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When Copping Arkansas Liquor came under new ownership in 2014, the new owners kept some things just as they had always been -- friendly service, family values, fair prices, and a classic look -- and changed some other things. One of the things that inevitably changed was the name. The new owners felt the Copping name should be preserved with the version of the store as it was owned by the Copping brothers, with the new owners forging their own legacy.
Rebsamen was an easy choice for the new name. The store is located on Rebsamen Park Drive near Rebsamen Park, and our neighborhood clients are all familiar with the word. (We know you're not from around here if you call it Reb-SAH-men or use some other weird pronunciation.)
The story of how the street and park got named Rebsamen is interesting. Raymond Rebsamen was a true jack-of-all-trades: a soldier who served in both World Wars, a cattle rancher, owner of the local Ford dealership, first chairman of Metroplan, and founder of Rebsamen Insurance. Rebsamen Insurance, with headquarters just around the corner from where Rebsamen Liquor is now, became one of the largest independent insurance companies in the country before it was bought by Regions in 2001. Raymond Rebsamen was a generous philanthropist, donating much of the land for both the Little Rock Air Force Base and UALR, making a foundational gift to Rebsamen Golf Course, and giving a sculpture of Icarus and Daedalus to Little Rock that is currently located at -- you guessed it -- Rebsamen Plaza near the main library downtown. UALR named its primary campus for him in 2008.
While Raymond Rebsamen didn't have any personal connection to our little store, he was a major contributor to the development of Little Rock and especially our neighborhood, to the point that some people call it the Rebsamen neighborhood. We didn't exactly name our store for Raymond Rebsamen, but it seems like he's a pretty good namesake all the same.
Rebsamen was an easy choice for the new name. The store is located on Rebsamen Park Drive near Rebsamen Park, and our neighborhood clients are all familiar with the word. (We know you're not from around here if you call it Reb-SAH-men or use some other weird pronunciation.)
The story of how the street and park got named Rebsamen is interesting. Raymond Rebsamen was a true jack-of-all-trades: a soldier who served in both World Wars, a cattle rancher, owner of the local Ford dealership, first chairman of Metroplan, and founder of Rebsamen Insurance. Rebsamen Insurance, with headquarters just around the corner from where Rebsamen Liquor is now, became one of the largest independent insurance companies in the country before it was bought by Regions in 2001. Raymond Rebsamen was a generous philanthropist, donating much of the land for both the Little Rock Air Force Base and UALR, making a foundational gift to Rebsamen Golf Course, and giving a sculpture of Icarus and Daedalus to Little Rock that is currently located at -- you guessed it -- Rebsamen Plaza near the main library downtown. UALR named its primary campus for him in 2008.
While Raymond Rebsamen didn't have any personal connection to our little store, he was a major contributor to the development of Little Rock and especially our neighborhood, to the point that some people call it the Rebsamen neighborhood. We didn't exactly name our store for Raymond Rebsamen, but it seems like he's a pretty good namesake all the same.
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