The last building of the 1840 Little Rock Arsenal and birthplace of General Douglas MacArthur — seized by Arkansas militia before secession, retaken by Union forces in 1863, and still reportedly hosting a Civil War–era soldier in the basement.
503 E 9th St, Little Rock, AR 72202
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
Free
Free admission; donations accepted
Access
Wheelchair OK
Museum in a restored 1840 tower building; accessible ground floor with elevator
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1840 · Sole surviving building of the 1840 Little Rock Arsenal · Birthplace of General Douglas MacArthur (1880) · Seized by Arkansas militia February 1861 before formal secession vote · Union forces retook Little Rock September 1863 · National Register of Historic Places
The Little Rock Arsenal was established by the U.S. Army in 1838 and its Tower Building — a two-story brick structure — was completed in 1840. On January 15, 1880, the building became the birthplace of Douglas MacArthur, whose father, Arthur MacArthur Jr., was stationed at the arsenal.
On February 8, 1861, Arkansas Governor Henry Rector ordered the state militia to seize the arsenal from its small Federal garrison — an action taken more than two months before Arkansas voted to secede from the Union on May 6. The seizure was one of the earliest armed confrontations in the secession crisis. Confederate forces held the installation until Union troops under General Frederick Steele took Little Rock on September 10, 1863, restoring Federal control for the remainder of the war.
After the war, the arsenal buildings were gradually demolished or converted to other uses. The Tower Building survived and was eventually incorporated into MacArthur Park, where it was restored and opened as a military history museum. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and remains the only intact structure from the original 1840 installation.
Sources
The basement of the Tower Building is the center of paranormal accounts at the MacArthur Museum. Staff and paranormal investigators describe a soldier apparition in Civil War–era dress observed in the lower level during off-hours. The account has been reported consistently enough that Paranormal Traveler dedicated a documented investigation to the site.
Investigation records note cold spots concentrated in the basement — a room that would have stored ordnance and supplies during the arsenal's active decades — and EVP recordings that produced audio attributed to soldiers' voices. Shadow figures have been described moving through the stairwell between the ground floor and basement, and a separate account describes what investigators interpreted as two figures engaged in a confrontation or duel on the lower level.
The Little Rock Convention and Visitors Bureau lists the museum among the city's most haunted locations, citing the disembodied voices and cold spots as the experiences most commonly reported by staff. The museum itself does not formally promote a haunted reputation.
Free self-guided tour of Arkansas military history from the antebellum period through the twentieth century. The building itself — the sole survivor of the 1840 Little Rock Arsenal — is the primary artifact, with the basement accessible during museum hours.
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