Jacksonville and the Shadow of Little Rock Air Force Base
Little Rock Air Force Base is not in Little Rock. It is in Jacksonville, about 15 miles northeast of the state capital in Pulaski County, and it has been the defining institution of this city since its activation in 1955. The base is one of the largest C-130 Hercules training facilities in the world, and the 19th Airlift Wing stationed here flies tactical airlift missions globally. The military and civilian workforce at the base numbers in the thousands, and the economic ripple effect through Jacksonville is substantial.
The city's population of roughly 28,600 is heavily tied to military families who rotate in and out on assignment cycles. This transient quality gives Jacksonville a different character from other Little Rock suburbs. Businesses along the main commercial corridors cater to military needs, from uniform shops to car dealerships familiar with military lending. The Dupree Park Nature Center and the Jacksonville Museum of Military History, which occupies a former National Guard armory, are the primary cultural sites.
Jacksonville incorporated in 1941, the same year military construction began on what would become the air base. The city has never really developed an economic identity independent of the military installation, though some light manufacturing and distribution facilities have located along the U.S. 67/167 corridor. Reed's Bridge Battlefield, a Civil War site from the 1863 Little Rock Campaign, lies within the city limits but is largely unmarked and undeveloped.
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Little Rock Air Force Base is not in Little Rock. It is in Jacksonville, about 15 miles northeast of the state capital in Pulaski County, and it has been the defining institution of this city since its activation in 1955. The base is one of the largest C-130 Hercules training facilities in the world, and the 19th Airlift Wing stationed here flies tactical airlift missions globally. The military and civilian workforce at the base numbers in the thousands, and the economic ripple effect through Jacksonville is substantial.
The city's population of roughly 28,600 is heavily tied to military families who rotate in and out on assignment cycles. This transient quality gives Jacksonville a different character from other Little Rock suburbs. Businesses along the main commercial corridors cater to military needs, from uniform shops to car dealerships familiar with military lending. The Dupree Park Nature Center and the Jacksonville Museum of Military History, which occupies a former National Guard armory, are the primary cultural sites.
Jacksonville incorporated in 1941, the same year military construction began on what would become the air base. The city has never really developed an economic identity independent of the military installation, though some light manufacturing and distribution facilities have located along the U.S. 67/167 corridor. Reed's Bridge Battlefield, a Civil War site from the 1863 Little Rock Campaign, lies within the city limits but is largely unmarked and undeveloped.
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