FEATURE | CENTENNIAL
One Hundred Years of Service JUNIOR LEAGUE OF LITTLE ROCK
Rachel McLemore, Mimi Hurst, and Betsey Mowery
Founded in 1914 as an auxiliary to the United Charities of Little Rock, Junior League of Little Rock (JLLR) began its work as a Junior League and member of the Association of Junior Leagues of America in 1922. Since its inception, the League has focused on training women with varied backgrounds, interests, and professional pursuits to work together to identify unmet needs, forge effective coalitions, and work for change. Through the effective action and leadership of trained volunteers, JLLR has established many successful initiatives that have become independent charitable projects and continue to make a tangible impact on the community. Perhaps the most important project in the League’s early history was the Child (Baby) Welfare Station, which was housed in the Arsenal Tower Building in City Park (now known as MacArthur Park). As has become the organization’s operating procedure, JLLR began by conducting a survey of conditions in Little Rock, assisted by Dr. John Thames. With this survey, League leaders chose to focus on the Child Welfare Station for their first independent project.
JLLR:Through the Years 1920s
1930s
1940s
1960s
1970s
The Baby Welfare Station
Visiting Nurses
Speech Correction School
Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts (formerly the
Riverfest
Arkansas Arts Center)
and Gaines House
8 | Interaction | Volume XXVIII | 2021-2022
