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The history of the Lorraine Motel — and why it’s a must-visit

The  Lorraine Motel in downtown Memphis had a storied history even before April 4, 1968, when Martin Luther King Jr., who was staying at the motel to support the Black sanitation workers’ strike, was shot and killed on his motel room’s balcony. It was listed in the Negro Motorist Green Book, a compilation of businesses like hotels, restaurants, salons and gas stations that welcomed African Americans during the Jim Crow era. By Devorah Lev-Tov via MSN  

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Tennessee: the lorraine motel.

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On April 4, 1968, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was assassinated here at the Lorraine Motel, just a day after delivering his prophetic "I've Been to the Mountaintop" speech at the  Mason Temple Church of God in Christ . Built in 1925, the Lorraine Hotel was a typical Southern hotel accessible only to whites in its early history; it was renamed the Lorraine Motel after the second floor was added. However, by the end of World War II, the Lorraine had become one of the few black establishments, and one of the only hotels providing accomodations to African Americans. Early guests to the Lorraine included Cab Colloway, Count Basie, and other prominent jazz musicians, in addition to later celebrities such as Roy Campanella, Nat King Cole , and Aretha Franklin. Partly because of its historical importance to the black community of Memphis, Martin Luther King chose to stay at the Lorraine during the 1968 Memphis sanitation workers strike. 

King, Ralph Abernathy , Andrew Young and other black leaders came to support 1,300 striking sanitation workers. Their grievances included unfair working conditions (on rainy days, black workers had to return home without pay while paid white supervisors remained on the job, and black workers were given only one uniform and no place in which to change clothes), and poor pay (the highest-paid black worker could not hope to earn more than $70 a week). Following a bloody confrontation between marching strikers and police, a court injunction had been issued banning further protests. King hoped their planned march would overturn the court injunction, but such plans were cut short on April 4, 1968 when an assassin shot and killed King on the balcony of King's room. In 1991, the Lorraine Motel was converted into the National Civil Rights Museum . The Lorraine Motel was chosen for inclusion in the African American Civil Rights Network in March 2018.  The African American Civil Rights Network recognizes the civil rights movement in the United States and the sacrifices made by those who fought against discrimination and segregation. Created by the African American Civil Rights Act of 2017, and coordinated by the National Park Service, the Network tells the stories of the people, places, and events of the U.S. civil rights movement from through a collection of public and private elements.

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Last updated: June 18, 2020

NATIONAL CIVIL RIGHTS MUSEUM VIRTUAL TOUR

Updated: Jan 2, 2023

The National Civil Rights museum is located in Memphis, Tennessee. This is a very interactive museum that takes you through the U.S. (American) Civil Rights Movement from slavery (1619) to Dr. King’s assassination in April 1968. The quest for civil rights began nearly 400 years ago when the first enslaved Africans were brought to America. As I write this blog post in 2020 the fight for civil rights for black people is at an all-time high.

Below I have given you brief descriptions of the areas of the museum that I was able to visit. I encourage you to take your education further to read up on these monumental moments in civil rights history.

A Culture of Resistance Slavery in America 1619-1861 . This area has information about the Atlantic slave trade and provides education about the people brought to America and how they worked to create wealth for white people.

The Rise of Jim Crow 1877 – 1968. Jim Crow laws were created to oppress African Americans by denying them the right to get an education, obtain jobs or vote. This are has information on amendments and legislation that granted rights to African Americans. There is also information about the laws and Supreme Court decisions that took these rights away.

Separate is Not Equal - Brown v. Board of Education (1954). This area breaks down the Supreme Court decision and explains the difficulty of desegregation of the public school system. In Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483 (1954), the Supreme Court outlawed segregated public education facilities for blacks and whites at the state level.

The Year They Walked - Montgomery Bus Boycott 1955-1956. Black people took a stand against segregated buses in Montgomery, Alabama by refusing to ride the city buses. Rosa Parks was fined four days prior to the boycott for failing to give her seat to a white man. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was one of the leaders of the boycott.

Standing Up by Sitting Down - Student Sit-Ins 1960. In Greensboro, North Carolina a group of black students sat at a Woolworth’s lunch counter and refused to leave after being denied service. David Richmond, Ezell Blair Jr., Franklin McCain and Joseph McNeil were the four young black men who staged the first sit-in.

We Are Prepared to Die - The Freedom Rides 1961. Black and white civil rights activist rode buses into the segregated south after the 1960 Supreme Court decision outlawing segregation in bus and train terminals. These activist took these rides to challenge the states that were still trying to force segregated seating.

The Children Shall Lead Them - Birmingham 1963. On Friday April 12, 1963 Dr. King was arrested after violating an anti-protest injunction and he was kept in solitary confinement in the Birmingham, Alabama jail. This is where he wrote the “Letter from Birmingham Jail” in response to a group of white clergy who had criticized his use of nonviolent civil disobedience.

For Jobs and Freedom - March On Washington 1963. August 28, 1963 there was large protest in Washington, D.C.to bring attention to the civil and economic inequalities that still existed for black people.

Is this America? - Mississippi Summer Project 1964. This is also known as the Freedom Summer. The purpose of this movement was to increase the number of black registered voters in Mississippi. James Chaney, Michael Schwerner and Andrew Goodman were three men murdered by law enforcement after being arrested for speeding outside of Philadelphia, Mississippi.

How Long? Not Long. - Selma Voting Rights Campaign 1965. When black people registered to vote they had an extreme risk to their families safety, their jobs and their churches. There were two unsuccessful attempts to cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge. The first attempt was “Bloody Sunday” on March 7, 1965. The second attempt was on March 9, 1965. The state troopers were going to let them pass, but Dr. King stopped the march and led the people back to the church to obey the federal injunction and wait for federal protection. On March 21, 1965 the march to Selma began with protection from the Alabama National Guard, FBI agents and federal marshals. March 24, 1965 they arrived in Montgomery, Alabama. March 25, 1965 thousands of people showed up to support voting rights and Dr. King delivered his "How Long, Not Long" speech from steps of the Alabama state capitol.

What Do We Want? - Black Power. The Black Power moved of the 1960’s and 1970’s if often referred to as a radical new movement. In actuality it was a continuation of the Civil Rights Movement because it encouraged racial pride and economic empowerment.

Join the Movement. Nonviolence, women's rights, war, riots, poverty and integration are all still relevant. In 2020 we are experiencing riots while still trying to get white people to understand the effects of systemic racism and prejudices.

I Am A Man - Memphis Sanitation Strike 1968. - The iconic strikers with the "I Am a Man" signs and the garbage truck from the original exhibition are here. Film documenting the sanitation strike is projected upon the garbage truck. New to the exhibit is the Mountaintop Theatre, showing the powerful "Mountaintop" speech, the last one Dr. King gave the evening before he died.

King's Last Hours - Rooms 306 and 307. April 3, 1968 Dr. King checked in to room 306 at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee.He had returned to march with the sanitation workers who were on strike.On the eve of the March he attended a rally where he gave the famous speech “I’ve Seen The Promised Land”.April 4, 1968 Dr. King spent the day with his aides waiting to hear if the federal court was going to allow the sanitation workers march.Around six o’clock that evening they were heading out for dinner, but they would never make it. Shortly after they stepped onto the second floor balcony of the Lorraine Motel Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated at 39 years old.

As a full service travel agent I can organize your trip to Memphis, Tennessee.

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National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel

The National Civil Rights Museum displays exhibits from the Civil Rights Movement, dated 1619 to 2000, including the room in which Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. resided in April 1968. The Museum is located at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, TN, where on April 4, 1968, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated. The Museum educates the public on the Civil Rights Movement and its influence on human rights movements worldwide, through its exspansive collections, exhibits, research and educational programs, and includes Room 306, where Dr. King resided. The museum is one of only five U.S. accredited international sites of conscience, and has been featured in several televised segments, including CNN and the History Channel. Every generation will benefit from the exhibits and rich heritage provided by this museum.

Site Information

Address: 450 Mulberry Street, Memphis, TN, United States

Cost: $18 (Adults), $15 (Children), $16 (Seniors, Students)

Hours: Wednesday - Monday: 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM

Attraction Info: Family Friendly, ADA Accessible, Educational Stop

Online Resources: https://www.civilrightsmuseum.org/

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National Civil Rights Museum Virtual Reality Tour

Description.

Take a virtual reality look at several of the exhibits at the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, Tennessee.

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This video offers a guided tour of the primary exhibits at the museum, including the bus on which Rosa Parks protested segregation, student lunch counter sit-ins and the balcony on which Dr. King was assassinated.

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• Social Sciences

assassination, birmingham jail, civil rights, disobedience, informal learning, lorraine motel, martin luther king jr, montgomery bus boycott, protest, rosa parks, sociology

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National Civil Rights Museum Tour

In May 2011, historian Richard Norton Smith led a 10-day bus tour from Asheville, North Carolina to Austin, Texas. The group stopped at seve… read more

In May 2011, historian Richard Norton Smith led a 10-day bus tour from Asheville, North Carolina to Austin, Texas. The group stopped at several presidential and historic sites along the route. One of the stops was the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, Tennessee. The museum is on the site of the Lorraine Motel, where Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated April 4, 1968. It opened as the National Civil Rights Museum in 1991; and 2011 marks its 20th anniversary. The museum’s director of governmental and community affairs, Gwen Harmon , led the group on a tour of the museum, which starts with the year 1619 through the death of the Reverend King, and reflects on his legacy. close

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• C-SPAN | American History TV C-SPAN | American History TV
• National Civil Rights Museum National Civil Rights Museum
• American Artifacts
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• Nov 19, 2011 | 7:56pm EST | C-SPAN 3
• Nov 19, 2011 | 11:55pm EST | C-SPAN 3
• Nov 20, 2011 | 9:39am EST | C-SPAN 3
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• Nov 27, 2011 | 7:59am EST | C-SPAN 3
• Nov 27, 2011 | 12:33pm EST | C-SPAN 3
• Nov 27, 2011 | 7:02pm EST | C-SPAN 3
• Nov 27, 2011 | 9:59pm EST | C-SPAN 3
• Dec 03, 2011 | 3:00pm EST | C-SPAN 3
• Dec 03, 2011 | 7:55pm EST | C-SPAN 3
• Dec 03, 2011 | 11:55pm EST | C-SPAN 3
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• Dec 26, 2011 | 3:30pm EST | C-SPAN 3
• Dec 26, 2011 | 11:30pm EST | C-SPAN 3
• Dec 27, 2011 | 7:30am EST | C-SPAN 3
• Feb 21, 2012 | 10:02pm EST | C-SPAN 3
• Feb 22, 2012 | 1:43am EST | C-SPAN 3
• Feb 22, 2012 | 5:22am EST | C-SPAN 3
• Jan 21, 2013 | 3:41pm EST | C-SPAN 3
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Momma Wanderlust - Curating Cultural Travels for Families

12 Black History Museums You Can Explore from Home

Looking for Black History Museums you can explore from home?  The Black experience is so vast and varied that there’s no end to what can be learned about it.  This is why when I travel, I visit local African-American History Museums to get a better feel for a new destination. On a trip to Georgia, my family and I visited the Jack Hadley Black History Museum and learned first-hand what it was like for the museum’s curator, Mr. Hadley, to grow up on a plantation.

But you don’t have to travel to explore some of the best exhibits in the country.  Thanks to technology, you can visit some of them virtually . If you’re interested in learning more about African American history and culture in the United States, there’s a bevy of museums and resources available online.

Google Arts & Culture and the United States Civil Rights Trail provide virtual tours, exhibits, and access to online archives that you can explore from home.

Here are some African American History and Civil Rights Museums that you can explore from home:

12 AFRICAN AMERICAN BLACK HISTORY MUSEUMS TO VISIT VIRTUALLY

National Museum of African American History & Culture Courtesy: bakdc/ Shutterstock

You can find a complete list of all the virtual tours offered by Google Arts & Culture here .

Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture (Washington, DC)

Since opening in 2016, the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture has become one of the most popular museums in Washington, DC. Visitors are educated about the Black experience by going on a trip through time. The journey starts in Africa with its history galleries that span from Slavery to Emancipation and then from Segregation to Today.  More than 3,500 exhibits are available online.

Archives of African American Music & Culture (Bloomington, Indiana)

The collections in the Archives of African American Music & Culture museum highlight African American music ranging from classical, and religious, to popular music including R&B and Hip Hop.

The Museum of African American Art (Los Angeles, California)

The Museum of African American Art interprets, promotes, and preserves art by or about people of African descent. It was founded in 1976 to increase public awareness of African American Art.

The Gordon Parks Foundation (Pleasantville, New York)

You can take a trip through time with the life work of famed African American photographer, Gordon Parks. The Gordon Parks Foundation showcases Parks’s career, which spans from the 1940s up until his death in 2006. Parks’ photographs focused on race relations, Civil Rights, and urban life.

Dance Theater of Harlem (New York, New York)

The Dance Theater of Harlem is the first Black classical ballet company and the first major ballet company to prioritize Black dancers. This school was founded more than 50 years ago. There are four online exhibits about the history of this world-famous dance company as well as some amazing photos of the company over the years.

Negro Leagues Baseball Museum ( Kansas City, Missouri )

Watch a short film that provides an introduction to the Negro League Baseball League through the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum virtual tour. The film includes interviews with former Negro League players.

Frederick Douglass National Historic Site ( Washington, DC )

While many of the museums in Washington, DC have re-opened Cedar Hill, Frederick Douglass’s Historic home is still closed.  If you would like to learn more about Douglass, an ambassador, abolitionist, writer, and former slave you can explore his home virtually.  He purchased this stunning 21-room Victorian mansion in 1878. There are a number of rooms filled with artifacts that are viewable in the online tour.

The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG) – University Libraries [Online Exhibit: African Americans at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, 1892-1971] (Greensboro, NC)

The UNCG’s online exhibit offers a riveting look inside the lives of some African American employees who worked on the campus of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. This exhibit features not only photos of the Black workers in the late 1800s but there are artifacts listing how much the University paid some of its African American employees.

The Black Archives of Mid-America (Kansas City, Missouri)

The Black Archives of Mid-America offers two online exhibits: one about famous dancer Alvin Ailey; and the other about the Historic 18 th and Vine Jazz District in Kansas City.

The Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change (The King Center) (Atlanta, Georgia)

The King Center is part of the memorial and childhood home of Dr. King. This online exhibit contains various letters and miscellaneous documents and artifacts.

DuSable Museum of African American History (Chicago, Illinois)

Created in 1961, the DuSable Museum of African American History is one of the oldest museums of African American history. Originally started as the Ebony Museum of Negro History and Art, this institute was the largest caretaker of African American culture until the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture opened.

 Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site at Moton Field (Tuskegee, Alabama)

Take a virtual tour of the primary flight-training site for the Tuskeegee Airmen , the famed African American pilots of World War II.

SIX CIVIL RIGHTS MUSEUMS TO VISIT VIRTUALLY

You can find a complete list of all the virtual tours and experiences offered by the United States Civil Rights Trail here .

• National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel ( Memphis, Tennessee ) The National Civil Rights Museum was built around the Lorraine Motel, the location where Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was assassinated in 1968. The museum which traces the Civil Rights Movement in America is filled with some great gems. My favorite exhibits included: a replica of a Montgomery city bus in which Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat for a white passenger and a garbage truck to commemorate the “I Am A Man Sanitation Workers Strike.” This strike, which Dr. King helped organize, was for the improvement of working conditions for Memphis sanitation workers. 
• National Center for Civil and Human Rights (Atlanta, Georgia) The National Center for Civil and Human Rights is a multicultural center, and it highlights the Civil Rights Movement and the modern human rights movement. The museum has a Voice of the Voiceless gallery, which showcases the Morehouse College Martin Luther King, Jr. Collection.
• International Civil Rights Center & Museum (Greensboro, North Carolina) The International Civil Rights Center & Museum is located in the original Woolworth’s building where the four North Carolina A&T State University students (also known as the Greensboro Four) staged a sit-in to challenge the “Whites Only” lunch counter. This museum commemorates the Greensboro Four’s role in launching the sit-in movement.
• Martin Luther King Birth Home The Martin Luther King Birth Home is the childhood home of Dr. King.  This museum which is part of the National Park Service, allows you to see where Dr. King spent the first 12 years of his life.
• Howard University Howard University is a historically Black university located in Washington, DC. The university, which was founded in 1867, is one of the premier Black institutions for higher learning in the country.  Take a 3D virtual tour of the university which is home to several buildings that have been designated as National Historic Landmarks. 
• Mississippi Civil Rights Museum The Mississippi Civil Rights Museum , which opened in 2017 is dedicated to educating visitors about the Civil Rights Movement.  It also provides more insight into the murders of Emmett Till, a 14-year-old teen that was visiting the state when he was brutally murdered, and Civil Rights Leader, Medgar Evers who was assassinated in front of his Mississippi home.

If you want to learn more about Black History, in addition to virtual tours Black History documentaries also provide some insight into the Black experience in America.  For more Black History inspiration follow us on Instagram .

National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel

For more articles on Black History in Travel:

• 10 Best US Cities to Learn About Black History
• Top 20 Best Black History Museums in the US to Visit
• 7 Best Sites to Learn about Black History in Washington, DC

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When Visiting Memphis, Touring The Lorraine Motel Is Something That Should Not Be Missed

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It was a Thursday evening on April 4th, 1968, that one of the greatest revolutionary leaders of the civil rights movement spent his final hours. Martin Luther King, Jr. was standing on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis when he was fatally wounded by a shot fired by a man named James Early Ray.

While Ray would live out the rest of his days in prison before eventually dying behind bars, King's message was eternal and immortal. His last stand on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel, just outside of Room 306, would soon be protected and turned into a full civil rights museum. When visiting Memphis, this is one stop that should not be missed on the list of Tennessee museums .

Related: This Is What The Museum Of Natural History Is Known For (Plus A Guide On How To Tour It)

The Lorraine Motel & Its Historic Status

The Lorrain Motel is located at 450 Mulberry Street, and if one didn't know any better, they would presume it was just like any other hotel on the side of the road in Memphis. However, it now stands as a protected site and one that's just as historically significant as any other with registered landmark status. Today, one would never guess that the final moments of a courageous and steadfast civil rights leader, Baptist minister, and activist took place in this same spot. Despite his life taken out of anger and hatred, Martin Luther King, Jr. continued to stand for the rights of all black Americans, becoming not only a symbol for the black community but for civil and human rights around the entire world.

Drawing inspiration from his own Christian roots and beliefs as well as the nonviolent human rights movement led by Mahatma Gandhi, he was able to organize some of the largest and most effective civil rights protests and marches that were seen in American until that time. In 1964, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize and is known most famously for his 'I Have A Dream' speech, inspiring many on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.

The Lorraine Motel was the last place that MLK stood on that tragic day in history, and it took decades before it finally became a protected piece of property. The last year that it was in operation was 1982 and, luckily, it had still maintained much of its 1960s charm and aesthetic, driving home, even more, the atmosphere that surrounded MLK on his final day. It was closed for good to guests and renters in 1988 when it gained historical recognition. By 1991, the motel had become a dedicated museum and continued to grow to include and full museum of exhibits, known as the National Civil Rights Museum.

Outside of the Lorraine Motel, there is an inscription that reads:

"Martin Luther King, Jr. / Jan. 15th - Apr. 4th 1968 / Founding President / Southern Christian Leadership Conference

'They said to one another,

Behold, here cometh the dreamer...

Let us sly him...

And we shall see what will become of his dreams.'"

Genesis 37 19-20

Related: Visiting The Anne Frank House: An Emotional Museum that Will Move Anyone To Tears

Visiting The National Civil Rights Museum

The museum opened its doors in September of 1991 and is officially owned by the state of Tennessee, but is operated by the Lorraine Civil Rights Museum Foundation. Found on the sign indicating the motel, visitors will be greeted with the words 'I have a dream,' echoing the start of one of the most important, and significant, speeches ever given in America.

When entering the Lorraine Building of the museum, visitors will find more than 40 short films, oral histories, and interactive exhibits. The tour is self-guided and there are many artifacts on display from the Civil Rights Movement, along with the actual room - room 306 - in which MLK spent his final days. Although the museum has been updated, the exhibits brilliantly draw connections between the Civil Rights Movement six decades ago, and the current events of today.

On average, a visit to. the National Civil Rights Museum lasts roughly an hour and a half and the museum advises booking tickets in advance. Those visiting within the last hour of the museum's hours of operation may experience a shortened self-guided tour. For the time being, any interpretive talks are being held in the courtyard space outside of the museum.

• Admission: Adults $18 | Seniors 55+ & college students with ID $16 | Children aged 5 - 17 $15 | Children under age 4, military, and museum members - Free
• Hours: Thursday - Monday 9 AM - 5 PM, Closed Tuesdays & Wednesdays
• Tickets: Visitors are advised to purchase tickets in advance; however, timed tickets are only sold online. Check-in is 15 minutes prior to one's ticket time, and the last ticket is sold at 4:15 PM. Those purchasing tickets in person should be aware that they are sold based on availability, or can be sold on a standby basis.

Next: Visit The NYC Tenement Museum: Where Every Room Represents A Different Time Period

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African American History & Civil Rights Museums – Virtual Tours

AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY MUSEUMS

• Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture (Washington, DC) Since opening in 2016, the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture has become one of the most popular museums in Washington, DC. This museum takes visitors on a trip through time starting with the Black Experience in America with its history Galleries that start from Slavery to Emancipation and then from Segregation to Today. There are also exhibits that focus on Black History in popular culture. You can explore more than 3,500 exhibits online.
• Archives of African American Music & Culture (Bloomington, IN) The collections in the Archives of African American Music & Culture museum highlight African American music ranging from classical, religious, and popular music to include R&B and hip hop.
• The Museum of African American Art (Los Angeles, CA) The Museum of African American Art interprets, promotes, and preserves art by or about people of African descent. It was founded in 1976 to increase public awareness of African American Art.
• The Gordon Parks Foundation (Pleasantville, NY) You can take a trip through time with the life work of famed African American photographer, Gordon Parks. The Gordon Parks Foundation showcases Parks’s career, which spans from the 1940s up until his death in 2006, Parks’ photographs focused on race relations, Civil Rights, and urban life.
• Dance Theater of Harlem (New York, NY) The Dance Theater of Harlem is the first Black classical ballet company and the first major ballet company to prioritize Black dancers. This school was founded more than 50 years ago. There are four online exhibits about the history of this world-famous dance company.
• Negro Leagues Baseball Museum (Kansas City, MO) You can take a virtual tour of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum and there’s a short movie introduction into the Negro League Baseball that includes interviews with former Negro League players.
• Frederick Douglass National Historic Site (Washington, DC) Take a virtual tour of Cedar Hill, Frederick Douglass’s Historic home in Washington, DC. Douglass, an abolitionist, orator, writer, and former slave purchased this stunning 21-room Victorian mansion 1878. There are a number of rooms filled with artifacts that are viewable in the online tour.
• The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG) – University Libraries [Online Exhibit: African Americans at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, 1892-1971] (Greensboro, NC) The UNCG’s online exhibit offers a riveting look inside of the life of some of the African American employees who worked on the campus of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. This exhibit features not only photos of the Black workers in the late 1800s but there are artifacts listing how much the University paid some of its Black employees.
• The Black Archives of Mid-America (Kansas City, MO) The Black Archives of Mid-America there are two online exhibits available for viewing: one about famous dancer Alvin Ailey; and the other about the Historic 18 th and Vine Jazz District in Kansas City.
• The Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change (The King Center) (Atlanta, GA) The King Center is part of the memorial and childhood home of Dr. King. This online exhibit contains various letters and miscellaneous documents and artifacts.
• DuSable Museum of African American History (Chicago, IL) Created in 1961, the DuSable Museum of African American History is one of the oldest museums of African American history. Originally started as the Ebony Museum of Negro History and Art, this museum was the home of the largest caretaker of African American culture until the opening of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture.
•  Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site at Moton Field (Tuskegee, AL) Take a virtual tour of the primary flight-training site for the Tuskeegee Airmen , Black pilots of World War II.
• U.S. National Archives [Exhibit: Black College Life in the New Deal] (Washington, DC) This online exhibit features fascinating photos of Black Student’s lives on college campuses between January 1, 1933, and December 31, 1941.

CIVIL RIGHTS MUSEUMS – You can find a complete list of all of the virtual tours and experiences offered by the United States Civil Rights Trail here .

• National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel The National Civil Rights Museum located in Memphis, TN and serves as not only a memorial but also as a museum. The museum was built around the Lorraine Motel, which was where Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was assassinated in 1968. The museum traces the Black civil rights movement. It is filled with so many gems to include: a replica of the Montgomery city bus where Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat and a garbage truck to commemorate the “I Am A Man Sanitation Workers Strike,” which is the strike that brought Dr. King to Memphis.
• National Center for Civil and Human Rights The National Center for Civil and Human Rights is located in downtown Atlanta, Georgia. This museum is a multicultural center and it highlights the Civil Rights Movement and the modern human rights movement. The museum has a Voice of the Voiceless gallery, which showcases the Morehouse College Martin Luther King, Jr. Collection.
• International Civil Rights Center & Museum The International Civil Rights Center & Museum , located in Greensboro, North Carolina in the original Woolworth’s building. This museum’s mission is to commemorate the A&T Four and its role in launching the sit-in movement.
• Martin Luther King Birth Home As part of the National Park Service, you can visit the Martin Luther King Birth Home and see where Dr. King spent the first 12 years of his life.
• Howard University Founded in 1867, Howard University is a historically Black university located in Washington, DC. The Founders Library holds the largest collection of African American documents, letters, and oral histories about the Black experience. Several buildings on the campus of this institution have been designated as National Historic Landmarks.
• Mississippi Civil Rights Museum The Mississippi Civil Rights Museu m, which opened in 2017 covers the entire Civil Rights Movement but it provides more insight into the murders of Emmett Till and Medgar Evers.

Civil Rights Bus Tour Visiting Selma, Lorraine Motel

by Benjamin Deeter, Student Public Relations Writer

The 15th annual bus tour will travel more than 2,000 miles over five days and visit historical landmarks, including the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, site of the 1965 “Bloody Sunday” voting march, and 16th Avenue Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, where four young girls were killed in a 1963 bombing.

The trip includes a stop in Memphis, Tennessee, where the group will visit the National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel, where Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated.

Students can take this trip for course credit through the department of history and government by completing assigned readings before the tour and attending lectures from trip leaders at each of the locations.

“The Civil Rights Bus Tour is an important way that we at Cedarville are intentionally making room to take a somber view of our nation’s sinful history of racial brokenness.”

— Matthew Bennett

“The Civil Rights Bus Tour is an important way that we at Cedarville are intentionally making room to take a somber view of our nation’s sinful history of racial brokenness,” said Dr. Matthew Bennett , assistant professor of missions and theology at Cedarville University.

Dr. Anthony Moore, Cedarville University's director of intercultural leadership, will lead the trip, along with Bennett,  Dr. Murray Murdoch , senior professor of history , and Dr. John Mark Yeats, church historian and theology professor at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, are slated to lead the trip.

“The trip pushes us to consider how the Gospel creates an otherwise-uncommon unity and affords us confidence in the present to work toward a reconciliation that Christ’s completed work has already guaranteed,” Bennett said.

Located in southwest Ohio, Cedarville University is an accredited, Christ-centered, Baptist institution with an enrollment of 4,193 undergraduate, graduate and online students in more than 150 areas of study. Founded in 1887, Cedarville is recognized nationally for its authentic Christian community, rigorous academic programs, including its master of ministry program, strong graduation and retention rates, accredited professional and health science offerings and high student engagement ranking. For more information about the University, visit www.cedarville.edu .

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Lorraine Motel Sign Re-sited 2016

34’ 6” x 12’ x 2’ 10”

Fabricated steel and aluminum, polycarbonate, neon

2016 Open Studio Fellow

Artist Statement

A replica of the Lorraine Motel sign was relocated from Memphis, TN to Franconia, MN. This continues my investigation in reproducing objects outside of their original contexts by emphasizing the transformations that architecture undergoes in a new setting. The replica of the Lorraine Motel Sign, repositioned in northern Minnesota on the side of highway 8, could be mistaken for a possible new development or past site of a motel. The motel in Memphis, now the National Civil Rights Museum, which is the location of the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968. Reverend King was an influential voice for the nation and his powerful words continue to inspire future generations. This new Lorraine Motel Sign continues a conversation of growth, emphasizing the connection of this historical moment to the contemporary discussion of race, inequality and violence in the south and the north. 

This project would not have been possible without the dedication of Franconia’s staff and interns. A special thanks to Ben Janssens of SignMinds Inc.

Chris Larson

chrislarsonstudio.com

Born: St. Paul, MN, USA, 1996

Resides: St. Paul, MN, USA

MFA, Yale University School of Art, 1992

BFA, Bethel College, 1990

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