The Group Travel Leader March 2022

COOKING EXPERIENCES

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Bring a large appetite FOOD & SPIRITS

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BIG EASY

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TRAI L 2022 TRAVEL GUIDE MARCH 2022

EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED Shopping, Food & Brews, Entertainment, Farms, and more.

Living life simply.

Holmes County & beyond.

Plan your group adventure and discover places to eat, shop, and stay.

Visit www.ohioamishcountry.com/groups or call 330-674-3975

Joy: A state of

happiness.

In Louisiana, we pour our heart and soul into everything we do, and what comes out is joy. We call it “joie de vivre,” and it spices up every meal we serve, vibrates in every note we play, and it’s what makes your time here so special.

Come one, come y’all – Come feed your soul in Louisiana.

Visit LouisianaTravel.com and plan your good times getaway today. ©2021 Louisiana Department of Culture, Recreation & Tourism

CONTENTS

GROUP TH E

TRAVEL LEADER

CHARTING THE EVOLUTION OF GROUP TR AVEL

COLU M NS

N EWS

6 Editor’s Marks

7 STS Domestic Showcase 8 Family Matters

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Beignets and cafe au lait are signature items at Cafe du Monde, one of New Orleans’ most iconic visitor destinations.

Photo by Claudia Uriops.

ISSUE

Ohio Spotlight

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Louisiana — A Cultural Gumbo

VOL 31 | ISSUE 3

Cooking Experiences

ON TH E COV E R

FOOD & SPIRITS

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Objects and Stories

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New Sites

K E LLY T Y N E R 888.253.0455 MAC T. LACY CHARLES A. PRESLEY BRIAN JEWELL HERBERT SPARROW DONIA SIMMONS

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Founder and Publisher Partner VP & Executive Editor Senior Writer Creative Director

KELLY TYNER KYLE ANDERSON ASHLEY RICKS SARAH SECHRIST CHRISTINE CLOUGH

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Civil Rights Ambassadors

kelly@grouptravelleader.com

VP, Sales & Marketing Director of Advertising Sales Graphic Design & Circulation Controller Copy Editor

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Turning Points

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Civil Rights Road Trips

The GROUP TRAVEL LEADER is published ten times a year by THE GROUP TRAVEL LEADER, Inc., 301 East High St., Lexington, Kentucky 40507, and is distributed free of charge to qualified group leaders who plan travel for groups of all ages and sizes. THE GROUP TRAVEL LEADER serves as the official magazine of GROUP TRAVEL FAMILY, the organization for traveling groups. All other travel suppliers, including tour operators, destinations, attractions, transportation companies, hotels, restaurants and other travel-related companies may subscribe to THE GROUP TRAVEL LEADER by sending a check for $59 for one year to: THE GROUP TRAVEL LEADER, Circulation Department, 301 East High St., Lexington, KY 40507. Phone (859) 2530455 or (859) 253-0503. Copyright THE GROUP TRAVEL LEADER, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction of editorial or graphic content in any manner without the written consent of the publisher is prohibited.

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We had a great time hosting our tour operator and travel industry friends from across the South at our Shuffleboard Showdown event during the Southeast Tourism Society’s Domestic Showcase in Virginia Beach! Special thanks to our longtime co-sponsor Heaven Hill and new co-sponsor James B. Beam for helping to make the event at Beachside Social such a success!

If you attend Domestic Showcase in Huntsville, Alabama, next year, we hope you’ll join us for another great event!

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Larceny Kentucky Mule • 2 oz. Larceny Bourbon • 3 oz. Ginger Beer

• Fresh Lime Wedge

• 1/2 oz. Fresh Lime Juice

• Fresh Mint

• 1/2 oz. Simple Syrup

Black Lemon Sour • 2 parts Jim Beam Black • 1 part lemon juice • 1 part simple syrup • Bunch Basil leaf

EDITOR’S MARKS

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BY BRIAN JEWELL

f there is one silver lining to the trials our community has suffered over the past two years, it’s this: The travel industry has discovered it is capable of good customer service.

For decades before the pandemic began, some elements of the travel industry had a reputation for mistreating customers. Airlines were by far the worst offenders, with interminable delays and ever-growing gotcha fees. But hotels, car companies and other organizations eventually embraced some of these bad service habits, too.

That changed at the beginning of the pandemic.

Airlines were forced to waive cancellations and change fees, and some airline leaders indicated they might consider making no-fee change policies permanent.

When travel cancellations increased in March 2020, tour companies large and small had to spring into full-fledged customer care mode. Large companies gave tens of millions of dollars in refunds and countless more millions in future credits. Smaller companies worked with their clients to reschedule tours again, again and again.

Those refunds, policy changes and other concessions weren’t easy for anybody. But they proved that even large companies are capable of empathy and humanity.

As we proceed into a future in which COVID-19 is no longer a dominant force in our lives, I’d like to think we can maintain some of that empathy and humanity. And though the large companies will have a lot of influence in that, each of us as individuals have important roles to play as well.

What does that look like for you? It’s going to depend on your specific function in the tourism community. But there are some unifying principles that

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can guide us all. And foremost among them is this: Give people some grace.

When you have trouble contacting a representative from a destination, a hotel or an attraction, give them some grace. They’re likely overwhelmed and under-resourced. Don’t get mad when they don’t call back quickly. Keep reaching out until they do. Even better, build enough time into your planning schedule that a slow response from a vendor doesn’t cause panic.

When travelers want to cancel trips with you shortly before departure, give them some grace. Yes, you could point them to your cancellation policy, insist that rules are rules and keep their deposits. But chances are these disruptions in travel plans are part of turmoil in their lives.

Maybe they’re sick or have a sick loved one. Maybe family drama is making travel impossible. When these things happen, let people cancel without fear of losing money. Even better, build enough margin into your budget that you can absorb a few cancellations without putting the entire trip in the red.

When your group arrives at a hotel and the front desk doesn’t have your keys ready, give the hotel some grace. They’re probably understaffed, and the person working at the front desk may not have had time to pre-key your rooms. They may not even know they were supposed to. So be patient, be friendly, and be flexible. Even better, build enough flexibility into your itinerary that a 30-minute delay at the hotel doesn’t put you behind.

In a challenging moment, grace and empathy can feel costly: They’ll cost you some time, some money and some hassle. But they’re not costs, they’re investments. And I have every confidence they’ll pay off in the long run.

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CONFERENCE

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STS BRINGS EDUCATIONAL COMPONENTS TO DOMESTIC SHOWCASE

CEO Monica Smith

VIRGINIA BEACH, Virginia — Monica Smith knew she wanted to add an educational component to the Southeast Tourism Society’s (STS) Domestic Showcase in 2022; she just had to figure out how to build it into the schedule.

Smith and her staff came up with the idea of offering the sessions at the meeting’s breakfasts, and a new tradition was born.

“We’re getting great feedback, and I expect to do it again next year,” said Smith, president and CEO of STS. “Those sessions really proved to be a great start to the day for our early-bird delegates who like to get up and get going.”

The STS Domestic Showcase was held February 13–15 in Virginia Beach, Virginia, and it was the first edition of the conference and marketplace delivered by STS. The Virginia Tourism Corporation and Virginia Beach Convention and Visitors Bureau were major partners in arranging for the first in-person Domestic Showcase in two years.

“Our total attendance was 375 delegates and that included 75 buyers and 41 journalists,” said Smith. “The remainder were suppliers and service providers, and that number includes our

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Huddle up!

Beachside Social event

newest invitees, our federal tourism partners from the U.S. Corps of Engineers, the National Parks and the U.S. Forest Service.”

Breakfast seminar sessions included an exclusive journalist breakfast with Captain Chris Ludford of Diversified Marine Services, who shared his experiences with oyster farming tours; a panel discussion on the future of experiential tourism moderated by Douglas Quinby of Arival, featuring panelists Brian Scullin of TUI Musement, Jennifer Cecil of Explore Charleston, and Eddie Lutz of the Ark Experience and Creation Museum; and a presentation by Cheryl Hargrove of Hargrove International on educational travel and cultural heritage tourism.

Marketplace appointments were held for two full days between travel destinations and travel buyers. Evening events were held at Virginia’s Military Aviation Museum, where delegates enjoyed a fascinating collection of historic planes, plus televised coverage of the Super Bowl; and at the Virginia Aquarium and Marine Science Center, where guests dined on fresh seafood and observed sharks, saltwater fish and other maritime wildlife.

PHOTOS COURTESY SOUTHEAST TOURISM SOCIETY

BY MAC LACY

Relaxing in Virginia Beach

The Group Travel Leader hosted a final night signature event with co-sponsors Heaven Hill Distillery and James B. Beam Distilling Company, where guests enjoyed a shuffleboard tournament and live music at Beachside Social.

“In the future, I can see us adding a day to Showcase on the front end for sales and marketing training for delegates who may be new to the industry,” said Smith. “Educational programming is a hallmark of ours, and I think we’re off to a great start.”

At the event’s closing luncheon, hosted by the Virginia Art Festival, which brought the Virginia International Tattoo for an overwhelming musical performance, Smith thanked numerous supporters who helped to make the inaugural event a success. In addition to the Virginia Tourism Corporation and the Virginia Beach CVB, she also credited her staff and the “transition committee” of volunteers from various states and cities who helped create the first STS Domestic Showcase.

STS Domestic Showcase in 2023 takes place in Huntsville, Alabama, April 17–20. southeasttourism.org

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FAMILY M AT T E R S

USE THIS TOOL TO CHECK M O T O R C OAC H S A F E T Y SALEM, Ohio — If you are reading this publication, chances are great you have chartered or will charter a motorcoach for a group or a friends and family trip. Research shows the average reader charters six motorcoaches a year that carry over 250 passengers on group excursions.

That’s a lot of people on tour each year, and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is a major reason you enjoy a safe travel experience.

FMCSA is the federal agency responsible for overseeing the safe operation of every motorcoach in the United States. It serves us so well that safe motorcoach travel is taken for granted. FMCSA works behind the scenes to ensure safe travel, with few of us ever knowing the impact it has or even that it exists.

Although your traveler may be unaware of the value FMCSA provides, you, as the trip organizer that charters the motorcoach, need to know about the tools FMCSA provides to ensure your choice of a motorcoach operator is safe one.

“Look Before You Book: Put Bus Safety First” is a campaign promoted by FMCSA to assist in the safe chartering of motorcoaches. FMCSA has partnered with this publication and The Group Travel Family of Brands in an awareness program that reaches 25,000 group travel planners that charter motorcoaches.

FMCSA urges all travel planners to “Look Before You Book” when planning bus travel and booking a bus company. Using the Bus Safety Search tool on the FMCSA website, travel planners can look up a bus company to view its safety history and any infractions or concerns to be aware of when making a bus company selection. Most bus companies are reputable and focused on passenger safety. Unfortunately, there are some companies that don’t follow safety requirements and put passengers at

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risk. Before booking a trip, travel planners should take a few moments to research bus company safety online with FMCSA’s Bus Safety Search.

The Look Before You Book App makes it easy to check out your next charter and includes five great features: searching for a bus company, checking to see whether the company is authorized to operate, reviewing the company’s safety records, ensuring the company is licensed and insured, and, if appropriate, reporting a company.

Travel planners will get firsthand training by FMCSA at the Select Traveler Conference, the African American Travel Conference, the Going On Faith Conference, Boomers In Groups and the Small Market Meetings Conference throughout 2022. You may also visit fmcsa.dot.gov and click to “Travel Planners.”

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LEAVENWORTH WINS CONFERENCE GIVEAWAY SALEM, Ohio — Group travel planners will have the opportunity to learn about Leavenworth, Kansas, at Group Travel Family of Brands travel conferences this year.

Kristi Lee, director of the Leavenworth Convention and Visitors Bureau, visited the Group Travel Family of Brands exhibit booth at the American Bus Association Marketplace in January and won a complimentary registration to any Group Travel Family of Brands (GTFBrands) conference of her choice.

GTFBrands travel conferences include Select Traveler Conference, Going on Faith Conference, Boomers in Groups, Small Market Meetings Conference and African American Travel Conference. They are all designed for the group travel planner to meet the travel industry and increase their destination knowledge.

“Ms. Lee was selected from over 300 travel industry delegates who dropped their business card off at our booth,” said Jennifer Ferguson, general manager of GTFBrands.

“We were overwhelmed by the interest and excitement.”

Ferguson and Janine Emanuel, conference manager at GTFBrands, attended American Bus Association Marketplace to spread the word about group travel and the value it brings to people who travel together.

“I’m happy that Leavenworth CVB will meet our group travel planners and that they will discover a great new destination,” said Emanuel.

For those travel planners who can’t make it to a conference this year, you can learn about Leavenworth by emailing cvb@firstcity.org or by calling 913-758-6725.

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Viking Cooking School

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Receiving instruction at Santa Fe School of Cooking

A baking experience at King Arthur Flour in Vermont COURTESY KING ARTHUR FLOUR

A finished jambalaya at Spuddy’s in Louisiana

COURTESY SANTA FE SCHOOL OF COOKING

COURTESY SPUDDY’S CAJUN COOKING

A CIA experience in Napa Valley

Baker at King Arthur Flour

Groups can enjoy refreshing drinks and behind-the-scenes tours at microdistilleries such as Corsair Distillery in Nashville.

BY VICTOR M. SAMUEL, COURTESY CIA

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Hershey Story in Pennsylvania COURTESY KING ARTHUR FLOUR

COURTESY HERSHEY STORY

Morning buns at King Arthur Flour

FOOD & SPIRITS

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GROUPS ENJOY THESE HANDS-ON CULINARY EXPERIENCES

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ood seems to taste better when you’ve played a part in making it.

Travelers eat on every trip, but savvy tour planners take culinary experiences to the next level by bringing their groups to interactive cooking schools for hands-on application.

Sound tempting? Read on, but be warned — diving into these edible destinations on an empty stomach is not advised. Cheers!

Spuddy’s Cajun Cooking VAC H E R I E , LO U I S IA N A

Oui, oui, mon cher! Deep in south Louisiana among alligators and andouille is Spuddy’s Cajun Cooking. Here chef Spuddy teaches groups big and small how to make spicy Cajun sausage by hand, colossal vats of jambalaya with a canoe paddle and piquant, satisfying gumbo. Each cooking class makes and eats delicious food while Spuddy shares stories about the state’s German coast, Cajun culture and, of course, the culinary heritage of southern Louisiana.

The Cajun Cooking Experience can accommodate up to three tour buses at a time, and operators are encouraged to work with Spuddy’s Cajun Cooking to customize classes for their groups. The typical hands-on demonstration lasts an hour and 45 minutes. This allows operators to offer an interactive lunch between morning and afternoon tour stops.

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Viking Cooking School G R E E NWO O D, M I S S I S S I PPI

Not all Southern food is battered and deep-fried in butter. For a more refined palate, there is distinguished Southern fare, and the Viking Cooking School in Greenwood, Mississippi, is on a mission to bring more refined cooking to more tables. Travelers who follow the epicurean lifestyle have probably heard of the designer kitchen appliance-maker Viking Ranges. Much less known is its Viking

Cooking School, where travelers can wind down with a drink while learning to make the perfect filet mignon in a cast iron skillet. The Viking Cooking School brings novices and naturals together to grow in their culinary appreciation and skills. Classes will teach participants the keys to distinguished Southern cooking. Some program offerings are based on dishes characters would have enjoyed in the blockbuster movie “The Help.” Operators can customize experiences based on seasonal menus, ethnic foods, cooking basics, baking, vegetarian foods, cocktails and more. No matter what your group chooses, it’s sure to be delicious.

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K ing Arthur Flour Baking School N O RWI C H, V E R M O NT

The smell of freshly baked bread can transform a cold, cramped apartment into a cozy home. That yeasty, salty aroma of ciabatta out of the oven simply can’t be beat — except by a bite with a good bit of butter. Combine aroma, taste and a hands-on feel, and you get hands-on, in-person classes at the King Arthur Baking Company in Norwich, Vermont, at its King Arthur Baking School.

The King Arthur Baking Company traces its roots back to the American Revolution. The phrase “as American as apple pie” only works if there is enough flour to bake it, and King Arthur’s ancestor company began selling flour in 1790.

With classes covering subjects like macarons, European tarts, flatbreads of Italy, and sticky fingers and breakfast buns, groups are sure to find something that will satisfy everyone. King Arthur Baking School’s teachers promise to make each topic accessible and fun so participants can master each technique with ease. For even more activities, travel planners will be happy to know the baking school connects to the King Arthur bakery and retail store.

K I N G A R T H U R B A K I N G .C O M / B A K I N G - S C H O O L

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Saltwater Farm

LI N CO LN V I LLE , M A I N E

Lincolnville, Maine, is home to Saltwater Farm and its founder, Annemarie Ahearn. With an unmatched enthusiasm for local seasonal foods, Saltwater Farm celebrates the yields of each New England season, knowing each one swells anticipation for the next.

With that philosophy, Ahearn rejects traditional recipes and instead teaches groups to embrace the foods produced right on the property. Participants harvest whatever the ground and bay happen to be producing at the time, from lovage, sorrel and chives to dandelion flowers and wild asparagus.

While some class subjects depart from the typical theme, most topics celebrate the Saltwater Farm’s affection for Maine and the coast. During the farm’s lobster cooking class, participants first take a trek to the nearby harbor to learn about the lobster industry.

Classes conclude with a communal feast around the Saltwater Farm’s farmhouse table, and participants leave with the confidence to create nourishing, tasty meals from nature’s bounty.

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Santa Fe School of Cooking SA NTA FE , N E W M E X I CO

The entertaining and informative chefs at the Santa Fe School of Cooking love to teach, and their group participants love to eat. For more than 30 years, the Santa Fe School of Cooking has been equipping visitors with the hands-on skills they need to make unique Southwestern, Native American and Spanish foods in a warm, welcoming environment with a sense of place. Though the Santa Fe School of Cooking stays true to its New Mexican culinary roots, the team is always putting out new programs to satisfy new cravings; classes feature cocktails, oyster shucking, high-altitude baking and more, all with a glass of something sparkling, if desired.

To get a taste of Santa Fe on foot, register your group for one of the School of Cooking’s restaurant tours. Chefs begin the tour at the School of Cooking and then lead groups to four different stops to discover the heart, soul and flavors of Santa Fe’s culinary scene.

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Culinary Institute of America N A PA , C A LI FO R N IA

A dream come true for serious foodies everywhere would be donning an apron to take cooking classes at the world’s leading culinary school: the Culinary Institute of America (CIA). Get ready to check that dream off your bucket list because the CIA at Copia offers food demonstrations and hands-on experiences inspired by the wines and foods in and around wine country in California’s Napa Valley.

The culinary institute’s branch in downtown Napa promises culinary adventures for food lovers. Groups can reserve space for demonstrations by leading culinary, wine-and-beverage experts or plan to get their hands dirty in the CIA at Copia’s stadium-size test kitchens. In addition to foundational cooking classes, participants can learn to taste, pour and pair sparkling wines, or train the palate to detect the subtlest nuance in artisanal cheeses, so they can dazzle their own dinner guests with what they’ve learned.

C I AC H E F. I D E

Salt Lake Culinary Education SA LT L A K E C IT Y

At Salt Lake Culinary Education, or SLICE, in Salt Lake City, no genre 12

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Maine’s Saltwater Farm

A culinary experience at Saltwater Farm

Bring your group and enjoy an enriching, shared COURTESY SALTWATER FARM

experience exploring centuries of Chickasaw history and traditions. The vibrant, vivid, living expression of Chickasaw culture unfolds through a 1700s tribal village, dance demonstrations,

of food is off the menu. If international fare gives your groups an appetite, SLICE has the hands-on classes you need. Take a bite out of some of these class titles: Dim Sum, Holi Celebrations: Indian Cooking, Mixology and Endless Pasta-Bilities.

No matter which menu tempts your group, each is conducted in the same way. Upon arrival, instructors greet participants with a specially prepared appetizer. While participants are tasting their appetizers, the instructing chef walks them through their chosen menu. The chef divides participants into smaller groups, and then the fun part begins. Once the new skills are mastered and the creative meals completed, everyone sits down to enjoy the fruits of their labor together.

traditional gardens and engaging exhibits. please call for

reservations

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The Hershey Story H E RS H E Y, PE N N SY LVA N IA

Milton S. Hershey was more than a chocolatier — he was the heart and soul of an entire town. Driven by compelling moral beliefs, Hershey used his vast wealth to enrich the community around his chocolate company. Today, The Hershey Story’s mission is to share his life and legacy.

Groups can learn about Hershey’s history through interactive displays, hands-on replicas from the original factory line, digital touch screen activities and special interactive exhibits for children or travelers looking to get in touch with their inner child. After exploring the museum, groups can roll up their sleeves in the Chocolate Lab. There, a 45-minute chocolate-pouring and decorating class awaits. Immediately following the Chocolate Lab experience, they can head to a tasting, where flights of chocolates from around the globe will inspire and indulge.

H E R S H E YS TO RY.O R G

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Visit our website for important COVID-19 information OPEN TUE–SAT 10 AM to 5 P M

L IVE STOM P DANCE DEMONSTRATIONS 11 AM and 2 P M

S u l p h u r , O k l a h o m a | 5 8 0 - 6 2 2- 7 1 3 0 | C h i c k a s a w C u l t u r a l C e n t e r . c o m

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OHIO

By Kati Hyer

FOOD & SPIRITS

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hether your group is itching for natural beauty, longing for luxurious lodging or needs to sink their teeth into new and unique experiences, the Buckeye State has it all. Ohio is home to big cities with thriving culture and arts scenes and secluded getaways full of comfort, history and charm. Planning a trip soon? Consider this your invitation to explore the vastness of the Buckeye State and some of its beloved and hidden treasures.

Groups can enjoy local wine and fine Italian food at Canton’s Gervasi Vineyard.

COURTESY GERVASI VINEYARD

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COURTESY ROCK AND ROLL HOF

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

National WWII Columbus’ Museum Center of Science and Industry COURTESY COSI

POPULAR DEMAND FRANKLIN PARK CONSERVATORY AND BOTANICAL GARDENS

Dale Chihuly sculptures at Franklin Park Conservatory

COURTESY FRANKLIN PARK CONSERVATORY

Between light displays, art installations, flowers in bloom and more, there is never a dull time to visit the Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens. The conservatory is a Columbus landmark where art, people and plants come together in awe-inspiring beauty. With multiple exhibitions and installations all year long, the conservatory offers numerous experiences for all ages.

Guests can explore its glasshouses, the historic John F. Wolfe Palm House, multiple gardens and the vibrant, lively and extensive glass artwork of Dale Chihuly, the largest Chihuly collection housed in a botanical garden.

ROCK & ROLL HALL OF FAME

In downtown Cleveland is a cooler-than-most museum.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame may be rebellious, but it’s not without a cause: It houses the world’s largest collection of rock ’n’ roll music artifacts and celebrates the contribution and significance of the genre. With exhibits, programs and concerts that pay tribute to legends of yesterday and today, guests will leave riffing on air guitars, slamming on air drums and whistling those irreplaceable melodies.

The modern building itself is reminiscent of the Louvre in Paris — and for good reason: They were both designed by contemporary architect, I.M. Pei.

CENTER OF SCIENCE AND INDUSTRY Franklin Park Conservatory’s “Blooms and Butterflies”

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Considered one of the nation’s top science museums, the Center of Science and Industry (COSI) in Columbus has delighted visitors from central Ohio and beyond through its trademark hands-on, experience-based learning for more than 50 years.

The COSI facility spans 320,000 square feet. Such a grand scale allows COSI to feature more than 300 exhibits, multiple interactive experiences, nine galleries, thrilling live shows, a permanent dinosaur exhibit with a life-size Tyrannosaurus rex and a planetarium. When it comes to group tours interested in science, COSI’s experiences run the gamut.

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Hotel LeVeque

UP AND COMING

A dining room at Golden Lamb

COURTESY HOTEL LEVEQUE

THE HEIGHTS

The Heights is the new on-rooftop lounge of the Renaissance Toledo Downtown Hotel that offers sweeping panoramic views, creative cocktails, global bites and a dazzling, upscale atmosphere day or night. An open room with floor-to-ceiling windows allows for large group gatherings, and small groups can reserve “igloos,” newly created, individually decorated see-through rooms atop the roof. Take your group to The Heights for stunning decor, resplendent outdoor seating and spectacular views overlooking the Maumee River. From The Heights, Coney Island guests can even get a glimpse of Detroit.

COURTESY CONEY ISLAND

GET LOST IN

DAYS GONE BY.

COURTESY GOLDEN LAMB

CONEY ISLAND PARK

Any spotlight on Ohio would have to include a theme park, and this one is no exception. On the banks of the Ohio River, Coney Island Park has been thrilling visitors for more than 100 years and continues to grow with Cincinnati today. Its new Challenge Zone invites the adventurous to tackle a water-based obstacle course. Slides, freefalls, balance beams, tunnels, climbing walls and more add a new “ninja warrior” element to an already tempting experience for groups.

HOCKING HILLS REGION

The Hocking Hills region is home to an eponymous state park — Ohio’s most popular — and numerous private and nonprofit attractions that embrace the outdoors with plenty of new attractions to enjoy. For the adrenaline lover, check out the newly opened Ultimate Zipline to experience the magic of flying through the trees. Unique-getaway seekers can go glamping at Nature’s Mystique, Lord of the Rings-themed Hobbit holes built into the hills. Or let the vastness of the night sky take your breath away at the recently opened John Glenn Astronomy Park, situated in the darkest part of the state for wow-factor night sky viewing.

The Heights rooftop lounge at Renaissance Downtown Toledo

Bring your group to Greater Lima.

visitgreaterlima.com COURTESY RENAISSANCE DOWNTOWN TOLEDO

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MEMORABLE MEALS VELVET ICE CREAM

O V E R N I G H T S E N S AT I O N S HOTEL LEVEQUE

The crown jewel of downtown Columbus is the Hotel LeVeque, a beacon of sophistication that’s defined the city’s skyline since 1927. New owners have recently restored the Hotel LeVeque with modern updates and a new celestial theme — guests can use the telescopes in their rooms to see the stars or the Scioto river running through downtown.

GOLDEN LAMB

In 1803, Jonas Seaman paid $4 for a license to operate a “house of Public Entertainment” in the newly founded village of Lebanon. More than 215 years later, his establishment on Broadway still feeds and lodges travelers. A reservation today will give groups a mix of modern amenities, historic antiques and Shaker-style architecture and decor.

The hotel has lodged authors including Charles Dickens and presidents including William Taft.

In the town of Utica, Velvet Ice Cream’s roots go back more than a century to 1914, when Joseph Dager first sold his chocolate, vanilla and strawberry ice creams out of a basement confectionery.

Today, the ice creamery delights and satisfies with its popular desserts, lunch and dinner, carriage rides, carousel, entertainment and wide-open spaces.

GERVASI VINEYARD AND BISTRO

Within the Canton city limits is a working farm, award-winning vineyard and Old World, Tuscan-inspired restaurant: The Gervasi Vineyard and Bistro.

Stroll through the lush rows of grapes or take a walk around the lake before heading inside for a glass of wine and a plate of rustic, upscale Italian cuisine.

Velvet Ice Cream OHIO.ORG COURTESY VELVET ICE CREAM

Play & Stay Shores & Islands Ohio is more than just a place, it’s a feeling.

Find your Lake Erie Love at groups.SHORESandISLANDS.com.

Start planning your group tour experience, contact Tiffany Frisch at tiffany@shoresandislands.com.

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D E S T I N AT I O N

BEYOND BAYOUS SOUTHERN LOUISIANA OFFERS GROUPS A D I V E R S I T Y O F C U LT U R A L E X P E R I E N C E S

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BY JILL GLEESON

outhern Louisiana, that famously flat, marshy landscape, is united by more than beautiful bayous.

From the most populous city in the state, the beloved New Orleans, to capital Baton Rouge, the Cajun country in Lafayette and the charming Lake Charles, each of southern Louisiana’s major urban areas offers culture like you can’t find anywhere else. Art repositories, historical institutions, fine architecture and even a museum dedicated to what’s been called America’s first cocktail: This slice of the Pelican State has got it all.

And each city is easy to reach from Interstate 10, making the journey from NOLA to The Chuck perfect for motorcoach tours. Along the way passengers will get to cross the Mighty Mississippi and see the stunning Atchafalaya Basin, graced with cypress trees and birds including herons, cormorants, egrets and pelicans. The entire trip, without stops, is only three and a half hours, another big bonus for tour operators.

But little can compare with the culture in southern Louisiana cities, so let’s take a swing through the highlights.

N E W OR L E A NS Packed with a wide range of diverse cultural goodies, New Orleans is a dream excursion for group travelers. There’s so much to do that the most difficult part of planning a trip there might be choosing which attractions to visit. Thu Tran, senior account executive at New Orleans and Company, suggests beginning with a visit to the two Louisiana state museums on Jackson Square — the Cabildo and the Presbytère — both located in stunning Spanish Colonial buildings erected in the late 18th century. Crowd-pleasing permanent exhibitions include “From ‘Dirty Shirts’ to Buccaneers: The Battle of New Orleans in American Culture” at the Cabildo and “Living With Hurricanes: Katrina and Beyond” at the Presbytère.

BY ERICA GOLDRING, COURTESY MAPNOLA

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An exhibit at Joy and Art Music NOLA celebrates the musical and cultural heritage of southern Louisiana.

Sazerac House in New Orleans COURTESY VISIT NEW ORLEANS

Baton Rouge’s Old State Capitol

“I also recommend the educational galleries at the Historic New Orleans Collection,” said Than, who specializes in group assistance. “This space has interactive exhibits where one can engage with objects and discover stories that make up our city’s history. They do tours for groups — the Historic Collection has a network of historians and experts, and they really have the best guides that you can arrange in advance.”

Other must-see cultural stops include the New Orleans Museum of Art, with 5,000 years of art represented in 40,000 works and offering a justifiably renowned sculpture garden; and the always-popular Mardi Gras World, which dishes up special experiences for groups like a mask-making workshop and lunch with a view overlooking the Mississippi River.

As befitting a city bursting at the seams with artistic energy, several cultural attractions have opened in New Orleans in the past few years. The Sazerac House is a threestory museum dedicated to the cocktail first served in New Orleans in the mid-19th century. The gift shop is sure to delight all alcohol aficionados, and everything from complimentary tours to special tastings is available to groups.

And Joy Art and Music NOLA, or JAMNOLA, which is far more fun than any traditional art gallery, features 12 colorful, show-stopping exhibits that celebrate New Orleans’ contributions to the creative world.

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BATON ROUGE

BY MAGGIE BOWLES, COURTESY VISIT BATON ROUGE

An 80-mile drive northwest on Interstate 10 takes travelers from New Orleans to Baton Rouge, Louisiana’s vibrant capital. And just like New Orleans, it boasts a fascinating heritage thanks to the diversity of the people who settled it.

“Louisiana has a culture that’s just so different from anywhere else,” said Karron Alford, director of marketing and technology for Visit Baton Rouge. “And in Baton Rouge, you know we had the French influence, we had the Spanish influence, we had the German influence, the Native American, so I would say the city is definitely part of that unique cultural mix.”

According to Alford, the outdoor sculpture Red Stick is an artwork that “really defines” the city. Rising from Southern University’s Baton Rouge campus, close to the banks of the Mississippi, it was inspired by the tale of how the city got its name.

“Native Americans in the area would put their animal hides on sticks, and the blood would drip down it,” Alford said.

“When French explorers landed, it was one of the first things they saw, so they named the city Baton Rouge, or Red Stick.”

After taking a gander at Red Stick, groups will want to head to the State Capitol. The tallest such structure in the nation at 460 feet, the Art Deco beauty was dedicated in 1932 and offers an observation deck and guided tours that are great for groups. Across the street from it, the Capitol Park Museum is a 69,000-square-foot, state-run attraction chock full of enlightening ephemera related to Louisiana and Baton Rouge, including a giant faux crawfish that group visitors will be sure to love.

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Lafayette’s St. John Cathedral

Tour groups will also appreciate a visit to the Old State Capitol, which resembles a castle and features a grand spiral staircase that leads up to a soaring stained-glass ceiling. And soon, the Baton Rouge African American Museum will be moving into a new facility that will provide more room for exhibits such as a 1953 bus from the year of the city’s bus boycott.

V I S I T B ATO N R O U G E .C O M

L A FAY E T T E Less than an hour from Baton Rouge on Interstate 10 but a world away from that city’s political hustle and bustle is Lafayette, the heart of Louisiana’s French-speaking Cajun Country. To get an understanding of the area’s traditions and customs, groups might first pay a visit to either the Acadian Village or Vermilionville. Acadian Village offers a re-creation of a Cajun settlement from the 1800s, complete with authentic restored homes; Vermilionville explores Acadian, Creole and Native American cultures in a similar setting.

“It’s a living-history museum, where there are artisans doing crafts,” Eugenie Mitchell, vice president of tourism sales at Lafayette Convention and Visitors Commission, said

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Louisiana State Museum COURTESY LOUISIANA STATE MUSEUM

University Art Museum in Lafayette

BY KENT HUTSLAR, COURTESY UAM

COURTESY LAFAYETTE TRAVEL

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A gallery in Lake Charle’s 1911 historic City Hall

COURTESY LAKE CHARLES/SWLA CVB

Artwork in Lake Charles

of Vermilionville. “On Sundays they host a dance, Bal du Dimanche, and on Saturdays, they do a Cajun jam, so local musicians come in and play music, which is great, too.” Groups can schedule a guided tour at Vermilionville; available enhancements include cooking classes, dance lessons and boat tours.

Tour leaders may wish to give groups time on their own in downtown Lafayette, which provides a wealth of cultural attractions within walking distance of one another. The Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist features a museum of Catholic artifacts and relics, as well as gorgeous stained glass imported from Germany and the second-largest organ in the South. The Alexandre Mouton House, once home to the first Democratic governor of Louisiana, now houses the Lafayette Museum, dedicated to the city’s history. With a projected opening sometime in 2023, the Louisiana Music Museum, which will be located adjacent to the Acadiana Center for the Arts, promises to be another downtown Lafayette crowd-pleaser.

“It’s going to feature a dance hall, so you’ll have live music coming in through there,” said Mitchell. “It looks like it will be very well done. We’re really excited.”

L A FAY E T T E T R AV E L .C O M

©Laura Grier

COURTESY LAKE CHARLES/SWLA CVB

Tri-Parish Itinerary

SOUL OF THE SOUTH

On the multi-day itinerary, groups will learn about the stories and traditions that honor the contributions and untold history of Louisiana’s Native, Creole, and African Americans. The route begins on the Louisiana Northshore and features destinations in the tri-parish region of St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana River Parishes, and Jefferson Parish.

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LAKE CHARLES City Hall in Lake Charles

With a population just north of 77,000, Lake Charles may be the smallest city on our list, but it is mighty in culture.

Named for the parish in which Lake Charles sits, the Imperial Calcasieu Museum features Mardi Gras memoribilia, fine art exhibits and antiques related to the area’s history.

For a quirkier look at times past, groups should head to the Henning Cultural Center, tucked away in nearby Sulphur.

“They actually have one of my favorite displays that I’ve ever been to,” said Kaitlyn Gallegos, director of global sales at Visit Lake Charles. “It’s called ‘Chaos Theory,’ and in one section they re-create an entire 1990s bedroom, from the comforter set to the computer table with the old Macintosh computer. So it’s pop-culture centered, and it’s also interactive. It’s really fun.”

Like the Henning Cultural Center, admission is free to the 1911 Historic City Hall Arts and Cultural Center.

The center features both the Black Heritage Gallery and the Gallery by the Lake. The former zeros in on the contributions African Americans have made to the region, while the latter hosts traveling exhibitions.

“They’ve had a Pablo Picasso show, Norman Rockwell, Ansel Adams and tons of other really well known artists in there,” Gallegos said.

BY LINDSEY JANIES, COURTESY VISIT LAKE CHARLES

V I S I T L A K E C H A R L E S .O R G

With our wide array of beautiful meeting spaces, flexible itinerary customization, and lagniappe such as multilingual tour leads, group travel is made easy in Louisiana’s River Parishes.

Let Willma Harvey, CTP, CTIS customize the perfect trip for your group. willma@lariverparishes.com | 985-359-2783

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FLIGHT SEEING

MASSIVE MUSEUMS CELEBR ATE AIR AND SPACE ACHIEVEMENTS

Groups can see a variety of historic aircraft and stunning architecture at the National Air and Space Museum’s Udvar-Hazy Center in Virginia.

COURTESY UDVAR-HAZY CENTER

BY TOM ADKINSON

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ne aspect of air and space museums is clear: They are big. Really big.

That size, of course, lets you see the scale of history: Grasp the massiveness of a Saturn V rocket, admire a sleek Concorde supersonic jetliner, and understand, at least a bit, about a Blackbird spy plane’s speed. You also can imagine being cramped inside a Mercury space capsule, soaring over a World War I battlefield in a De Havilland biplane or luxuriating in a Lear jet.

Here are five spacious, ambitious and inviting destinations that can take your group up, up and away — at least figuratively.

ARTWORK BY DONIA SIMMONS

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An Apollo command module at Kansas’ Cosmosphere

COURTESY COSMOSPHERE

A historic C47 plane on display at the Strategic Air Command and Aerospace Museum COURTESY SACAM

COSMOSPHERE HUTCHINSON, KANSAS

HUNTSVILLE IS A GO FOR RE-ENTRY Our Mission Is Living Life to the Fullest.

Home to the world’s largest space museum and U.S. Space Camp, “Rocket City” reignites America’s ingenuity and lively spirit. Featuring a vibrant arts and entertainment district, plus a vast number of natural attractions and cuisine offerings, Huntsville, Alabama, is the perfect destination for those who want to see and do it all.

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Don’t let the humble beginnings of the Cosmosphere at Hutchinson Community College in Hutchinson, Kansas, fool you. This is a top-notch science center that is a Smithsonian Affiliate with a long-term connection to the National Air and Space Museum.

Its story began in 1962 when space enthusiast Patty Carey, a layperson rather than a scientist, set up a used planetarium projector in the Poultry Building of the Kansas State Fairgrounds. A move to the college and multiple expansions produced today’s multifaceted Cosmosphere.

There’s a better planetarium now, plus an Imax dome theater, galleries exploring many aspects of rocketry and space travel, simulators visitors can experience and plenty of hardware.

Among the hardware are Mercury, Gemini and Apollo program vehicles, including the famous command module from the Apollo 13 mission — yes, the aborted mission that captivated the world and led to a movie that won two Academy Awards.

Other artifacts include a lunar rover replica, World War II V-1 and V-2 rockets, spacesuits worn by Gemini astronauts, an authentic Sonic Wind rocket sled and more Russian space artifacts than anywhere outside of Moscow. Among the programs is a peek inside the 1930s lab of Robert Goddard, the father of modern rocketry, which the Cosmosphere teases is an interactive show “packed with some explosive surprises.”

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U. S . S PAC E A N D R O C K E T C E N T E R HUNTSVILLE, ALABAMA The Cosmosphere has a one-tenth scale Saturn V rocket, which is rather impressive, but the real deal, a 363-foot-long Saturn V, is a star attraction at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama.

The U.S. Space and Rocket Center is Alabama’s most-visited attraction, and it also is the gateway to another destination, the Marshall Space Flight Center, which doesn’t get as much attention but is also a solid group tour target.

In addition to the Saturn V, a National Historic Landmark and one of only three in the world, attractions include stunning astronomy shows and live performances at the full-dome Intuitive Planetarium, an explanation of the space race and America’s eventual lunar landing; a mock-up of the Apollo 11 lunar landing site; a close look at the International Space Station’s design — the real one is 248 miles overhead — and Shuttle Park, showcasing America’s most complete chronology of launch vehicles.

Savvy tour organizers should book a docent to deliver extra explanations of all you can see.

The internationally famous Space Camp turns 40 this year, and the pandemic has opened the door to experience some of the Space Camp’s facilities not usually available to groups.

Inquire about opportunities, and enjoy the total attraction, now in its second half-century: It turned 50 in 2020.

Inside the planetarium at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center COURTESY U.S. SPACE AND ROCKET CENTER

The Space Hangar at the Smithsonian’s Udvar-Hazy Center

R O C K E TC E N T E R .C O M

BY JIM PRESTON, COURTESY UDVAR-HAZY CENTER

T H E N A T I O N A L A I R A N D S P A C E M U S E U M ’ S S T E V E N F. U D V A R - H A Z Y C E N T E R

BOUNDARIES

Space Shuttle Discovery, one of the largest objects to leave Earth’s atmosphere—and return.

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CONVENTION

See some of the rarest and most unique aviation and space artifacts in the Museum’s collection.

PRECONCEPTIONS

Explore the museum on your own, or take a free guided tour.* *Groups of 10 or more, reservations required.

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S T R AT E G I C A I R C O M M A N D A N D A E R O S PAC E M U S E U M OMAHA, NEBRASKA In America’s heartland between Omaha and Lincoln, Nebraska, is a massive attraction that preserves and interprets one of the tensest periods in American history. It is the Strategic Air Command and Aerospace Museum, and its story is of the Cold War, the fraught time between the end of World War II and the dissolution of the Soviet Union.

“The fact we are totally indoors is important,” said deputy director John Lefler, noting that the 300,000-square-foot facility is brimming with massive, important and approachable aircraft. “The way we display airplanes allows visitors to go right up to them.”

It’s quite a collection: A B-17 is only 150 feet from an SR-71 spy plane. Change your perspective to see a B-29, a U-2 and a B-36. The B-36 alone is worth the visit. It was the largest piston-engine aircraft ever built with a wingspan of 230 feet, could stay aloft for 40 hours, could reach targets 3,400 miles away and even carried a retrievable fighter plane for defense. Late models had six propeller engines and four jet engines; “six turnin’ and four burnin’” was its slogan.

Another favorite experience for many museum visitors is watching restoration work inside a gigantic hangar, Lefler said. Getting attention now are an F-117 stealth attack aircraft, a Vulcan bomber and a T-29 “Flying Classroom.”

Groups benefit from a quartet of short films in a 108-seat theater and daily tours led by docents, most of whom are veterans with personal insight into the museum’s stories.

S AC M U S E U M .O R G

U DVA R - H A Z Y C E N T E R CHANTILLY, VIRGINIA

LET’S MEET UP IN LINCOLN, NEBRASKA

LINCOLN.ORG/GTL

There is nothing more exciting than meeting new people, hearing their stories and being inspired.

The Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum has two locations: the rock star facility on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., and the Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia, near Dulles International Airport. Both will knock your socks off.

The Udvar-Hazy Center — a complex of two gigantic hangars, an Imax theater and much more — opened in 2003, and an average of 1.3 million visitors a year wander right up to touchstones of aviation history.

“We tell the story of flight from early ballooning to space travel,” said Holly Williamson, public affairs specialist. “We’re large enough to house the Discovery Space Shuttle — 39 missions covering 365 days — and not be crowded.”

Indeed, it’s not crowded by the Discovery, the Enola Gay B-29 Superfortress bomber, an Air France Concorde, a Boeing 367-80 transport jet, planes from the German Luftwaffe, aerobatic biplanes, helicopters, sailplanes, ultralights and even a Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird. The Blackbird’s top speed is classified, but it is more than 2,100 miles per hour: coast to coast in 1:04:20.

“Each of our 3,000 artifacts has a story, and we encourage groups to take our free tours to hear some of those stories,” Williamson said.

“Our docents are incredible, and there are no scripts. Most docents are pilots, flight instructors and engineers, and each tour is different.”

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U N IT E D STAT E S

CIVIL RIGHTS

TRAIL 2 0 2 2 T R AV E L G U I D E

CONTINUE THE JOURNEY.

FOLLOW THE TRAIL.

The U.S. Civil Rights Trail

Tennessee has 14 stops

is a collection of churches, courthouses, schools, museums and other landmarks that played a pivotal role in advancing social justice in the 1950s and 1960s.

that tell the stories of the brave people who, throug h peace f ul protests and legal action, fought to secure their American civil rights.

TENNESSEE Locations memphis ★

NATIONAL CIVIL RIGHTs MUSEUM AT THE LORRAINE MOTEL

I AM A MAN Plaza ★

CIVIL RIGHTS ROOM, NASHVILLE PUBLIC LIBRARY

★ ★

★ ★ Credit: Journal Communications Inc. Jeff Adkins

NATIoNAL MUSeum of AFRICAN AMeRICAN MUSIC

STAX museum of american STAX soul RECORDS music

Beale Street Historic Distict Clayborn Temple / I AM A MAN Plaza Mason Temple National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel WDIA Radio Stax Museum of American Soul Music

nashville ★

★

★

FISK UNIVERSITY CLINTON 12 STATUE, GREEN MCADOO Cultural center

DAVIDSON COUNTY COURTHOUSE AND THE WITNESS WALLS

★ ★

★

★

Civil Rights Room at the Nashville Public Library Clark Memorial United Methodist Church Davidson County Courthouse and the Witness Walls Fisk University National Museum of African American Music Griggs Hall, American Baptist College Woolworth Theatre

clinton ★

Clinton 12 Statue at Green McAdoo Cultural Center

For more information visit

tncivilrightstrail.com Scan to download the digital passport.

CONTENTS 6

A Civil Rights Timeline

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Civil Rights Ambassadors

F O L L OW I M P O R TA N T C I V I L R I G H T S E V E N T S F R O M 1 95 1 T O 1 9 6 8

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A Growing Message T H E N E X T G E N E R AT I O N CA R R I E S T H E T O R C H O F T H E C I V I L R I G H T S M OV E M E N T AT S I T E S ALONG THE TRAIL.

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Turning Points

I N N OVAT I V E S T O RY T E L L I N G M E T H O D S A R E B R I N G I N G T H E C I V I L R I G H T S S T O RY T O N E W AU D I E N C E S .

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Objects and Their Stories E V E N T S AT T H E S E H I S T O R I C S I T E S H A D M A J O R I M PAC T S O N T H E C I V I L R I G H T S M OV E M E N T.

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Civil Rights Road Trips

MUSEUMS AND HISTORIC SITES USE OBJECTS T O T E L L E X T R AO R D I N A RY S T O R I E S O F C I V I L R I G H T S AC T I V I S T S .

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New on the Trail TAK E A D E E P D IV E W ITH TR AI L S A N D TO U R ITIN E R AR IE S H I G H L I G HTIN G IN D IV I D UA L S TATE S.

PUBLISH E D F O R

T H I R T E E N N E W S I T E S H AV E B E E N E N S H R I N E D O N T H E U. S . C I V I L R I G H T S T R A I L F O R 2 0 2 2 .

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3500 PIEDMONT RD. NE, STE. 775 ATLANTA, GA 30305 404-231-1790 WWW.CIVILRIGHTSTRAIL.COM

ON THE COVER: CIVILRIGHTSTRAIL.COM

Fannie Lou Hamer, a Mississippi civil rights activist, was instrumental in the push for voting rights in the 1960s. Painting by John Springfield.

PUBLISHED BY

NICHE TRAVEL PUBLISHERS 301 EAST HIGH STREET LEXINGTON, KY 40507 888-253-0455 WWW.GROUPTRAVELLEADER.COM

TO ADVERTISE: KELLY@GROUPTRAVELLEADER.COM

Chris Granger

What happened here changed the world.

W

hen 10 sticks of dynamite planted by the Birmingham Ku Klux Klan exploded at 16th Street Baptist Church on Youth Sunday, four little Black girls were killed, a fifth maimed and two Black boys were slain nearby. The date of Sept. 15, 1963 registered the single greatest loss of life during the Civil Rights Movement.

Now revered as part of the Birmingham Civil Rights National Monument, a National Park Service unit, the stillactive church, including the museum in the basement, is open for tours. To learn more about dozens of sites on the U.S. Civil Rights Trail, search civilrightstrail.com For information contact: Rosemary.Judkins@tourism.alabama.gov or call 334.242.4493

1951

CIVIL

WA L KO U T AT RO B E R T R U S SA M OTO N HIGH SCHOOL FA R M V I LLE , V I RGI N I A

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B ROW N V. B OA R D O F E D U CATI O N SU P RE M E C O U R T DEC ISI O N I L L EG A L I Z E S S C H O O L SEG REG AT I O N

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E M M E T T TI L L M U R D E R E D MON EY, M ISSISSI PPI

RIGHTS MOVEMENT

TIMELINE

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1956

B U S E S D E S E G R E G AT E D MON TG OM ERY, A LA BA M A

MANY THOUSAN DS OF PEOPLE CONTRIBUTED RIGHTS

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M A R TI N L U T H E R K I N G J R . L E A D S S O U T H E R N C H R I S TI A N L E A D E R S H I P CONFERENCE MON TG OM ERY, A LA BA M A C IV I L R I G H T S AC T O F 1 957 S I G N E D I N TO L AW BY PR E S I D E N T DW I G H T E I S E N H OW E R

TO

MOVEM ENT

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L A R G E A N D S M A L L , B UT N U M E R O U S H I G H - P R O F I L E E V E NT S F R O M 1 9 5 1 T O 1 9 6 8 G A LVA N I Z E D T H E N AT I O N . H E R E ’ S A T I M E L I N E O F T H E M A J O R M I L E STO N E S D U R I N G T H AT P E R I O D.

I N T E G R ATI O N AT C E N TR A L H I G H S C H O O L LIT T LE RO CK, A R K A NSA S

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1961

L U N C H C O U N T E R S IT- I N S GR EENSBORO, NORT H CA ROLI NA

FREEDOM RIDES M O B S AT TAC K F RE E D O M R I DE RS I N VA RI O US S O U T H E RN C I T I E S

1962

U N IV E R S IT Y O F M I S S I S S I PPI D E S E G R E G AT E D OX FOR D, M ISSISSI PPI

1963

T H E B I R M I N G H A M CA M PA I G N BI R M I NGH A M, A LA BA M A MEDGAR EVERS MURDERED JACK SON, M ISSISSI PPI M A R C H O N WA S H I N GTO N WA SH I NGTON, D.C. B O M B I N G O F 1 6 T H S TR E E T B A P TI S T C H U R C H BI R M I NGH A M, A LA BA M A

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1965

C IV I L R I G H T S AC T O F 1 9 6 4 S I G N E D I N TO L AW

BY PR E S I D E N T LY N D O N B .

JOHNSON “ B L O O DY S U N DAY ” O N T H E E D M U N D PE T T U S B R I D G E SELM A, A LA BA M A VOTI N G R I G H T S AC T S I G N E D I N TO L AW BY PR E S I D E N T LY N D O N B .

JOHNSON

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M A R TI N L U T H E R K I N G J R .

A S SA S S I N AT E D M EM PH IS, T EN N ESSEE C IV I L R I G H T S AC T O F 1 9 6 8 S I G N E D I N TO L AW BY PR E S I D E N T LY N D O N B .

JOHNSON

Stroll Harpers Ferry National Historic Park and hear the echoes of a town with a fascinating living history. This quaint retreat in the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia is an official destination along the U.S. Civil Rights Trail.

Feel free to explore every part of its small-town charm.

WVtourism.com

Harpers Ferry

U N IT E D STAT E S

CIVI L RIGHTS

TRAI L

U.S. Civil Rights Trail Broadens its Reach Courtesy VTC

BY BR I A N JEW ELL

T

THE VIRGINIA CIVIL RIGHTS MEMORIAL COMMEMORATES STUDENT ACTIVIST BARBARA JOHNS AND OTHER VIRGINIANS INVOLVED IN THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT.

he stories of the civil rights movement are timeless. But the organizers of the U.S. Civil Rights Trail are finding new ways to tell them.

The U.S. Civil Rights Trail is a cooperative effort to showcase more than 130 historic sites, churches, museums and other places of interest integral to the civil rights movement in the 1950s and 1960s. The trail stretches from Topeka, Kansas, to Wilmington, Delaware, and Sarasota, Florida.

Since it launched in 2018, the trail has garnered significant media attention and accolades, including being named one of America’s 50 best road trips in 2022 by Fodor’s Travel. Now, leaders are capitalizing on that exposure to build public interest through a variety of new technologies and storytelling platforms.

‘Different and Deeper Stories’

“We’re trying to adopt as many different channels as we can to communicate different and deeper stories about the movement to inspire people to want to go to the sites,” said Liz Bittner, managing director of the U.S. Civil Rights Trail Marketing Alliance. “It is historic, but we don’t want history to be boring. We want it to be

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enlightening. Classic storytelling uses different ways of telling stories. So we have a lot of video and audio. We have music and a very robust social media outreach.”

Chief among these efforts is a new marketing campaign called Ordinary Objects, Extraordinary Stories that will combine online videos with print media to showcase littleknown items that played pivotal roles in the lives of civil rights pioneers.

“That would be something like John Lewis’ backpack,” Bittner said. “Backpacks are very common now, but in the 1960s they weren’t the norm. Many of the folks who would be at sit-ins or marching knew there was a huge possibility they would get arrested. So they started bringing backpacks along with them. John Lewis’ backpack had some personal toiletry items in case he was going to spend the night in jail.

Other objects of interest in the campaign will include a simple school desk, which is

The experience is unforgettable .

Because the lessons should never be forgotten .

There’s no better place to learn about the struggle for black equality while walking in the footsteps of the Movement’s heroes. It’s all here, from the world-class Mississippi Civil Rights Museum to the Fannie Lou Hamer Memorial Garden and Emmett Till Interpretive Center. Plan your journey today at VisitMississippi.org/CivilRights.

Tallahatchie County Courthouse | Sumner, Mississippi

U N IT E D STAT E S

CIVIL RIGHTS

TRAIL 2 0 2 2 T R AV E L G U I D E

U.S. CIVI L RIGHTS TRAI L 2020 TRAVE L GUI DE

U NS U N G

HEROS

WWW.CIVILRIGHTSTRAIL.COM

CONTINUE THE JOURNEY.

FOLLOW THE TRAIL.

FANNIE LOU HAMER

O

ur cover portrait this year is of Fannie Lou Hamer, a voting rights activist, community organizer and civil rights leader from

Mississippi.

Hamer began working in civil rights in 1962 and continued her advocacy for nine years in various capacities. She worked with the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) to help organize Mississippi’s Freedom Summer, a 1964 voting rights campaign. That same year, she attended the Democratic National Convention as a representative of the Freedom Democratic Party, which she co-founded.

She was known for her use of spirituals and hymns in her public speaking and advocacy. Hamer endured threats, harassment and physical assault from opponents throughout her career but was never deterred.

In this painting by artist John Springfield, Hamer is depicted speaking to a crowd at a voting rights demonstration at a Methodist church in Mississippi.

Hamer is one of many underappreciated heroes of the civil rights movement whose contributions, though often overshadowed by the most prominent figures of the era, were instrumental in the effort’s success. You’ll find profiles of others in sidebars throughout this magazine.

Travelers planning a trip on the U.S. Civil Rights Trail can find all the latest news about civil rights sites and events at the website:

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used to illustrate the profound differences in the way Black and white schools were equipped during the Jim Crow era, as well as a bicycle that became a catalyst for Muhammad Ali’s early introduction to boxing.

‘Educational and Interesting’

Along with this campaign, the marketing alliance is producing a series of podcasts that will explore civil rights stories in greater depth. The podcast topics center around the trail’s core pillars, such as education, voting rights, freedom of movement and changing laws. The first episodes launched in January, with more coming out every month this year and focusing on different states.

“I’m super excited about these podcasts,” Bittner said. “For people who like NPR, they’re in that style: educational and interesting at the same time.

“One Louisiana episode, for example, is all about that meeting and organizing places where people met to get their talking points together and figure out what the groups were going to do.

Lots of those meetings would take place at church buildings.

But it could also have been at a local diner, like Dooky Chase Restaurant in New Orleans.”

Dooky Chase Restaurant is among nine sites in Louisiana that are joining the trail in 2022. Others include the McDonogh 19 Elementary School, the Louisiana Old State Capitol in Baton Rouge and the Camp Beauregard Military Museum in Pineville.

The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City, Kansas, is now featured on the trail as well, as is the Danville Museum of Fine Arts and History in Danville, Virginia. New additions also include two Tennessee sites: the National Museum of African American Music in Nashville and the Stax Museum in Memphis.

Since music was such an integral part of the civil rights movement and its legacy, the marketing alliance is also promoting songs of the era with playlists on the popular music streaming platform Spotify.

‘A Much Wider Audience’

Bittner said that the goal of these new initiatives is to stoke interest in civil rights history that already exists among the traveling public.

“There’s a high interest around the topic,” she said. “And one of the research studies we did last year found that United States civil rights history isn’t only interesting to historians or African Americans. It’s a much wider audience than many people assume. There’s a high interest level from people who consider themselves cultural travelers.”

For those cultural travelers, learning about the lives of everyday people who played a role in the civil rights movement is just as meaningful as recounting the achievements of nationally known figures. Those unsung heroes will factor prominently in the trail’s messaging.

“Our whole mission is to bring it to life, to have the footsteps of the foot soldiers and tell their stories,” Bittner said. So whether it’s on Spotify or on a podcast, or a YouTube video or a printed magazine, we’re going to bring those stories to life.”

carpools that drove

a movement

Two years before Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a bus in Alabama, many African Americans in Louisiana boycotted segregated buses in Baton Rouge.

This became the model for the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Join the ride on the Louisiana Civil Rights Trail.

Multiple Sites Single Site

KANSAS CITY

ST. LOUIS INDEPENDENCE

NEGRO LEAGUES BASEBALL MUSEUM KANSAS CITY

CIVIL RIGHTS AND MISSOURI A 2 0 0 -Y E A R S T O RY Missouri is home to places, people and events that have impacted the fight for racial equality. Experience their stories at these locations.

Explore more Missouri civil rights stories at VisitMo.com

DISCOVER THE STORIES OF TRAILBLAZERS WHO BROKE THE COLOR BARRIER LIKE JACKIE ROBINSON AND BUCK O’NEIL.

HARRY S. TRUMAN PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY & MUSEUM INDEPENDENCE

EXPLORE THE LEGACY OF HARRY S. TRUMAN, WHO DESEGREGATED THE ARMED FORCES THROUGH EXECUTIVE ORDER.

OLD COURTHOUSE ST. LOUIS

LEARN ABOUT DRED AND HARRIET SCOTT AND THE INFAMOUS SUPREME COURT DECISION REGARDING THEIR FREEDOM.

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THE DOORS TO BRYANT GROCERY, ON DISPLAY AT THE MISSISSIPPI CIVIL RIGHTS MUSEUM, INVITE VISITORS INTO THE SOBERING STORY OF 14-YEAR-OLD EMMETT TILL.

Civil rights has immortalized the ordinary

BY ROBIN ROEN K ER

S

ometimes ordinary objects can tell extraordinary stories.

At stops along the U.S. Civil Rights Trail, snippets of history are preserved — in historic markers, in museums and at historic spots — to mark the people and places that fostered a movement for equality.

As large as the movement was and as profound an effect as it had on American history, a single object or artifact can, at times, convey the weight of the civil rights struggle for those who lived it more powerfully than any textbook or documentary.

Here are five civil rights artifacts and their stories that offer a window into the rich history on display at U.S. Civil Rights Trail stops across the country.

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By Tom Beck, courtesy Visit Mississippi

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C L A R K DOL L Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site TOPEKA, KANSAS The innocent appearance of the so-called Clark Doll, a simple, plastic, dark-skinned toy doll, belies the damaging sociological truth it helped uncover.

During the 1940s, psychologists Kenneth and Mamie Clark designed experiments to study the effects of segregation on young Black children using brown-skinned and white-skinned dolls. When young African American children were shown the lighter-skinned doll, they assigned it positive characteristics; they assigned negative characteristics to the brown-skinned one.

The disturbing results of these studies were cited during court proceedings to determine the harmful psychological effects of school desegregation on students in five states, separate cases that would eventually Courtesy Brown v. Board NHS become combined in front of the Supreme Court as Brown v. Board of Education in 1954.

Today, at the Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site, which opened in Topeka, Kansas, in 2004, park rangers encour“The Clark Doll represents how psychologically detrimental segreage visitors to reflect on the Clark Doll, which gation is to students,” said ranger Nicholas Murray. “When asked which is on permanent display. doll is the nice doll or the pretty doll or the smart doll, an overwhelming

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majority of African American boys and girls would choose the white doll.”

The Brown v. Board site is known for having especially engaging exhibits that walk visitors through a timeline of civil rights history from post-Civil War America through the 1950s as well as an immersive, 30-minute video program that documents African American history from slavery through modern times, but the Clark Doll is one of the artifacts that typically has the most impact on visitors.

“Usually, the things that people remember when they come and visit is the Clark Doll itself or an exhibit we have called the ‘Hall of Courage,’ a narrow hall with screens on both sides where you walk through and experience attempts to desegregate schools,” said Murray. “It’s all historic images of different integration processes, with people yelling and screaming and throwing racial epitaphs. It’s intentionally jarring.”

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DOOR S TO BRYA N T GROC E RY Mississippi Civil Rights Museum JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI

Courtesy Visit Mississippi

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When 14-year-old Emmett Till walked into Bryant’s Grocery Store in Money, Mississippi, in August 1955, a set of events unfolded that would tragically cut short his young life.

The white shopkeeper, Carolyn Bryant, accused Till, a native of Chicago who was simply in the South to visit family, of flirting with her. Soon after, Bryant’s husband and his half brother abducted Till at gunpoint from his Mississippi relative’s home. Later, his brutally tortured and lifeless body was discovered in the Tallahatchie River.

The severity of Till’s beating, as well as the fact his murderers were ultimately acquitted, sparked national attention and an urgent desire for

Beyond the beaches and mountains of Georgia lies a path that inspires all those who walk it. Set off across the state on the U.S. Civil Rights Trail and follow in the footsteps of heroes. In Atlanta, honor the legacy of MLK at the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic Site where you can visit his birth home, memorial, and the iconic Ebenezer Baptist Church, where he was baptized and then preached alongside his father. Then be inspired by Georgia’s role in launching America’s civil rights movement at the National Center for Civil and Human Rights. But no matter which part of the trail you follow, you’ll carry the spirit and inspiration of Georgia’s heroes with you.

You’re ready for an unforgettable trip to Georgia. Start yours at ExploreGeorgia.org/CivilRightsTrail.

Ebenezer Baptist Church, Atlanta |

@nmatias

change within an entire generation of African American youth.

“There were people who were 15 and 16 years old who were reading about this and talking about this, who became what is called the Emmett Till generation,” said Pamela Junior, director of the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum. “It was a catalyst; it was a force that said, ‘We don’t want this happening to our people, to our brothers, anymore. It’s time for us to stand up.’”

Today, the doors of Bryant’s Grocery are preserved in a powerful display at the museum, where visitors can pause to reflect on a tragic moment in American history: when a young Black boy passed through them, only to have his life violently taken as a result.

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By Tammy Lee Bradley, courtesy Explore Georgia

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orn in the early 1930s in a suburb of Birmingham, Alabama, Shelley Stewart became a major voice in the fight for civil rights.

When Stewart was a teenager, his gift for speaking earned him a spot as a radio talk show host, incredibly, for that time in history, at a white-owned station. Yet his popularity continued to grow, landing him gigs as a disc jockey and an emcee for other stations and at popular event venues in the Birmingham area and further afield.

Stewart eventually became co-owner of station WATV-AM, and in the 1960s during the height of the civil rights movement, he used his platform and influence to support numerous activists and equal rights causes.

Still a popular personality and major presence in the area today, Stewart has also been a broadcasting and advertising executive and an author. He has received numerous honors from the National Southern Christian Leadership Conference and the Smithsonian Institution, among others, and was inducted into the National Black Radio Hall of Fame.

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M A RT I N LU T H E R K I NG J R . S U I T E Dorchester Academy and Museum MIDWAY, GEORGIA Custodians of Dorchester Academy and Museum in Midway, Georgia, have worked to preserve the Martin Luther King Jr. Suite just as it was when the civil rights icon stayed there. The bed and furnishings are largely the same, and a vintage Bible is opened to Judges 5, the chapter King was said to have been reading there.

Established in 1868, Dorchester Academy was one of the earliest private schools to educate free Black students. Though it closed in 1940, the academy remained an integral and frequent meeting point for influential members of the U.S. civil rights movement, which included King, Ralph Abernathy and other leaders of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Plans for the March on Birmingham were made here, and King was said to have worked on his “I Have a Dream” speech during one stay.

A museum that opened in the dormitory in 2021 highlights the work of notable men and women of the civil rights movement that visited Dorchester Academy. Along with King and Abernathy, these include Septima Clark, Fannie Lou Hamer and Dorothy Cotton.

While the building is undergoing renovations and is only open to groups by appointment, the “spirit of the school lives on through the Dorchester Improvement Association, whose mission is to inform and enlighten the public about the educational, social, cultural and religious heritage of Dorchester Academy,” said Cayla Shoup of Explore Georgia.

LIBERTYCOUNTY.ORG/DORCHESTER-ACADEMY

Ordinary People.

Extraordinary Courage.

A Singular Focus.

The Civil Rights Movement was a lightning bolt in the history of our nation forged through the efforts and sacrifice of thousands of individuals, many of whom we’ll never know.

But with the U.S. Civil Rights Trail in Kentucky, we’re shining a light on a number of the stories, people and events that not only changed Kentucky, but forever changed the country.

We invite you to explore Whitney Young’s birthplace, Lincoln Hall at Berea College, Louisville’s downtown Civil Rights Trail and the Muhammad Ali Center, and to visit the SEEK Museum in Russellville.

kentuckytourism.com

SEEK Museum, Russellville

C L A S S COM POS I T E PHOTO Robert Russa Moton Museum

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Billing itself as the birthplace of America’s student-led civil rights revolution, the Robert Russa Moton Museum in Farmville, Virginia, honors the activism of a group of local students that, in 1951, went on strike to protest poor learning conditions at the all-Black school housed there and to call for an end to school segregation.

“During the walkout, 16-year-old Barbara Rose Johns led 150 of her classmates out on strike,” said Cameron Patterson, the Moton Museum’s executive director. “That was four years prior to the Montgomery Bus Boycott. It’s prior to the student sit-in movement that would amplify in the 1960s. It’s prior to the Selma to Montgomery March. And so I think that date really works to solidify Moton in some ways as the birthplace, certainly, of Photos courtesy FarmvilleVA.com the student-led civil rights movement and, in a lot of ways, the birthplace of the modern civil rights movement in America.

I don’t think you can talk about the modern civil rights movement in this country without talking about what happened here in Farmville.” it’s an eye-opener to see the lengths to which the commonwealth pushed The walkout led to the local school district’s back against Brown v. Board during that period of massive resistance.” participation in Brown v. Board of Education For five years, from 1959 through 1964, Prince Edward County, and a contentious fight against segregation Virginia, skirted the Supreme Court’s desegregation order by simply among white citizens that ultimately led area refusing to operate public schools. As a result, an entire cohort of students public schools to close entirely. suffered from lack of access to education. Students from families unable “The length of time that schools remained to afford private schools were forced to seek schooling from churches or closed here was longer than anywhere else in the other volunteer groups that set up makeshift tutoring centers.

U.S.,” said Patterson. “When people visit here, A class photo composite of the students from the graduating class

MUSEUM

of 1951 is stored at the museum. Occasionally, it’s taken out for groups or for when alumni from that period stop by for a visit.

“When you see the faces of the students that were impacted by the school closings, it’s very powerful,” Patterson said.

MOTONMUSEUM.ORG

“ I don’t think you can talk about the modern civil rights movement in this country without talking about what happened here in Farmville.”

AN ARTS AND CULTURE EXHIBIT AT VIRGINIA’S ROBERT RUSSA MOTON MUSEUM

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— CAMERON PATTERSON ROBERT RUSSA MOTON MUSEUM

WALK THE FOOTSTEPS OF HISTORY

United by Clay Enochs stands on the grounds of the Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site to commemorate the 60th Anniversary of the school’s integration. Plan a visit to learn how the Little Rock Nine opened doors for those seeking equality and education around the world.

For more information, visit civilrightstrail.com.

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Central High School Visitor Center

Central High School National Historic Site

R E D SC H W I N N BI K E Muhammad Ali Center LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY

MUHAMMAD ALI

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It was a stolen bike — specifically, a red Schwinn bike — that led a young Muhammad Ali, then known as Cassius Clay, to learn how to box.

When a 12-year-old Ali complained to a local Louisville police officer about the theft, he vowed to “whup the thief.” Sgt. Joe Martin, RED SCWINN BIKE EXHIBIT the officer, wanting to teach the young boy how to safely fight before AT THE MUHAMMAD ALI CENTER he sought retaliation, offered to train Ali in his downtown boxing gym.

Courtesy Muhammad Ali Center The pair trained together for six years, and the rest is history.

An exact match for Ali’s bike is on display at the Muhammad Ali Center in Louisville, Kentucky, where the museum asks visitors to Multiple floors of exhibits celebrate the Louisville athlete’s six core ponder the power of the “Red Bike Moment,” principles: confidence, conviction, dedication, giving, respect and spirituality. a phrase they’ve copyrighted to describe those “Visitors can learn about civil rights — in addition to boxing — precipitous moments in life when a single through his story,” said Kahnke. “In the cafe setting at the entrance of choice can change everything. the Conviction Pavilion, they can experience what Muhammad did when “There are moments that can give us ownerhe came back from the 1960 Olympics as a gold medalist but could not ship of our future,” said Jeanie Kahnke, the Ali even be served in a restaurant in his own hometown.”

Center’s senior director of public relations and On the museum’s fourth floor, visitors can record video stories of external affairs. “Muhammad showed up and their own Red Bike Moments — and listen to those of others — in the learned to box. If he hadn’t shown up for that “Generation Ali Story Booth” exhibit. transformational moment, his future may have ALICENTER.ORG turned out very differently.”

A Movement in Every Direction: Legacies of the Great Migration April 9 through September 11, 2022 Be the first to see brand new artwork by 12 contemporary artists on the impacts of the largest migration of African Americans in U.S. history.

The Great Migration is co-organized by MMA and Baltimore Museum of Art with support provided by the Ford Foundation and the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts. Its presentation in Jackson, Mississippi is sponsored by the Robert M. Hearin Support Foundation, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Henry Luce Foundation, Trustmark National Bank, Mississippi Humanities Council, and

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601.960.1515 | msmuseumart.org

Discover the NC historic sites that pioneered the Civil Rights Movement: MLK MEMORIAL GARDEN

FEBRUARY ONE MONUMENT

INTERNATIONAL CIVIL RIGHTS MUSEUM

HAYTI HERITAGE CENTER

ESTEY HALL AT SHAW UNIVERSITY

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THE NEGRO LEAGUES BASEBALL MUSEUM IN KANSAS CITY, WHICH HONORS BLACK BASEBALL PLAYERS FROM THE SEGREGATION ERA, IS ONE OF 13 NEW SITES ON THE U.S. CIVIL RIGHTS TRAIL.

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New sites offer travelers many reasons to visit the trail

BY ROBIN ROEN K ER

T

he U.S. Civil Rights Trail continues to grow. And as it does, its impact grows, too.

With the addition of 13 new attractions in 2022, the trail now includes more than 130 historic destinations across 14 states and the

District of Columbia.

The newest additions to the trail include three sites in Tennessee, one in Missouri, nine in Louisiana and one in Virginia.

As the trail grows, so too does the richness of the history it encapsulates. Here, we celebrate these newest venues to join the trail: places where people and events helped forever shape the fight for civil rights in America.

CIVILRIGHTSTRAIL.COM Courtesy MODT

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AN EXHIBIT OF THE HISTORIC “I AM A MAN” DEMONSTRATION IN MEMPHIS

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orn in 1929 in Tallahassee, Florida, Robert B. Hayling was a highly educated man with degrees from Florida A&M University and Meharry Medical School. After a stint in the U.S. Air Force, he opened a successful dental practice in St. Augustine in 1960 and was the first Black dentist in the state elected to the American Dental Association.

The racism Hayling experienced in St. Augustine compelled him to participate in numerous crusades, including participating in sit-ins at white-only establishments, organizing peaceful protest demonstrations, joining the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and NAACP, and speaking out with Martin Luther King Jr. and other civil rights leaders in and around the area.

Death threats, rejection and retaliation from both whites and Blacks, and other actions could not dissuade Hayling, and his strong convictions earned him the nickname The Father of St. Augustine’s Civil Rights Movement. In the process, Hayling dramatically altered the destructive trajectory of racism here and throughout the state of Florida.

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Courtesy TNDTD

TENNESSEE Few, if any, states have contributed more to the music history of the United States than Tennessee, thanks to its towering contributions to country, rock, soul and blues, among other genres. Now, with the addition in Tennessee of two music-focused museums to the U.S. Civil Rights Trail, visitors can learn how that rich music history directly shaped the history of the civil rights movement.

Opened in fall 2020 in Nashville just across the street from the Ryman Auditorium, the National Museum of African American Music celebrates African American music across all genres. In doing so, it richly showcases how music formed an energizing soundtrack to the civil rights movement.

“When you explore the ‘One Nation Under a Groove’ exhibit in particular, you truly feel how these stirring melodies really inspired the civil rights movement and how those songs evolved with the issues of the day,” said Mark Ezell, commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Tourist Development and secretary/treasurer of the U.S Civil Rights Trail Marketing Alliance.

Across the state, in Memphis, the Stax Museum of American Soul Music pays tribute to the array of talented soul and R&B artists who recorded with Stax Records, including Otis Redding, Sam and Dave, and Booker T. and the M.G.’s.

“More than just a label that recorded some of the most indelible, timeless music in history, Stax Records provided a company culture that was inclusive, where people of all races and genders worked together like family at a time of extreme racism and sexism in the United States and particularly in Memphis and the South,” said Stax Museum executive director Jeff Kollath.

Also in Memphis, the new I Am a Man Plaza, situated near Clayborn Temple, another U.S. Civil Rights Trail site, commemorates those who participated and rallied in the historic 1968 Memphis sanitation strikes.

TNVACATION.COM

NATIONAL MUSEUM OF AFRICAN AMERICAN MUSIC

Courtesy TNDTD

“Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier... was actually the beginning of the modern-day civil rights movement in this country.”

— BOB K EN DR ICK NEGRO LEAGUES BASEBALL MUSEUM

STAX MUSEUM IN MEMPHIS

By Ronnie Booze, courtesy TNDTD

MEMPHIS’ LORRAINE MOTEL

Courtesy TNDTD

By Chris Grainger, courtesy AL Tourism Dept.

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LOUISIANA Louisiana boasts nine new sites to the U.S. Civil Rights Trail this year, each having played a unique and pivotal role in Louisiana’s civil rights story and in the U.S. civil rights story as a whole.

“Before, we had only one location on the national civil rights trail, in New Orleans, and now, with these new sites, Louisiana will be a force on the national trail,” said Louisiana Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser in a press interview. “We are proud of these new spots that have been added to the trail here in Louisiana.”

In New Orleans, visitors to the civil rights trail can enjoy stops at Canal Street, site of the city’s first sit-in at F.W. Woolworth’s and a place where for two years activists picketed for equal access to eating and restroom facilities at businesses along the corridor. The city is also home to the Dooky Chase Restaurant, a favorite local gathering point for civil rights activists such as Martin Luther King Jr. and Thurgood Marshall, DOOKY CHASE RESTAURANT and McDonogh 19, the elementary school desegregated by three firstgraders — Leona Tate, Tessie Prevost and Gail Etienne — November 14, 1960. Known as the McDonogh Three, the girls were escorted to school by U.S. marshals every day, and they State Capitol in Baton Rouge, a 1953 staging area for free rides to work were the only students to attend the school for during the nation’s first, large-scale citywide bus boycott. A third marker months in the midst of widespread backlash at in Louisiana’s capital city can be found at the K.H. Kress Department desegregation.

Store Lunch Counter, the site of historic downtown lunch counter sit-ins.

In Baton Rouge, new civil rights trail sites Another newly added trail site in Louisiana is the University of include a commemorative marker for the Louisiana at Lafayette, formerly known as Southwestern Louisiana Bogalusa to Baton Rouge March, found adjaInstitute, which historically enrolled its first Black student in 1954, cent to the Louisiana State Capitol, where many becoming the first previously all-white undergraduate college in the civil rights marches ended, and one at the Old Deep South to desegregate. In Bogalusa, the Robert “Bob” Hicks House is the site of a family-home-turned-civil-rights-base for officers of the Bogalusa Civic and Voters League and local chapters of the Congress of Racial Equality. And in Alexandria-Pineville, an exhibit at Camp Beauregard spotlights the contributions of an experimental unit of Black soldiers, the so-called Patton’s Panthers, who were part of Gen. George Patton’s Third Army in World War II. “The Louisiana Civil Rights Trail marker unveilings are a continuing effort to recognize and bring to life Louisiana’s role in the modern civil rights movement,” said Nungesser.

Additional historical information about the sites, along with firsthand stories from citizens connected to the history of each venue, is available on the state’s civil rights trail website.

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LOUISIANA

BATON ROUGE’S OLD STATE CAPITOL

INTEGRATING MCDONOGH 19

THE BOGALUSA TO BATON ROUGE MARCH Photos courtesy LA Office of Tourism

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Danville Museum of Fine Arts and History.

Housed in a mansion that once was home to the Danville Public Library, the museum tells of the fight for desegregation of the library through “The Movement,” a permanent Civil Rights exhibit. virginia.org/blackhistory

VIRGINIA History comes full circle at the Danville Museum of Fine Arts and History in Danville, Virginia. Housed in a historic antebellum mansion that once belonged to tobacco tycoon William T. Sutherlin and once hosted Confederate President Jefferson Davis, the site now celebrates African American history in the region.

Exhibits educate visitors on issues including the Danville race riots of 1883, Reconstruction, the Jim Crow Era and the more modern civil rights movement.

One key moment in Danville’s modern civil rights history occurred at the property in 1960 when the mansion was serving as an all-white DANVILLE MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS AND HISTORY library. Fed up with unequal access to facilities, a group of 16 African American students staged a sit-in in the building to protest segregation.

“This site is specifically valuable to Danville because it’s both the site where rights were revoked and the site where, via sit-ins, the beginning of efforts to reestablish them happened,” said Elsabe Dixon, the Photos courtesy Danville Museum of Fine Arts and History museum’s executive director.

Today, the museum is home to an expansive exhibit called “The Movement,” which outlines the Danville civil rights movement MISSOURI and its key events and participants. The museum also includes the “Camilla Williams Collection,” an exhibit that celebrates the In Kansas City, Missouri, the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum famed soprano who was born in Danville and celebrates the many talented players of the Negro Leagues while skillbecame the first African American to sign a fully telling the story of the American civil rights movement through contract with a major American opera company. the lens of sports.

DANVILLEMUSEUM.ORG “Visitors are sometimes surprised at how closely aligned the story of the Negro Leagues is with the social advancement of our country,” said Bob Kendrick, the museum’s president. “You come here and meet some of the greatest athletes to ever play the game, but that story is also housed against the backdrop of American segregation.”

BUCK O’NEIL TRIBUTE PARK AT THE Exhibits spotlight talented, trailblazing players like Jackie Robinson, NEGRO LEAGUES BASEBALL MUSEUM whose integration into major league baseball in 1947 predated the desegregation of the military by one year and the U.S. Supreme Court decision on school desegregation by seven.

“The museum makes the bold assertion that Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier wasn’t just a part of the civil rights movement, that it was actually the beginning of the modern-day civil rights movement in this country,” Kendrick said. “This was 1947. This is before Brown v. Board of Education. This was before Rosa Parks refused to move to the back of the bus. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was merely a sophomore at Morehouse College when Robinson signed his contract to play in the Dodgers organization.”

Through in-depth exhibits that celebrate the game and its talented African American players, the museum also tells a deeper story about American history. Various galleries spotlight early, 19th-century pioneers of the game, as well as contributions of both its well-known and lesserknown 20th-century talents.

“We’re about more than just a baseball story,” Kendrick said. “People come here and see how what was happening on the field and with the teams echoed what was happening in America as a whole.”

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CUSTOM CONTENT

Birmingham spoke out then, and now, on civil rights

BY VICKIE MITCHELL

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irmingham’s civil rights movement was rocked by violence in 1963. Near Kelly Ingram Park, peaceful protestors, hundreds of them children, were attacked by police dogs and knocked down by water cannons as they marched. At 16th Street Baptist Church, four young African American girls were killed on a September Sunday by a bomb set by white supremacists.

An essential stop Those events in Birmingham became a turning point, spurring long-awaited action to advance civil rights. Birmingham’s important role makes it an essential stop on the U.S. Civil Rights Trail, especially since seven of its civil rights sites are now a national monument.

Adding more depth to its civil rights story are Birmingham’s citizens--those who were there in the ‘60s and those who have studied the city’s past. “Our citizens are always willing to tell their stories,” said Vickie Ashford-Thompson of the Greater Birmingham CVB. For example, when tours wander through Kelly Ingram Park, they not only see sculptures of vicious police dogs or teenagers being pelted by water cannons, they hear personal

accounts of people who were at the march, via an audio tour developed by the CVB and accessible by cellphone.

Barry McNealy, a respected educator and historian, is among the city’s step-on guides. Ashford-Thompson has yet to hear him stumped by a visitor’s question. McNealy says he learned much from Martha Boyer, another educator who leads tours at Bethel Baptist Church, where Birmingham’s civil rights movement, led by the Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth, began.

Iconic moments Four civil rights sites are within sight of one another downtown. At 16th Street Baptist Church, a video of Martin Luther King Jr.’s eulogies at three of the young girls’ funerals is an emotional reminder of young lives senselessly lost. At Kelly Ingram Park, sculptures depicting scenes from the 1963 march underscore protestors’ perseverance and courage.

Nearby, the A.G. Gaston Motel is being preserved. Built in the 1950s by a Black entrepreneur who wanted to ensure that Black travelers had safe, comfortable accommodations, the motel became a meeting place for King and other civil rights leaders.

Renovation is ongoing, but visitors can snap photos of the motel’s vintage sign. At the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, exhibits offer a comprehensive history of the civil rights movement in Birmingham, which began well before 1963, and often put civil rights leaders and their families in peril.

More to the story Tours should definitely venture beyond downtown to Dynamite Hill and Bethel Baptist Church. On Dynamite Hill, the KKK routinely threw bombs at the homes of Blacks who had bought houses on the “white” side of the street. At Bethel Baptist, tours learn more about Reverend Shuttlesworth, who led Birmingham’s civil rights efforts and whose family narrowly escaped death when the parsonage next to the church was bombed. The parsonage is gone, but its “ghost” — a white wooden frame — is a stark reminder of the many citizens who put their lives on the line for civil rights.

inbirmingham.com

800-458-8085

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Ray's Piano by photographer Lenny Foster

Ray Charles attended the Florida School for the Deaf and Blind in St. Augustine. This piano, displayed at the Lincolnville Museum and Cultural Center, was played by Charles during performances at Lincolnville's Odd Fellows Hall.

Fine art photographer Lenny Foster owns and operates Gallery One Forty Four at 144 King Street in St. Augustine. His series Where We Stand explores the rich African American history of St. Johns County, Florida.

Visit GalleryOneFortyFour.com for more information.

Experience 450 Years of African American History on Florida's Historic Coast St. Augustine, Florida is America's oldest city, founded by Spaniard Pedro Menendez de Aviles in 1565. Menendez was accompanied to St. Augustine by both free and enslaved Africans, who would make significant contributions to the growth of the town.

Today, St. Augustine is one of the most important places to discover the history of Africans and African Americans in the New World.

In 1738, the Spanish established Gracia Real de Santa Teresa de Mose as the first legally sanctioned free settlement for formerly enslaved people in what would become the United States of America. Fort Mose is now a Florida State Park with a museum that honors the individuals who made the difficult journey south from the Carolinas, seeking a new life.

Lincolnville - now a National Historic District - was established in 1866 by recently freed men and women and soon became a vibrant neighborhood, filled with Black-owned businesses and Victorian homes. Explore St. Augustine's Black history and culture at the Lincolnville Museum and Cultural Center.

In 1964, the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. travelled to St. Augustine to work with local activists to organize demonstrations that would play a significant role in the passage of the U.S. Civil Rights Act. These demonstrations included wade-ins at the beachfront of the St. Augustine Beach Hotel, recently named to the National Register of Historic Places at a national level of significance for the Civil Rights Movement.

Florida's first Civil Rights Museum - the ACCORD Civil Rights Museum and Freedom Trail - shares stories of the Freedom Fighters and others who made history in St. Augustine. The ACCORD's outstanding collection of artifacts and memorabilia is housed in the dental office of civil rights leader Dr. Robert Hayling.

Plan your trip to Florida's Historic Coast at HistoricCoastCulture.com.

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THE HISTORIC MAGNOLIA HOUSE IN NORTH CAROLINA WAS LISTED IN THE NEGRO MOTORIST GREEN BOOK, AND THE CURRENT OWNERS USE THE PROPERTY TO EDUCATE TRAVELERS ABOUT CIVIL RIGHTS HISTORY.

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Contemporary leaders make civil rights relevant

BY PAUL A AV EN GL A DYCH

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he story of America’s civil rights journey didn’t end in the 1960s.

When people think of the civil rights movement, they think about something that happened in the past. But as these five civil rights ambassadors will attest, the movement is far from over. They have made it their mission to continue telling the stories of the past in the hope those stories will influence the future.

CIVILRIGHTSTRAIL.COM Courtesy Historic Magnolia House

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Madeline Burkhardt, Rosa Parks Museum MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA

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Madeline Burkhardt started her job as adult education coordinator and curator at the Rosa Parks Museum in Montgomery, Alabama, right out of college, not knowing “anything about the civil rights movement,” she said. It wasn’t until she met Robert and Jean Graetz through her church that she became inspired to learn about it. The couple were Rosa Parks’ neighbors and very active in the civil rights movement. Jean, in particular, was one of Burkhardt’s primary motivators, inspiring her to attend marches and protests, including a fight in her small hometown to get a Civil War monument removed.

“She would tell you you weren’t doing enough,” Burkhardt said.

“She was arrested later on for protesting. If she is telling you you aren’t doing enough, you step up a little bit.”

Courtesy LMCC As curator for the museum, Burkhardt has taken some risks in the types of exhibits she displays with the goal of raising social consciousness and encouraging cultural appreciation and acceptance. In December, a new exhibit will go on display commemorating Kimberlyn Elliott, Lincolnville the anniversary of Parks’ arrest.

Museum and Cultural Center Burkhardt has allowed artists to display everything from a bloodied Ku Klux Klan robe, ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA which former Georgia Rep. John Lewis said was one of the most impactive displays he had ever Kimberlyn Elliott serves as associate director of the Lincolnville seen, to an AR-15 made out of human bone.

Museum and Cultural Center in St. Augustine, Florida. Her first real The museum sits on the site where Parks was exposure to the civil rights movement was studying African American arrested after refusing to give up her seat for a history at the Florida A & M University in Tallahassee. white passenger and move to the back of a public “I took the classes specified in that area,” she said. “They really bus. The museum’s permanent exhibits tell her stressed the importance of history but that things are not static. story, focusing on the Montgomery Bus Boycotts Everything is related to where we are today.” and their place in the civil rights movement.

Elliott said she treasured being able to meet and interview the TROY.EDU individuals who were active in the Tallahassee civil rights movement because speaking with people about that history is much more inspiring than reading a book or an article about it.

There was a large civil rights movement in St. Augustine, and there are still residents living in Lincolnville, a Reconstruction-era neighborhood built in 1866 by freed men and women and Black former soldiers who settled there after the war and were part of that movement. Elliott is in charge of programming at the museum. Over the past year, the museum partnered with many organizations to develop virtual lectures, events and museum exhibits around the topic Resilience Black Heritage in St. Augustine.

Many of these groups initially didn’t believe they had anything representing Black history in their collections, but once they started looking, they realized they all had some connection. The city, founded in 1565, “is the birthplace of African American history,” Elliott said. “St. Augustine was quite a diverse place: European, indigenous people, people from African tribes. It is not just like a two-dimensional experience.”

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orn in the late 1880s into a multigenerational family of Confederate army officers, Julius Waties Waring was indoctrinated into the Jim Crow Laws of the South.

After becoming an attorney and then a South Carolina judge, Waring felt compelled to reexamine his social views when, in 1946, he presided over a trial of a white police chief charged with the vicious beating and subsequent blinding of a Black soldier. The chief was acquitted by the all-white jury, shaking the judge into a stark realization: Segregation and racial inequality were not just morally wrong but were also against the 14th Amendment.

Although vilified personally and professionally, Waring went on to achieve voting rights for Black people in the state primaries and equal pay for African American schoolteachers, and he exerted great influence toward the groundbreaking ruling of Brown v. Board of Education, among other efforts.

Fueled by a fierce determination to challenge the dogma of “separate but equal,” Waring ultimately became an unexpected champion of the civil rights movement.

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Glenda McKinley, GMc+Co. Strategic Communications NEW ORLEANS

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A strategic communications and advertising specialist for 34 years, Glenda McKinley of New Orleans got her first taste of the civil rights movement from her parents.

McKinley’s father was a beloved radio personality and music promoter who moved to New Orleans from Chicago in 1954.

“He was on his internship, assigned to cover a Martin Luther King speech,” McKinley said. “I remember him saying after he covered that speech that he wanted to stay here and be a part of history.” Her father created pathways for the movement to organize and to get financing by using his ties in the music business to gain support from the likes of Louis Armstrong.

McKinley said it was an oppressive era for Black people, but her parents and their compatriots were also strong, determined and courageous to fight for their rights.

“They knew it was wrong,” she said. “They felt it in every fiber of their being it was wrong.

These Southern states were not allowing us to enjoy those freedoms. They did what they had to do to make it happen.”

In 2008, McKinley helped Louisiana Travel develop the Louisiana African American Heritage Trail. Because of that work, she was brought onboard to help develop Louisiana’s Civil Rights Trail, which focuses on the modern civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s. The effort began by hosting 22 meetings across Louisiana to find personal stories and experiences from the civil rights era.

“We didn’t really have the right to tell the story or interpret the story when there are so many people who were active in the civil rights movement who are still alive and could tell their story,” she said. “I wanted that to come through. I wanted all the work we did to really pay tribute to the men, women, young, old, Black and white who risked it all to make rights real.”

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GLENDA MCKINLEY “I wanted all the work we did to really

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pay tribute to the men, women, young, old, Black and white who risked it all to make rights real.”

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Dawn Dawson House, WeGOJA Foundation COLUMBIA, SOUTH CAROLINA The WeGOJA Foundation raises money to help the South Carolina African American Heritage Commission identify and document historic sites.

“Because the volume of that is so big and the story is so compelling, we do promotion and incorporate that history of South Carolina in our schools, travel and in the decisions we make,” said Dawn Dawson House, executive director of the foundation. “Civil rights is a huge part of that.

The state of South Carolina is just now beginning to identify civil rights as a preservation effort they need to invest in.”

WeGOJA has helped tell these stories through thegreenbookofsc.com, an online travel guide that was named after the Negro Motorist Green Books of the 1960s, when “segregation was big and travel terrible for African Americans.”

Immerse yourself in the rich heritage and traditions of the Gullah culture, including the unique culinary flavors that played a pivotal role in the creation of some of South Carolina’s most iconic dishes. Learn more about African American history across the state at DiscoverSouthCarolina.com/black-history

Explore historic sites across the state that pay tribute to the brave men and women who fought against inequality as you learn more about the fight for civil rights in South Carolina on a new podcast, “A Legacy of Courage,” coming May 2022.

NATALIE PASS MILLER Anyone wanting to follow the trail can search different keywords to find more than 100 places in the state associated with the civil rights movement, including churches, monuments, sites where violent attacks occurred and historic homes of people integral to the civil rights movement.

“I think that defining moments in our history tend to traumatize us,” Dawson House said. “We need to move away one generation to learn their value. That is the case for the Civil War and Jim Crow and the KKK and is the case for civil rights. We were a hotbed for a lot of things that led to the civil rights crisis in this nation.”

Dawson House’s mission is to make sure Black history is entrenched in the state’s tourism. She hopes that in the next 15 years her organization will get “so large that people will want to get involved, contribute money, save this history and tell it,” she said.

“Not only does it improve tourism in South Carolina, in my opinion it is to improve our quality of life, give us an understanding of Natalie Pass Miller, Historic Magnolia where we are and give us lessons on how to move forward.”

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North Carolina native Natalie Pass Miller has deep family ties to the state’s various civil rights triumphs. She is the great-granddaughter of Jefferson Davis Diggs, one of the founders of Winston Salem State University; the niece of Samuel Penn, the first Black police officer in Greensboro, who formed the first group of Black officers in the 1950s; and cousin to David Richmond, one of the Greensboro Four who participated in the Woolworth Sit-In in 1960 that kicked off America’s sit-in movement.

Her father purchased the Historic Magnolia House, a former Green Book guesthouse, in 1996. The house was a popular destination and safe haven for African American travelers who had difficulty finding places to stay in the era of segregation. The house was featured in the Negro Motorist Green Book six times and was a favorite stop for many celebrities, including James Brown, Louis Armstrong and Tina Turner.

After her father passed, Miller became owner of the property and has made it her mission to save these pieces of Black history. She oversaw the remainder of the property’s restoration and relaunch while serving as an advocate for public education about the history and impact of the Green Book.

Miller founded the Historic Magnolia Foundation in 2018 to develop educational resources and programs to preserve Green Book history.

The guesthouse recently reopened to the public for the first time in 50 years. It has four guest rooms that each pay tribute to famous Black men and women who paved the way for others in their respective fields, from music to baseball.

THEHISTORICMAGNOLIAHOUSE.ORG

Gordon Parks learned lessons on his family farm in Ft. Scott, KS that helped him become the first Black photojournalist on staff at LIFE magazine and the first African American to direct a major motion picture. Parks dedicated his life to combating racism and poverty. The camera was his weapon of choice.

Gordon Parks’ story is just one of many waiting for you in Kansas. Explore the Freedom’s Frontier National Heritage Area and see how Kansas answered the call of the enduring struggle for freedom. See places where history was made, like the Brown vs. Board of Education National Historic Site. Then see the places where history still lives like Nicodemus, KS, the only remaining town west of the Mississippi River founded and settled by African Americans at the end of Reconstruction.

The Kansas experience is a salute to the bold. To the inspiring. To the dreamers. To the stars.

Visit travelks.com to order your free travel guide and plan your Kansas experience.

Portrait of Gordon Parks, 2004. Photo taken by Gary Palmer, courtesy of Gordon Parks Museum in Fort Scott, KS.

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THE MEDGAR AND MYRLIE EVERS HOME NATIONAL MONUMENT IN JACKSON COMMEMORATES THE LIFE OF ACTIVIST MEDGAR EVERS, WHOSE MURDER BECAME A TURNING POINT IN THE NATIONAL CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT.

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Ordinary citizens answered the call for civil rights

BY PAUL A AV EN GL A DYCH

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ometimes people don’t know when they’re making history.

Thousands of protests, marches, sitins, boycotts and demonstrations occurred during the U.S. civil rights movement, as did many violent encounters. But certain events gained more attention, becoming flashpoints for the movement across the country that eventually led to passage of important civil rights legislation.

Events at the following five sites in the South became turning points of the movement, and these sites are now part of the United States Civil Rights Trail.

CIVILRIGHTSTRAIL.COM Courtesy NPS

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Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS Arkansas became the battleground for public school desegregation in 1957 as nine Black students attempted to attend Little Rock’s allwhite Central High School. They were met with violent resistance by hundreds of people, including the Arkansas governor and the Arkansas National Guard. One student, Elizabeth Eckford, arrived alone and took the brunt of the mob’s wrath. One of the most poignant photos from the civil rights era shows her walking through a mob of white people on September 3, 1957, while they screamed and spit at her.

It wasn’t until President Dwight Eisenhower ordered units from the U.S. Army’s 101st Airborne Division to escort the children into the school on September 24, 1957, that they were able to attend their first full day of school.

Courtesy NPS But the white students of Central High did not make it easy for the Little Rock Nine, dropping flaming pieces of toilet paper onto the heads of the girls as they tried to use the bathroom and placing crushed glass outside the shower stalls of the boys after gym class.

Center, watch an interpretive film and then take a ranger-led tour of Groups can take a tour of Little Rock the site. Other highlights include the Commemorative Garden; a photoCentral High School National Historic Site graphic history of what happened inlaid on brick and concrete arches; the to learn the stories of these brave students and Elizabeth Eckford Bus Bench, where young Eckford waited to try and what they endured at the hands of people that get away from the angry mob; and the Magnolia Mobil Gas Station that fought tooth and nail against desegregation. once served as a visitor center, a hangout for students and a temporary Travelers can see the exhibits at the Visitor’s office for reporters during the desegregation crisis.

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National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE

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Located at the historic Lorraine Motel where Martin Luther King Jr. was shot and killed, the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, Tennessee, is a place where generations of people come to reflect. The museum’s courtyard, with the Lorraine Motel marquee on one side and the balcony where King was shot on the other, is the first place visitors to the museum want to visit. The motel and room 306, where King stayed the night before his assassination, have been preserved as a memorial.

The museum is in a building across the street from the motel. It features interactive and immersive historical and contemporary exhibits that examine civil and human rights by looking more closely at slavery, voting rights, immigration and Jim Crow, as well as King’s influence and last days. Groups can learn about the Montgomery Bus Boycotts, sit-ins at the Woolworth’s lunch counter, the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and other significant moments from the civil rights era.

Visitors come to learn and engage in civil rights history to better understand how this history affects them today. The museum provokes thoughtful debate with its public forums, book talks, distinguished speaker series, and one-on-one conversations with civil rights icons and new movement makers.

Thousands come to march, demonstrate, die-in, sing, speak out and stand up in solidarity to fight for positive social change. The site of a great tragedy has turned into a place of triumph.

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A LITTLE ROCK NINE DISPLAY AT CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE

Courtesy NPS

“Our DNA is in social justice.

It was an act of social justice that we were going to lift ourselves up.”

— VA LER IE A N N JOHNSON SH AW UN I V ERSI T Y

LORRAINE MOTEL AT THE NATIONAL CIVIL RIGHTS MUSEUM

E X P LO R E

MUHAMMAD ALI’S

PLACE IN HISTORY The Muhammad Ali Center in Louisville, Kentucky is proud to be part of the U.S. Civil Rights Trail — a collection of notable landmarks in the Southern states that played a pivotal role in advancing social justice during the Civil Rights Movement.

2½ levels of award-winning exhibits!

For more information go to: alicenter.org or civilrightstrail.com

502.584.9254 | 144 N. 6th St. | Louisville, KY Courtesy Brand USA

#AliCenter

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SNCC Formation at Shaw University RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA Shaw University in Raleigh, North Carolina, was founded in 1865 by former Union Army chaplain Henry Martin Tupper and his wife, Sarah, to educate emancipated slaves. On April 15, 1960, 200 students involved in sit-ins at all-white lunch counters across the South met at Shaw to form the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), a student organization that fought for civil rights, beginning with sit-ins and evolving into Freedom Rides, voter drives and political organizing.

SNCC FORMATION “Our DNA is in social justice. It was an act of social justice that we were going to lift ourselves up,” said Valerie Ann Johnson, dean of arts, sciences and humanities and a professor of sociology at Shaw.

Groups visiting the university can take a tour of the campus and see some of the original buildings, among them Estey Hall, which was built in 1873 as a dormitory for Black women, and the first four-year medical Courtesy Shaw University school in the country, created in 1885.

A street bisects campus going north and south. An overpass connects the east and west sides of campus. On the east side of the bridge is a mural of Henry Martin Tupper and Ella Baker, “That was the genius of her involvement and why SNCC could take who helped birth SNCC on campus. Baker was off the way it did,” Johnson said. “She kept the older folk from making an alumnus of Shaw and a field organizer with the it just another arm of the NAACP or another arm of SCLC. It was its Southern Christian Leadership Conference and own entity, and that was really important.” the NAACP. She helped the young people articuSHAWU.LIBGUIDES.COM late their ideas and determine what direction they wanted the civil rights movement to take.

AT SHAW UNIVERSITY

16th Street Baptist Church BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA

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Courtesy 16th Street Baptist Church

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In Birmingham, Alabama, the 16th Street Baptist Church became a turning point in the civil rights movement because it was the site of the bombing on September 15, 1963, that left four young Black girls dead and others injured. The church had featured prominently in the movement’s efforts to fill up Birmingham’s jails with protesters after King’s “Letter From Birmingham Jail” roused many African Americans across the country to take up the cause of civil rights.

While King was in jail, a few of his lieutenants thought it would be a good idea to get young people involved in the marches. They came to the 16th Street Baptist Church on May 3, 1963, to participate in nonviolence and civil disobedience training. King’s goal was to have them leave the church 50 at a time to protest and get arrested so that the movement would end up on television.

Later that year, 18 days after King gave his “I Have a Dream” speech saying he wanted children to be judged by the content of their character, not by the color of their skin, white supremacists planted sticks of dynamite near the steps of the church, blowing a hole in the wall and causing it to collapse on the children, said current pastor Arthur Price Jr. “It was a terrorist event, and it made people take introspection of what they were for and against,” he said. Many were against integration, but “they were not for murder and terrorism.”

The church created a tour ministry to handle the up to 70,000 visitors who visit the church annually wanting to know more about its place in history.

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History is more than a timeline—it is a thread woven through all of our lives. Pick up that thread at the Museum of Mississippi History and the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum.

Explore and experience the moments, movements, and milestones that continue to shape our world. Plan your visit today at twomississippimuseums.com.

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he Bennett Belles were a formidable group of students from Bennett College for Women, now called Bennett College, in Greensboro, North Carolina. One of their major focuses was eradicating negative casting and stereotyping of Black people in film. However, they were also credited with planning one of Greensboro’s first sit-ins.

Among their most successful campaigns was collaborating with the Greensboro Four, the male students from North Carolina A&T State University who on February 1, 1960, took a stand for equality during the famous F.W. Woolworth lunch counter sit-in.

Although the men have been praised for springboarding local and nationwide protests for desegregation of public accommodations, the Bennett Belles were critical to the campaign’s overall success.

These courageous women played a key role in planning the event and served as lookouts against mobs converging on the lunch counter. They also amassed hundreds of Bennett College students, who protested and marched for equal rights for several years to follow.

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Medgar and Myrlie Evers Home National Monument JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI Mississippi native Medgar Evers fought for his country at the Battle of Normandy during World War II, but when he returned home, he realized his service didn’t protect him from racism or give him equal rights. He decided to attend Alcorn State University majoring in business administration because he thought it was important for African Americans to have economic opportunity. While working for an insurance company in Mound Bayou, Mississippi, Evers became president of the Regional Council of Negro Leadership, getting involved in boycotting gas stations in the Mississippi Delta that wouldn’t allow Black people to use the bathroom.

He was tapped to serve as the first field secretary for the NAACP in the Mississippi Delta and was asked to move to Jackson. There he investigated 10 racially motivated murders, including the lynching of Emmett Till, and tested the efficacy of Brown v. Board of Education by applying for admission to law school at the segregated University of Mississippi.

His acceptance was later rescinded once the school learned of his race.

He led marches, prayer vigils, voter registration drives and boycotts against white merchants, becoming a target for the Ku Klux Klan. Evers received constant death threats and tried to prepare his family for his imminent death. One night, returning home after midnight, white supremacists shot and killed him in his carport.

The National Park Service took over management of Evers’ home in Jackson, Mississippi, in December 2021. The home is closed to tours as the NPS brings the building up to code and works to fill it with periodappropriate furnishings. Group visitors can learn more about Evers and his place in the civil rights movement at the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum, which features an extensive exhibit about his life.

“People go to the museum for interpretation and go to the home for power of place to the ground where he was assassinated,” said Keena Graham, superintendent of the Medgar and Myrlie Evers Home National Monument.

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THE GREATEST STOP ON THE U.S. CIVIL RIGHTS TRAIL

Muhammad Ali Center

Known as the “Greatest of All Time”, or simply, “The Greatest”, Muhammad Ali’s impact was felt far beyond the ring. Downtown Louisville’s Muhammad Ali Center is an award-winning museum offering exhibits, artifacts, and interactive elements showcasing Ali’s boxing career, humanitarian efforts, and larger than life personality.

Learn more at GoToLouisville.com/Ali

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A STATUE OF THE LITTLE ROCK NINE ON THE GROUNDS OF THE STATE CAPITOL IS ONE OF NUMEROUS IMPORTANT SITES ON THE ARKANSAS CIVIL RIGHTS TRAIL.

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State road trips highlight civil rights heritage

BY PAUL A AV EN GL A DYCH

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rom Arkansas to West Virginia, travelers can walk in the footsteps of civil rights pioneers.

The U.S. Civil Rights Trail recognizes locations across the South that played an integral role in the civil rights movement. Many of these stops mark events that led up to the civil rights movement, beginning with slavery, the Civil War and Jim Crow.

Here are five states that have devised civil rights itineraries for groups to follow, highlighting their rich heritage of contributions to the civil rights movements.

CIVILRIGHTSTRAIL.COM Courtesy ARDPHT

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Arkansas Civil Rights Trail

ARKANSAS

The Arkansas Civil Rights Trail begins in Little Rock, which was the site of one of the major turning points of the civil rights movement.

CIVIL RIGHTS TRAIL Groups that want to learn more about the state’s place in history should start at the Visitor’s Center at the Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site; the school was the first in the state to try to desegregate after the landmark Supreme Court decision Brown v. Board of Education made it illegal to segregate public schools. Park rangers lead tours of the site daily, telling the stories of the nine Black students and the hardship and violence they endured as they tried to attend the all-white school.

LittleRock.com has a map that groups can use for a self-guided tour of civil rights sites, including the Testament: Little Rock Nine Memorial, which stands in front of the Arkansas State Capitol, and the Daisy Gatson Bates DAISY BATES HOUSE House Museum. Bates was president of the Arkansas chapter of the NAACP. The William J. Clinton Presidential Center and Park is another spot on the trail; the center features exhibits about Clinton’s presidency and focuses Courtesy ARDPHT on expanding civil rights to people around the world. The Historic Arkansas Museum has a permanent memorial — Giving Voice — to the 138 enslaved men, women and children who lived where the museum now stands, and exhibit feaGeorgia’s Albany-to-Atlanta Black Heritage Tour ture topics such as African American history and local Black artists. The Mosaic Templars Cultural There are 11 must-see civil rights destinations in Georgia, many of Center is the first publicly funded museum of them tied to the life of Martin Luther King Jr. They include historic African American history and culture in the state. churches in Albany that led a grassroots campaign to end discrimination ARKANSAS.COM in southwest Georgia, sites tied to King in Atlanta, and a historic school and meeting place for civil rights leaders in Midway, on Georgia’s coast.

The Albany Civil Rights Museum Walk in the footsteps and Institute is in the restored 1906 of Duke Ellington and Old Mount Zion Church. It uses oral Louis Armstrong at the histories, photographs, documents, artifacts and exhibits to detail the HotEL MEtropoLitAn civil rights struggle from voter regisand African-American tration and nonviolent protest to song, Heritage Museum. economic boycott and legal action.

Heritage.

Creativity. Inspiration.

Experience paducah’s river views, culinary

treasures, and creative culture. plan your visit

NATIONAL CENTER FOR CIVIL AND HUMAN RIGHTS

at Paducah.travel.

ALBANY-TO-ATLANTA 1-800-PADUCAH

BLACK HERITAGE TOUR

By Ralph Daniel, courtesy AABHT

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CLINTON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY

ARKANSAS STATE CAPITOL Courtesy ARDPHT

Courtesy ARDPHT

A MONUMENT AT TUSKEGEE UNIVERSITY

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orn in Charleston, West Virginia, in 1881, Harry J. Capehart Sr. was always a public servant, making an indelible mark toward the equitable treatment of African Americans for decades to follow.

After earning degrees at Fairview Normal College in Proctorville, Ohio, and Howard University School of Law, Capehart spent the bulk of his professional career in West Virginia government as a city attorney, an assessor and a city councilperson. Yet he is best remembered for his influence and work as assistant U.S. attorney for West Virginia’s Southern District, a member of the state’s House of Delegates and Republican National Committee, and regional director of the National Bar Association for both West Virginia and Virginia.

Among many landmark achievements, Capehart helped create and pass what came to be called the Capehart Anti-Lynch Law, which established parameters and severe penalties around race-based riots and lynching.

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THE MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. NATIONAL

HISTORIC PARK IN ATLANTA Across the street, the Shiloh Missionary Baptist Church was where mass meetings were held during the Albany civil rights movement. King spoke to members of both churches in 1961.

In Atlanta, groups begin their tour at the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park Visitor Center, where they can reserve tickets to tour his boyhood home. At the King Center, they can see the crypts where King and his wife are entombed. Freedom Hall features exhibits about the life and works of the Kings. The Ebenezer Baptist Church, where King’s father was pastor and King later became co-pastor, is another must-see.

The National Center for Civil and Human Rights ties the events of the civil rights movement to today’s global human rights movements, and the Elbert P. Tuttle U.S. Court of Appeals Building was the location of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals during the civil rights movement. It is a National Historic Landmark because the court enforced the Brown v.

By Ralph Daniel, courtesy AABHT Board of Education decision.

In Midway, the Dorchester Academy Boys’ Dormitory was one of two sites where the Southern Christian Leadership Conference held its citizenship education workshops durKentucky Civil Rights Trail ing the 1960s.

EXPLOREGEORGIA.ORG There are four sites in Kentucky on the U.S. Civil Rights Trail. In Russellville, a park and the Seek Museum commemorate Alice Allison Dunnigan, the first African American woman to be admitted to the White House, Congressional and Supreme Court press corps; Dunnigan wrote for the Associated Negro Press. Russellville also has a restored Rosenwald school — these schools were built to educate poor, rural Black youth — as well as a jail where African Americans were taken to be lynched.

Berea College in Berea was the first interracial and coeducational college in the South until the Kentucky General Assembly passed the Day Law in 1904 prohibiting Black and white students from being CIVIL RIGHTS TRAIL educated together. Once that happened, the people at Berea College helped support the founding of the Lincoln Institute in Simpsonville SEEK MUSEUM to educate those displaced Black students. When African American students were allowed back 50 years later, they demonstrated to get African American teachers and staged several sit-ins at Lincoln Hall.

The Whitney Young Birthplace and Museum in Simpsonville tells the story of Whitney Young Jr., whose father was an educator and the head of the Lincoln Institute. Young became the head of the National Urban League, which, along with the NAACP, was at the forefront of the civil rights movement. His focus was on employment and jobs for African Americans.

In Louisville, the Muhammad Ali Museum documents the boxer’s career and involvement with civil rights and as a humanitarian.

The Louisville Downtown Civil Rights Trail features 11 markers that designate buildings that are no longer there: businesses like the old Woolworth’s, where Black people were not allowed to eat at the lunch counter, and stores where there were sit-ins or protests because Black people weren’t allowed to use the changing rooms.

KENTUCKY’S WHITNEY YOUNG BIRTHPLACE AND MUSEUM KENTUCKYTOURISM.COM

KENTUCKY

Photos courtesy KY Dept. of Travel

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Celebrate

history

Honor a piece of our nation’s history with a visit to The Bay County Courthouse, where the landmark case Gideon v. Wainwright originated.

In 1963, the Supreme Court held that the Sixth Amendment’s guarantee of counsel is a fundamental right essential to a fair trial.

After you visit the courthouse, stop by the Panama City Historical Society to experience the museum’s Gideon v. Wainwright interactive exhibition and more. Then, explore our city’s independent restaurants and shops waiting to welcome your group.

PLAN YOUR ITINERARY AND SEE ALL THERE IS TO DO AT DESTINATIONPANAMACITY.COM/GROUPS

Missouri Civil Rights Trail

MISSOURI

Groups that want to learn more about the civil rights movement in Missouri should start their journey on the steps of St. Louis’ Old Courthouse, which was the originating site of several groundbreaking Supreme Court cases regarding civil CIVIL RIGHTS TRAIL rights. A statue of Dred and Harriet Scott sits on the south lawn of the courthouse, facing the Gateway Arch and the Mississippi River, The Old Courthouse is part of the National Park Service’s Underground Railroad Network to Freedom.

The Field House Museum is a National Historic Landmark that once belonged to Roswell Field, the attorney who represented Dred Scott during his Supreme Court case.

The Griot Museum of Black History has exhibits on the adversity slaves endured in Missouri. Travelers can drive by the Shelley House, a private residence that was the center of the Shelley v. Kraemer Supreme Court case in 1948. A Black couple purchased the home, but the neighborhood had a covenant that DRED SCOTT prohibited minorities from living in the area. A neighbor, Louis Kraemer, sued the STATUE Shelleys to prevent them from moving in, but the court sided with the Shelleys, Courtesy VisitMO.com ending racial discrimination in housing.

The Mary Meachum Freedom Crossing is north of downtown and the site where Mary Meachum was caught helping slaves cross the West Virginia Black History Tour Mississippi River to freedom. She and her husband, the Rev. John Berry Meachum, were part Harpers Ferry National Historical Park is a great first stop for any of the Underground Railroad. group that wants to learn more about Black history in West Virginia.

Lincoln University in Jefferson City was Harpers Ferry was the site of a raid by abolitionist John Brown, who a college founded by former enslaved soldiers tried to spark a slave revolt in 1859. Visitors to the 3,647-acre historical following the Civil War, and the Harry S. park can tour John Brown’s Fort, the 1848 armory where Brown and his Truman Presidential Library and Museum in 18 raiders made their stand against federal forces, or tour 24 restored Independence features an exhibit dedicated to 19th-century buildings. civil rights. Visitors learn about Harry Truman’s Another important site in the park is the Heyward Shepherd efforts toward equality in the U.S., including Monument, which commemorates a free Black man and innocent an executive order desegregating the federal bystander who was the first person killed by Brown and his raiders. The workforce and military. The Negro Leagues all-Black choir at Storer College was asked to perform at the monument Baseball Museum in Kansas City celebrates the dedication ceremony in 1931. Pearl Tatten, the choir director, vehemently rich history of African American baseball and its opposed performing at the dedication because African Americans supimpact on the social advancement of America. ported what Brown was trying to do, but the white college president VISITMO.PARAMOREDEV.COM felt it would show goodwill if they did. Tatten used the opportunity to tell the crowd that her father wore the Blue during the Civil War and that African Americans were not looking back to the days of the Black mammy but forward to the rise of Black youth.

W.E.B. Du Bois heard about what Tatten did and came to Harpers Ferry with a tablet that laid out demands of which rights all people HARPERS FERRY should have. He placed the tablet on a chair next to John Brown’s Fort and gave a rousing speech about it. The tablet is still there today.

In Charleston, groups can visit the home of Elizabeth Harden Gilmore, who pioneered efforts to integrate her state’s schools, housing and public accommodations and fought to pass legislation enforcing integration. In Huntington, visit the home of Memphis Tennessee Garrison, a teacher that helped organize a new NAACP branch in the region and served as national vice president of the NAACP Board of Directors in the mid-’60s.

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WEST VIRGINIA BLACK HERITAGE TOUR

Courtesy WV Dept. of Tourism

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2022

Art Meripol

Flip Shulke

1965

Walk in the footsteps of giants in Selma.

Voting-rights activists John Lewis and Hosea Williams led 600 peaceful marchers across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in 1965, only to be viciously attacked by state and local lawmen on what became known as Bloody Sunday.

Today, you can walk across the historic Selma, Alabama, bridge, just one of dozens of inspiring landmarks on the U.S. Civil Rights Trail. To learn more about these sites, heroes of the movement and others, go to civilrightstrail.com.

For more information contact:

Selma and Dallas County Chamber of Commerce and Tourism Information Executive Director Sheryl Smedley sheryl.smedley@selmaalabama.com

What happened here changed the world.

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Live to make memories as good as the company you keep! If you believe the more the merrier, Columbus is for you. This city has plenty of experiences for your group to share, whether you’re walking through a painting brought to life in Topiary Park or deep diving into history at Kelton House. Let your inner child fly free with the butterflies at the Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens or savor the city’s flavors on a food tour. Columbus is a playground for curiosity so start planning now at experiencecolumbus.com/groups.