Winthrop Rockefeller Centennial

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This year is the centennial of the birth of Winthrop Rockefeller, Governor of Arkansas 1967-1971 and institutions across Arkansas are collaborating to host a series of arts conferences, art exhibits, and digital exhibits to celebrate the Governor’s contributions to Arkansas.

As part of the anniversary celebrations, the Centre for Arkansas History and Culture at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock have been using Historypin to map their photographic and audio collections.

There is some fantastic stuff in their collection, including Rockefeller’s service in the Pacific during World War Two, a recording of his oath when he was sworn in as Governor in 1967 and a recording of his Inaugural speech in 1969.

And there is material from 1968 capturing the memorial service for Martin Luther King – Winthrop Rockefeller was the only American Governor known to hold a public memorial service for Martin Luther King. Click the image below to see the photo on the map and listen to the speech he gave on the steps of Arkansas State Capitol.

To see more material and the Tours and Collections they have curated, visit UALR’s Channel.

And check out their website where you can find out lots more about who is involved, what other centennial events are planned (including a virtual Rockefeller exhibit due to open on May 1st) and explore their collection on their Historypin Embed.