkansas is always open at www.encyclopediaofarkansas.net.

๐Ÿฉบ๐“๐ก๐ž ๐๐จ๐ฅ๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐œ๐ฌ ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐๐ฎ๐›๐ฅ๐ข๐œ ๐‡๐ž๐š๐ฅ๐ญ๐ก: ๐‹๐ž๐ฌ๐ฌ๐จ๐ง๐ฌ ๐Ÿ๐ซ๐จ๐ฆ ๐‡๐จ๐ญ ๐’๐ฉ๐ซ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ฌ, ๐€๐ซ๐ค๐š๐ง๐ฌ๐š๐ฌ - ๐‹๐ž๐ ๐š๐œ๐ข๐ž๐ฌ & ๐‹๐ฎ๐ง๐œ๐ก ๐ƒ๐ž๐œ๐ž๐ฆ๐›๐ž๐ซ ๐Ÿ๐ŸŽ๐Ÿ๐Ÿ“โ โ Historian Elliott B...
12/01/2025

๐Ÿฉบ๐“๐ก๐ž ๐๐จ๐ฅ๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐œ๐ฌ ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐๐ฎ๐›๐ฅ๐ข๐œ ๐‡๐ž๐š๐ฅ๐ญ๐ก: ๐‹๐ž๐ฌ๐ฌ๐จ๐ง๐ฌ ๐Ÿ๐ซ๐จ๐ฆ ๐‡๐จ๐ญ ๐’๐ฉ๐ซ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ฌ, ๐€๐ซ๐ค๐š๐ง๐ฌ๐š๐ฌ - ๐‹๐ž๐ ๐š๐œ๐ข๐ž๐ฌ & ๐‹๐ฎ๐ง๐œ๐ก ๐ƒ๐ž๐œ๐ž๐ฆ๐›๐ž๐ซ ๐Ÿ๐ŸŽ๐Ÿ๐Ÿ“โ 
โ 
Historian Elliott Bowen explores how moral norms shaped early twentieth century public health in Hot Springs. Heโ€™s joined by Tim Nutt of UAMS to connect this history to Arkansasโ€™s broader public health story.โ 
โ 
๐Ÿ—“๏ธ Wednesday, December 3, 2025โ 
๐Ÿ•› 12:00 PM โ€“ 1:00 PM โ 
๐Ÿ“ Attend in person or via Zoom โ 
โ 
๐ŸŽŸ FREE & open to the public! In-person attendees get drinks, cookie, & a chance at a door prize. Bring your lunch and join us downtown!โ 
โ 
register here: https://events.cals.org/event/15006251

Did you know Arkansas was one of the Southโ€™s earliest adopters of the Thanksgiving holiday?In 1847, Governor Thomas S. D...
11/27/2025

Did you know Arkansas was one of the Southโ€™s earliest adopters of the Thanksgiving holiday?

In 1847, Governor Thomas S. Drew answered Sarah Josepha Haleโ€™s national call and declared the stateโ€™s first official Thanksgiving, Dec. 9, 1847.

By the mid 20th century, restaurants were offering Thanksgiving meals throughout Arkansas. This menu is from the Little Rock's Hotel Marion Thanksgiving meal over 100 years after the holiday was first recognized, in 1948.

Explore more menus at: https://cals.click/Thanksgiving

2nd Friday Art Night (2FAN) December 12, 5:00-8:00 p.m. CALS Roberts Library, 401 President Clinton Ave. New loca...
11/24/2025

2nd Friday Art Night (2FAN)
December 12, 5:00-8:00 p.m.
CALS Roberts Library, 401 President Clinton Ave.

New location! Wellโ€ฆ not exactly. Weโ€™re excited to announce that weโ€™re returning to our previous spot in the CALS Roberts Library! In that celebratory spirit, we will have a used book sale, free screen printing, and holiday photosโ€”and music by turntablist DJ Swift 720.

A CALS Used Book Sale in Roberts, yes it's true! Hardback books are $2, paperbacks are $1, and library discards are $1. Plus, we have the well-loved photographer with Picture Perfect Entertainment with the most elaborate holiday props you can think of. Come join in on the free fun with a holiday portrait or a hilarious selfie.

CALS has hosted 2FAN since its beginning. In honor of 20 years of participation working with so many talented artists, we will be hosting a free screen printing by Dedicated Visual Art Studio & Gallery with artists Sydney Carmichael and Jose Hernandez. There will be four prints to choose from: 20 years of 2FAN, the 2FAN logo, a special studio print, and a library-themed design. Bring a shirt or a tote and watch them work their magic (for free), or purchase a shirt or tote from the artists.

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 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!

And visitors can head downstairs to the Underground Gallery to view From the Vault, works from the CALS permanent collection.

PLUS: 2nd Friday Knit Night (part of 2FAN). Bring your WIP (work in progress) and hang out for an evening of social knitting. Donโ€™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.

At November's 2FAN, learn how to make mini fall pumpkins using needle felting techniques, including adding ribs and stem...
11/14/2025

At November's 2FAN, learn how to make mini fall pumpkins using needle felting techniques, including adding ribs and stems, with artist and educator Rachell Logan. This great make-and-take activity can be done in 15 minutes. Music will be from the Rackensack Folklore Society, a group known for its inclusive "hoedown" sessions, open-mic style performances, and storytelling, with a focus on instruments like fiddles, banjos, and guitars.

CALS hosts its monthly 2FAN event at the CALS Rock It! Lab, where attendees will be greeted with local artists selling their work, art demonstrations, social knitting, a craft table, TMT's Sweet Treats Cafe, 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!

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.

Participating artists for November are: Coco Luna Designs, Chris Massingill, Robert Bean, Lauren Tidwell, eStem Students, Linda Morris, Natalee Ainsworth, Elliot Silmon, Anna Culpepper, Colin Jorgenson, Monica "MoKasso" McGee, Russell Lemond, Oksana Litvinova Cartwright, Alina Poroshina, and more!

PLUS: 2nd Friday Knit Night (part of 2FAN). Bring your WIP (work in progress) and hang out for an evening of social knitting. Donโ€™t know how to knit? We'll teach you. Supplies provided.
Made possible by generous funding from the CALS Foundation and the Windgate Foundation.

Also, the 2nd Friday Art Night Film at the CALS Ron Robinson Theater features The First Wives' Club (1996, PG), 7:00-9:00 p.m. More info here: https://events.cals.org/event/14941298

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.


๐ŸฉบThe Politics of Public Health: Lessons from Hot Springs, Arkansas - Legacies & Lunch December 2025Historian Elliott Bow...
11/13/2025

๐ŸฉบThe Politics of Public Health: Lessons from Hot Springs, Arkansas - Legacies & Lunch December 2025

Historian Elliott Bowen explores how moral norms shaped early twentieth century public health in Hot Springs. Heโ€™s joined by Tim Nutt of UAMS to connect this history to Arkansasโ€™s broader public health story.

๐Ÿ—“๏ธ Wednesday, December 3, 2025
๐Ÿ•› 12:00 PM โ€“ 1:00 PM
๐Ÿ“ Attend in person or via Zoom

๐ŸŽŸ FREE & open to the public! In-person attendees get drinks, cookie, & a chance at a door prize. Bring your lunch and join us downtown!

Register here: https://events.cals.org/event/15006251

Learn basic wire techniques with artist Krystal Bijoux (Krystal Cornelius). Once you learn this simple process, you can ...
10/31/2025

Learn basic wire techniques with artist Krystal Bijoux (Krystal Cornelius). Once you learn this simple process, you can create earrings, hair pins, bracelets, necklaces, and more. The creative options are endless for this free activity. All supplies are provided, and all ages are welcome. Colorful pipe cleaners and large beads will be available for small children to create with, as well as some papier-mรขchรฉ masks and markers.
Parking is free in the library lot or on the street.
For any questions or concerns, please contact Shannon Holmes at sholmes@cals.org or 501-320-5792.
Made possible by generous funding from the Windgate Foundation

https://www.facebook.com/events/1335699274757665

Happy Halloween from the Archives! ๐Ÿ‘ปThe Crescent Hotel in Eureka Springs is famous for its ghost stories, but the real h...
10/31/2025

Happy Halloween from the Archives! ๐Ÿ‘ป

The Crescent Hotel in Eureka Springs is famous for its ghost stories, but the real horror came long before the hauntings began. ๐Ÿ˜ฑ

โœจ Originally built as a Gilded Age resort, the Crescent had fallen on hard times by the Great Depression. Enter Norman Baker, a flashy entrepreneur, radio showman, and self-proclaimed "doctor" with no medical training.

In 1937, Baker bought the hotel and transformed it into the โ€œBaker Hospital.โ€ He claimed to cure cancer with secret formulas and bizarre treatments. He promoted these treatments through the mail using pamphlets like this one, now in our collection. ๐Ÿ’‰

๐ŸŸฃ Baker painted the elegant hotel in shades of lavender and purple, filled the lobby with clashing reds, yellows, and blacks, and even blared music from a rooftop organ he invented, the Calliaphone, that could be heard half a mile away.

But Bakerโ€™s empire didnโ€™t last. By 1940, he was convicted of mail fraud for spreading false medical claims through the U.S. Mail. ๐Ÿ“œ

After his downfall, the Crescent sat empty until it was restored as the haunted hotspot we know today. ๐Ÿจ๐Ÿ’€

Learn more about Norman Baker from the EOA: https://cals.click/BakerEOA

Address

401 President Clinton Avenue
Little Rock, AR
72201

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 6pm
Tuesday 9am - 6pm
Wednesday 9am - 6pm
Thursday 9am - 6pm
Friday 9am - 6pm
Saturday 12pm - 4pm

Telephone

(501) 320-5700

Website

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