Shocking: Arkansas’ Tallest Building Once Targeted by Bomber
Did you know that Arkansas' tallest building in Little Rock was once the target of Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh?
According to a biography, published in 2021 titled, American Terrorist: Timothy McVeigh and the Oklahoma City Bombing he visited and targeted what is now known as Simmons Bank Tower in downtown Little Rock.
According to this Arkansas Facebook page, McVeigh in his book says he "messed up" because the Little Rock building was just blocks away from the federal building and thinks it would have made a better target than the Alfred P. Murrah Building in Oklahoma City. The main reason he changed his mind was that the Little Rock building which is 40 stories high at 546 feet had a florist shop on the ground floor at that time.
Oklahoma City
29 years ago on April 19, 1995, Timothy McVeigh was the mastermind behind a truck bomb that exploded in front of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City killing 168 people and injuring hundreds more. What made this bombing so horrific is that McVeigh didn't realize there was a daycare center in the building. The explosion was so devasting that it damaged over 300 buildings, shattering glass in over 200 nearby buildings, burned cars, and caused an estimated 652 million dollars in damage.
A memorial now stands on the ground where the building once stood where family and friends gather to remember their loved ones. Next year will mark the 30th Anniversary of the Oklahoma City Bombing. Like many Americans, I will never forget that day, and how an American could do such a horrific cowardly act to his own country is just despicable.
May all the souls that lost their lives rest in peace.
Sentenced to Death
In 1997, McVeigh was sentenced to death and died by lethal injection in 2001, and his accomplice a former American soldier Terry Nichols was found guilty of conspiracy and manslaughter charges in 2004, he was later convicted in 2004 of 1st-degree murder charges and is serving life in prison for his role in the tragic bombing.
The Oklahoma City Bombing is still considered the nation's worst single act of domestic terrorism in American history and came only two years after the first attack on the World Trade Center.
The Oldest Public Structure & House in Arkansas
The Jacob Wolf House in Arkansas was used as a home and a courthouse.
Gallery Credit: Lisa Lindsey