Little Rock, AR (LRK)

Ticket Revenue

FY 2011

$2,081,737

Station Ridership

FY 2011

23,336

Note: Fiscal year is from
October through September.

The current Little Rock station, known as Union Station, was built in 1921. The original structure was built in 1885 and burned twice, in 1900 and again in 1921. After the 1921 fire, the only remains of the 1900 structure were the clock tower and the Italian Renaissance arches. The depot is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as “MoPac Station.” The earthen-hued, sprawling, four-story station has 110,000 square feet and encompasses 5.6 acres. The impressive Prairie style station features horizontal lines, a flat roof, and a majestic clock tower.

The station was built for the St. Louis, Iron Mountain, and Southern Railroad. It later became part of the Missouri Pacific, which eventually merged with Union Pacific. “Ripley’s Believe It or Not” once featured Union Station as the largest train station in the U.S. served by only one railroad. In the early 1970s, Missouri Pacific sold the depot, and the building passed through many hands until 1991, when Arkansas native John Bailey purchased it. Previous investors had seen their dreams of the station as an entertainment-office-retail complex end up unsuccessful after pouring millions of dollars into the station.

When Bailey purchased the station, it was in a spiral of bankruptcy and needed extensive renovations. The property required mechanical and electrical work and a new roof. The two upper floors were saturated with rain and debris, the walls were mildewed, and the floors were rotting. This, however, did not deter Bailey from his aspiration of restoring Union Station to its former glory.

Bailey obtained a $30,000 grant from the city of Little Rock to restore the façade of the station. Bailey Properties, LLC moved its corporate headquarters into Union Station in January 1992. Two of the three former tenants (Amtrak and Slick Willys) remained as tenants as well. Bailey slowly renovated the station with the help of contractor Tom Harding, removing asbestos and making the building useable to lease. The building has now been completely renovated and is 90 percent leased.

Little Rock is the capital and most populous city in Arkansas. The city derives its name from a small rock formation on the south bank of the Arkansas River. The French explorer Jean-Baptiste Bénard de la Harpe named the formation la Petite Roche (the little rock) in 1722. In 1821, the state legislature chose Little Rock as the territorial capital, and the city was founded the same year. It was not until after the Civil War, in 1871, that a railroad line was established between Little Rock and Memphis.

In 1957, Little Rock was thrust into the national spotlight when a group of nine African American students, under the orders of President Eisenhower and the protection of the 101st Airborne Division of the U.S. Army, entered Central High School. This marked the first important test of the Supreme Court decision, Brown v. Board of Education, which held that racial segregation of schools was unconstitutional.

In 1992, Little Rock garnered national attention once more, when then-governor Bill Clinton won the presidency, celebrating his victory at the Old State House.

Little Rock is home to many museums, including the William J. Clinton Presidential Center, the Arkansas Art Center, the MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History, and the Arkansas Museum of Discovery. The city’s first-ever visitor information center recently opened in Curran Hall, a historic antebellum home.

In 2005, Forbes magazine named Little Rock number 22 out of 361 best places for business.
Amtrak provides ticketing and baggage services at this facility.

Little Rock is served by two daily trains.