Little Rock, Arkansas: Clinton Presidential Center

There aren't many Presidential libraries out there, but they have come to be major tourist attractions when built. The city of Little Rock hit the Presidential lottery when Bill Clinton decided to put his library there.

While there is library filled with all sorts of records about the Clinton years, most people come to see the museum areas. The building in this case is a particularly striking one, built right along the riverfront and giving that part of the city an economic boost.

The facility has three floors. This is a view of the second and third floors from above. The shelves are filled with records from the Clinton Administration and hold a very small percentage of what's in the library. The display down the middle of the second floor reviews each of the eight years of the Administration individually, and there are displays on either side. It's more of the same upstairs, with some personal artifacts of Clinton's (old pictures and documents, letters from celebrities) under glass.

Meanwhile, replicas of the Oval Office and the Cabinet Room are in the far end. By the way, Clinton took a look at the Oval Office just before opening and thought it was a little sterile. So he gave some books and other personal effects to make it look used. That's why visitors can't get past the ropes. It really is oval, though, just like the real thing.

There's a nice plaza outside, leading to a pedestrian bridge over the river. A shuttle ride can take visitors down the street to a gift shop, filled with everything the Presidential collector could use. They were giving away old Presidential campaign buttons when we were there. It's all very well done, no matter what your political viewpoint is.

And here's a video look at it:

 

Be notified of new posts via Twitter @WDX2BB.