Literature Review
Because all published sources are cited in full in both the notes and the bibliography, only the most important archives and key documents are given in this review.
Archival Sources
Most of the information used in this history is found in the Greater Little Rock Chamber of Commerce's archives located at 101 Spring Street, Little Rock. The most valuable sources of information from the archives are the minutes from board meetings and executive board meetings that date from 1895. Although the minutes are mostly mechanical in nature, depending on the secretary more or less information might be given. The minutes do, however, record the issues and some discussion of action taken. The annual reports of the Chamber, found for only certain years, give specific information on actual accomplishments. The most recent of these, the 1998 annual report, provides an explanatory overview of the present-day organization, its affiliates, and how the Chamber views itself in context with its many partners in the Arkansas region.
Programs of Works outline the course of action the Chamber planned to take for an upcoming year. Intermittent through the years, these documents reveal the goals and the direction of the Chamber, indicating changing emphases throughout the years. Scrapbooks and ledgers from the early years also help chronicle the history of the Chamber, noting the various name changes and reorganizations.
Other information in the Chamber's archives useful to the history includes proposals to governmental agencies, such as the Camp Pike and Federal Air Force Base proposals, and the application to the Board of Education for Pulaski County Technical College. The Chamber's newsletter Business, published for its members since 1972 (called Currents from 1972 - 1975), gives information on the goals and accomplishments of various committees. Unfortunately, not all the issues are found in the archives. Other publications of the Chamber describing its involvement in specific issues include Partners in Education, Little Rock: Where America Comes Together, and The Greater Little Rock Chamber of Commerce Minority and Women Business guides.
Other documents housed in the Chamber's archives are publications of agencies and organizations with whom the Chamber works closely. Especially helpful in compiling the chapter on transportation were The 1994-95 Annual Report of the Little Rock National Airport, The Little Rock National Airport Executive Summary Master Plan, the Arkansas Basin Association Board of Director minutes and Basineer newsletter. Plain Talk: The Future of Little Rock's Public Schools by the University Task Force on the Little Rock School District (University of Arkansas at Little Rock: 1997) includes a brief history of the public schools and describes the lawsuits filed against the district. This information provides part of the necessary background for writing about the Chamber's involvement in school desegregation. Miscellaneous pamphlets on the Little Rock Public Schools and the Pulaski County Special School District update the Chamber's present educational involvement. The Central Arkansas Marketing Project Book, Biotechnology in Pulaski County, and Little Rock Area Business Trends describe changes in the Chamber's business ventures.
The archives of the Ottenheimer Library at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock hold many other valuable documents pertaining to the history of the Chamber, as well to the development of the city of Little Rock and the state. Skyline and Currents, both publications by the Chamber for its members informed readers of the Chamber's actions on various issues. These publications show change over time, especially in the variety and depth of the Chamber's participation in city government and planning. Bernie Babcock's book, Yesterday and Today in Arkansas: A Folio of Rare and Interesting Pictures from Mrs. Babcock's Collection for Stories and Legends of Arkansas (Jordon-Foster Printing Co., 1917) provides a rare glimpse at early Little Rock in photographs and sketches with Mrs. Babcock's narrative. Photos of the Little Rock Cotton Exchange Building and Camp Pike's development are also found in this book.
Secondary Sources
A number of secondary sources contributed to writing the history of the Chamber, filling in the perfunctory treatment of the issues found in the minutes and placing that history within the context of the growth of the city and state and national trends. Arkansas Odyssey by Michael Dougan contains detailed reports about early transportation issues in the Little Rock area, such as the development of railroads. This book also contributed to details on urban growth within the state of Arkansas, as well as political and educational historical information.
The chapter concerning the military and the governmental affairs relies a great deal on Little Rock Air Force Base: Silver Anniversary Review: 1955-1980. This resource provides not only a detailed history of the base, but also the connection between the military personnel and the citizens of Little Rock. Secondary information on the Army units in Central Arkansas, derived through the 90th RSC IG of New Orleans, contains information on the history of the post through a compilation of reports on Camp Pike by Charles F. Bridewell and copies of articles such as "Time Does Not Count Here: Letters of an American Doughboy Stationed at Camp Pike" by Michael David Polston.
It Has Happened Here, (Blossom, 1959) The Little Rock Recall Election, (Alexander, 1960) and Breaking the Silence: Little Rock's Women's Emergency Committee to Open Our Schools, 1958-1963 (Murphy, 1997) supply detailed information about the Chamber's role in the 1957-59 school crisis, although there is some disagreement among these sources as to motivation and subsequent actions towards desegregation. Racial Politics in Little Rock (Spitzberg, 1987), reveals the work of the Downtown Negotiating Committee in the efforts to desegregate the downtown business and gives particularities not found in other sources. Medical Education in Arkansas, 1879-1978 (Baird, 1979) furnishes a detailed description of the development of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. It traces the school from its beginnings to its organization as of 1978.
The State perspective and comparisons come mostly from Arkansas Odyssey (Dougan, 1994) and the Arkansas State Chamber Web Site. The latter provides the viewer with a brief history of the state organization, including major issues of the state chamber between 1993 and 1998. It also provides a framework with which to compare involvement of the Chamber to the involvement of the state organization. For national trends in economic development, A Journey through Economic Time (Galbraith, 1994) describes major trends and milestones in U.S. economics and the underlying economic theories.
A prominent secondary source, the Arkansas Gazette, printed reports of the early meetings of the Chamber dating from 1865. These reports supply information on the activities of the Chamber in its early years of formation. They give a contemporary perspective of events in the city, especially helpful for the history of the Chamber's formative years. Often, the minutes of the Chamber's board meeting were published in the paper along with Gazette reporters' opinions.
Other Resources
Web sites comprise another category of sources. The Chamber's own web site is a professionally designed and enlightening site providing information about the GLRCC , including Chamber membership, staff, programs, and publications. It also links to other sites, such as the airport. Alltel maintains the site, ensuring a high quality, technologically advanced display. The Arkansas State chamber's web site provides the viewer with a brief history of the organization, as well as links to other related sites. The U.S. and the International chambers of commerce also have web sites. While not as informative as the local organizations, they provide overviews of the institutions' goals and links to various business-related sites.
An invaluable source of information comes from the oral history interviews with Paul Harvel and past chairs of the GLRCC. These interviews were crucial to the writing of this history. The quotes from these interviews help to put the information into an animated, three-dimensional form, lifting the history from text to reveal human challenge and triumph. The frank and candid comments of the Chamber's staff and former chairs identify the contributions of the people that make up the Chamber, in addition to the collective efforts of the membership. They fill in the notes with debates and controversies that may not reveal themselves in the minutes, exposing little known work behind the scenes of major events in the growth of the Little Rock area.