St. Augustine played an important role as one of the great battlefields
of the civil rights movement of the 1960s leading directly to the passage
of the
Civil Rights Act of 1964 that outlawed segregation and racial discrimination.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. went on from the city to receive the Noble Peace
Prize. The locations of where the demonstrations, rallies and events took
place as part of the historic civil rights movement are part of a collective
community memory that is in danger of being lost forever if not recognized
and preserved in a deserving manner. Just in the past year, two of the sites
of national and international significance - the Monson Motor Lodge and the
Ponce de Leon Motor Lodge — have been demolished. The remaining sites,
listed below, need to be thoroughly researched, documented, placed on the
National Register of Historic Places and permanently marked as part of the
St. Augustine “Freedom Trail.” This will show where this great
episode in American democracy took place and will be remembered for generations
to come.
• Elks Lodge: Washington St.
•
Dr. Hayling’s Office: 79 Bridge St., Dr. Hayling’s Houses: 160
M.L. King Ave. and R.B. Hayling Place
•
Henry & Kat Twine Home: 163 Twine St.
• Steps to home burned on Gault St.
• Fannie Fulwood home: 83 King Ferry Way
• Home where Mrs. Peabody stayed: 177 Twine St.
• Homes where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. stayed: 81 and 83 Bridge St.,
156 M. L.
King Av.
Demonstration Sites:
• Slave Market - Plaza de la Constitution
• Woolworth- King St.
• St. George Pharmacy
• Lincolnville Public Library: De Haven at 97 M.L. King Av.
• Henry Thomas House: 155 Twine St.
Civil Rights Rallies held with M.L. King Jr. officiating, Churches listed in
1964
• St. Paul A.M.E. Church - Central Ave. now M.L. King Av.
• First Baptist Church -St. Francis St.
•
St. Mary’s Baptist Church - Washington St.
• Trinity Methodist Church - Bridge St.
• Zion Baptist Church - Evergreen Av
• Shiloh Baptist Church - King St., W.
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