North Little Rock, Arkansas

North Little Rock, Arkansas
—  City  —
Downtown Argenta in Sept of 2011
Location of North Little Rock in Arkansas
Coordinates: 34°46′51″N 92°15′25″W / 34.78083°N 92.25694°W / 34.78083; -92.25694Coordinates: 34°46′51″N 92°15′25″W / 34.78083°N 92.25694°W / 34.78083; -92.25694
Country	United States
State	Arkansas
County	Pulaski
Founded	1866 - Argenta established
Incorporated	1890 - incorporation of Argenta; merged with unincorporated North Little Rock in 1903
Government
– Mayor	Patrick Henry Hays
Area
– City	47.0 sq mi (121.6 km2)
– Land	44.8 sq mi (116.1 km2)
– Water	2.2 sq mi (5.6 km2)
Elevation	266 ft (81 m)
Population (2010)
– City	62,304
– Density	1,348.6/sq mi (520.7/km2)
– Metro	699,757('10) (Little Rock/North Little Rock
Time zone	CST (UTC-6)
– Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
Area code(s)	501
FIPS code	05-50450[1]
GNIS feature ID	0077862[2]
Website	www.northlittlerock.ar.gov/

North Little Rock is a city in Pulaski County, Arkansas, United States, across the Arkansas River from Little Rock in the central part of the state. The population was 62,304 at the 2010 census. North Little Rock, along with Little Rock and Conway, anchors the six-county Little Rock–North Little Rock–Conway Metropolitan Statistical Area. (2010 population — 699,757), which is further included in the Little Rock–North Little Rock–Pine Bluff Combined Statistical Area with 877,091 residents.

The city's downtown is home to the Arkansas Diamonds of the Indoor Football League and formerly home to the Arkansas RimRockers of the NBA D-League (both of which play at Verizon Arena). Near the arena is Dickey-Stephens Park, the new home of the Arkansas Travelers minor league baseball team. Burns Park, one of the largest municipal parks in the United States, is located in western North Little Rock.

Crime

The North Little Rock PD (NLRPD) Homicide Division reported about 8 homicides in the year of 2008.^{[citation needed]}

History

North Little Rock was once known as Argenta, a name currently applied specifically to downtown North Little Rock. In 1890, Little Rock annexed the unincorporated Argenta community as its Eighth Ward, preempting a competing petition to incorporate Argenta. A neighboring area was incorporated as the Town of North Little Rock in 1901 as part of a plan to reclaim the Eighth Ward from Little Rock. By 1904, the Arkansas Supreme Court allowed the town to annex the Eighth Ward; the modern City of North Little Rock considers this its founding date. The combined city adopted the Argenta name by 1906, but reverted to North Little Rock in October 1917. A remnant of the city's earliest years can be found in North Little Rock City Hall (constructed in 1914), which still contains plaques referring to "Argenta", and contains "C of A" (City of Argenta) ornamental designs.

Geography

North Little Rock is located at 34°46′51″N 92°15′25″W / 34.78083°N 92.25694°W / 34.78083; -92.25694 (34.780791, -92.256881)^[3].

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 47.0 square miles (122 km²), of which, 44.8 square miles (116 km²) of it is land and 2.2 square miles (5.7 km²) of it (4.58%) is water.

Demographics

As of the census^[1] of 2000, there were 60,433 people, 25,542 households, and 16,117 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,348.6 people per square mile (520.7/km²). There were 27,567 housing units at an average density of 615.2 per square mile (237.5/km²). The racial makeup of

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1910	11,138		—
1920	14,048		26.1%
1930	19,418		38.2%
1940	21,137		8.9%
1950	44,097		108.6%
1960	58,032		31.6%
1970	60,040		3.5%
1980	64,388		7.2%
1990	61,741		−4.1%
2000	60,433		−2.1%
2010	62,304		3.1%

the city was 62.55% White, 33.98% Black or African American, 0.41% Native American, 0.59% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 1.18% from other races, and 1.26% from two or more races. 2.42% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 25,542 households out of which 28.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.9% were married couples living together, 17.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.9% were non-families. 32.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.97.

In the city the population was spread out with 25.5% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 28.4% from 25 to 44, 22.5% from 45 to 64, and 14.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 87.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.9 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $35,578, and the median income for a family was $43,595. Males had a median income of $31,420 versus $24,987 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,662. About 12.4% of families and 16.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 26.5% of those under age 18 and 11.7% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Post-secondary education

• Pulaski Technical College
• Shorter College
• Arkansas College of Barbering and Hair Design
• New Tyler Barber College
• Diesel Driving Academy
• Lee's School of Cosmtetology
• Mid-South Aviation
• National Real Estate School
• U.S. Dept of Veterans Affairs Police Law Enforcement Training Center

Public primary and secondary schools

Most students attend public schools in the North Little Rock School District which includes:

• North Little Rock High School, East and West Campuses.
• four middle schools and one charter middle school,
• fourteen elementary schools.

In addition, the Pulaski County Special School District administers several other North Little Rock area schools, including:

• Oak Grove High School
• one middle school,
• three elementary schools and one elementary magnet school.

Private primary and secondary schools

In North Little Rock there are a number of private schools:

• Central Arkansas Christian (PreK3-12)
• Immaculate Conception (K-8)
• North Little Rock Montessori
• North Little Rock Catholic Academy (PreK3-8)

Medical

• Arkansas Surgical Hospital

Baptist Medical Center - North Little Rock, previously named Memorial Hospital

Points of interest

• Dickey-Stephens Park, home of the Arkansas Travelers baseball team
• Verizon Arena
• The Old Mill
• Argenta Community Theater
• McCain Mall
• Wild River Country water park
• National Weather Service- Little Rock, AR Weather Forecast Office (Private)

Notable natives or residents

• Joey Lauren Adams, actress and director
• A.J. Burnett, pitcher for the New York Yankees
• Jeremy Davis, bassist for pop-punk band Paramore
• Leon Griffith, 1976 Republican gubernatorial nominee
• Jerry Jones, owner of the Dallas Cowboys
• Darren McFadden, Oakland Raiders running back
• Mary Steenburgen, actress

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
2. ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. http://geonames.usgs.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
3. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2011-04-23. 

External links

Arkansas portal

• City of North Little Rock
• The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History & Culture