New clocktower and historical painting are added to the Bauxite fire station

Little Rock, Arkansas – An endeavor to enhance and expand the Bauxite Fire Department structure is presently in progress.

In addition to building a clock tower, the city hall of a small Arkansas town has commissioned a very hip great-grandma to create a mural honoring the town’s past.

“The old sepia photograph, you know, where everything was pink and red—brownish look. I’m using that as my base color,” said Dianne Roberts, the Saline County artist and art teacher hired by Bauxite to immortalize the town’s aluminum mining history on the exterior of its fire department.

As I start, the people are going to stand out because the people are Bauxite. And still today, they’re very strong people,” Roberts said.

The old buildings of Bauxite are largely gone, but the city government is committed to preserving the history of the mining town.

The new clocktower, which is currently under construction and, fittingly, according to the mayor, will have a pick and shovel for hour and minute hands, is located just around the corner of the building from the mural.

Roberts, meantime, spends two days a week painting the new mural at the fire station, which spans three walls and features four distinct subjects.

“I’m enjoying doing it and might could end up using a little help on it,” Roberts said. “I’d like to see some Bauxite people helping because it’s their history, and I want them to feel a part of it.”

Roberts had earlier created a mural honoring the history of Saline County as a whole, but he said that some residents of Bauxite felt excluded because their town was not included.

I think Bauxite deserved a whole spread and not just a little part,” Roberts said, “so, I’m hoping this gets me out of trouble with the Bauxite people…that they’re going to have something that they can look back and see their history and be able to show their kids and explain to them how it worked.

Roberts stated that the absence of a deadline is the only requirement she has for finishing the mural, but rest assured that she is moving on at full speed.