Little Rock Central High School is best known as the site of a major desegregation event in 1957 during the American Civil Rights Movement, following a United States Supreme Court ruling three years prior deeming racial segregation of African Americans unconstitutional. The accredited public high school, which still operates as an educational facility today, was constructed as the nation's largest public high school facility at the time of its opening in 1927. Today, it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is operated as a National Historic Site under the supervision of the National Park Service. Visitors can explore an NPS-operated visitor center located adjacent to the school, which showcases multimedia exhibits on the Little Rock Integration Crisis of 1957, when the "Little Rock Nine" were denied entrance to the high school despite the prior Supreme Court ruling. A memorial designed by Michael Warrick, installed in 2006, is located across the street from the visitor center, while a commemorative garden is home to nine trees honoring each of the African American students at the heart of the crisis.
2120 W. Daisy L. Gatson Bates Drive, Little Rock, AR 72202, Phone: 501-374-1957