King Center Visit

The King Center

My first visit, to The King Center was on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of this year, 2015. My daughter was out of school and I was excited to finally see a landmark that I passed unknowingly, while driving over the years. There was a lot to see, which I wasn’t expecting. I was fascinated by the center and all that it had to offer. Our self-guided tour started outside with the Eternal Flame. We then sat by the Reflecting Pool, just feet away from the King’s crypt and talked of what it must have been like for African Americans in those times. As we entered Freedom Hall, we proceeded upstairs to see what was in store. There were many great artifacts which included personal belongings of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Coretta Scott King. There was even a room with Gandhi artifacts and also a room dedicated to Rosa Parks.

Our second stop was across the street at the Historic Fire Station No. 6. It was one of seven fire stations built in Atlanta during the 1890s to serve the city's bustling growth of suburban neighborhoods. In the 1930s and 1940s, Atlanta was a segregated city and African American children could only dream of being firefighters. However, the modern Civil Rights Movement led by Dr. MLK, Jr. in the late 1950s and 1960s paved the way. In 1963, the Atlanta Fire Department hired sixteen African American firefighters however, the captains were white. There was still segregation as the African American firemen were segregated to a specific station (No. 16) with segregated sleeping quarters and washrooms.

After this tour, we headed down Auburn Ave. to take a tour of MLK, Jr.’s childhood home. The Sweet Auburn Historic District is a historically preserved African-American neighborhood in Atlanta, Georgia. This is where Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was born and raised until he was 12 years old. Martin's maternal grandparents, Reverend Adam Daniel Williams and Jennie Williams, bought the house for $3,500 in 1909. Williams was pastor of the nearby...