Posted by BEN BEAUMONT – The Arkansas Studies Institute, which is home to the Clinton School River Market Campus, officially opened Saturday with a ceremony featuring former Arkansas governors including Bill Clinton, David Pryor and Dale Bumpers. A joint venture of the Central Arkansas Library System and UALR, the facility now houses the papers of those and other governors, and is home to a total of two miles of historic records along with photographs, books and other artifacts. The Associated Press covered the grand opening. Here’s an excerpt from the article:
The new institute opens to the public for research Monday. Nine years of collaborative work between the Central Arkansas Library System and the University of Arkansas at Little Rock culminated in the weekend event. Clinton and others praised library system director Bobby Roberts for spearheading the project.
“I love this building,” Clinton said. “And I love the fact that it has been both preserved and modernized.”
Clinton joked with the audience of hundreds that now they would be able “to root around” the papers of politicians “and you may want your vote back.” But he expressed gratitude for institutions like the new center that care for historic materials to perpetuate learning and free thinking.
“It will create a sense of shared knowledge that is at least rooted in fact,” Clinton said.
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