Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site

National Historic Site, Established 1998; National Historic Landmark Since 1982. The Only National Historic Site In The United States That Is Also A Fully Operating Public High School. · Little Rock, Arkansas

In September 1957 nine Black teenagers tried to enter Little Rock Central High School and the Governor of Arkansas sent the National Guard to stop them. President Eisenhower answered by federalising that same Guard and sending the 101st Airborne, and for the rest of the school year soldiers walked the Little Rock Nine to class. The photograph of Elizabeth Eckford walking alone in front of a shouting crowd was taken on the pavement outside. The school itself opened in 1927 and was called the most beautiful high school in America at the time; it is still an operating public school with more than two thousand students, which makes this the only National Historic Site in the country that is also somebody's Tuesday timetable. The free visitor centre across the road tells the story properly, and the restored Mobil filling station beside it is where the reporters queued for the payphone in 1957.

2120 Daisy L. Gatson Bates Drive, Little Rock, Arkansas, 72202, United States

The visitor centre keeps daytime hours most days of the year and closes on major holidays; admission is free. The school building itself can only be entered on a ranger-guided tour, which runs on a limited schedule built around the school day and requires a reservation made in advance - there are no walk-up tours of the building. The Commemorative Garden, the Mobil station and the pavement where the 1957 photographs were taken are outdoors and open at all times. Confirm tour availability before travelling; it changes with the school calendar.

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