Selma To Montgomery National Historic Trail
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail is a
National Historic Trail The National Trails System is a series of trails in the United States designated "to promote the preservation of, public access to, travel within, and enjoyment and appreciation of the open-air, outdoor areas and historic resources of the Nati ...
in
Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...
. It commemorates and marks the journey of the participants of the 1965
Selma to Montgomery marches The Selma to Montgomery marches were three protest marches, held in 1965, along the 54-mile (87 km) highway from Selma, Alabama, to the state capital of Montgomery. The marches were organized by nonviolent activists to demonstrate the ...
in support of the
Voting Rights Act The suffrage, Voting Rights Act of 1965 is a landmark piece of Federal government of the United States, federal legislation in the United States that prohibits racial discrimination in voting. It was signed into law by President of the United ...
.


History

The
Selma to Montgomery March The Selma to Montgomery marches were three protest marches, held in 1965, along the 54-mile (87 km) highway from Selma, Alabama, to the state capital of Montgomery. The marches were organized by nonviolent activists to demonstrate the ...
occurred on March 21 to 25, 1965, and was led by Dr Martin Luther King. This march was the culmination of several weeks of activity, during which demonstrators had tried to march on two occasions. They were stopped on both occasions, once violently, by the police. Approximately 25,000 people joined the March and it became a landmark event in the
Civil Rights Movement The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional Racial segregation in the United States, racial segregation, Racial discrimination ...
, leading directly to the passing of the
Voting Rights Act of 1965 The Voting Rights Act of 1965 is a landmark piece of federal legislation in the United States that prohibits racial discrimination in voting. It was signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson during the height of the civil rights movement ...
. The march brought public attention to the injustices faced by African Americans in voting. In 1996, it was designated as a
National Historic Trail The National Trails System is a series of trails in the United States designated "to promote the preservation of, public access to, travel within, and enjoyment and appreciation of the open-air, outdoor areas and historic resources of the Nati ...
in an act proposed by President
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...
and passed by
Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...
, to be preserved by the
National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propertie ...
. In March 2005, a re-enactment of the march took place to commemorate its 40th anniversary. This anniversary led to the creation of a pedestrian walk around Selma. In 2015 the Marion to Selma Connecting Trail was designated to connect the Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail with the site of Jimmie Lee Jackson's murder. The
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2022 Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2022 is a $1.5 trillion omnibus spending bill. The bill was passed by Congress on March 14, 2022. The bill was signed into law by President Joe Biden on March 15, 2022. The law includes $13.6 billion in aid to ...
directed the National Park Service to study potential additions to the trail and whether it should become a unit of the
National Park System The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational properties ...
.


Route

The Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail is the shortest of the National Historic Trails at 54 miles. The National Historic Trail starts at the Mount Zion AME Zion Church in Marion. Route signs lead people from Marion to Selma, where there is an interpretative center for the trail. After visiting the center, the trail continues on to the
Edmund Pettus Bridge The Edmund Pettus Bridge carries U.S. Route 80 Business (US 80 Bus.) across the Alabama River in Selma, Alabama. Built in 1940, it is named after Edmund Pettus, a former Confederate brigadier general, U.S. senator, and state-level ...
. The trail then follows U.S. Route 80 to
White Hall White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
, where the Lownes Interpretative Center is based. The trail follows US Highway 80 until it reaches the state capital, Montgomery. Markers along the route point out the places where marchers camped, as well as other historic moments from the March, such as the murder of
Viola Liuzzo Viola Fauver Liuzzo (née Gregg; April 11, 1925 – March 25, 1965) was an American civil rights activist. In March 1965, Liuzzo heeded the call of Martin Luther King Jr. and traveled from Detroit, Michigan, to Selma, Alabama, in the wake of the ...
or the place in St Jude's historic district where musicians
Harry Belafonte Harry Belafonte (born Harold George Bellanfanti Jr.; March 1, 1927) is an American singer, activist, and actor. As arguably the most successful Jamaican-American pop star, he popularized the Trinbagonian Caribbean musical style with an interna ...
,
Tony Bennett Anthony Dominick Benedetto (born August 3, 1926), known professionally as Tony Bennett, is an American retired singer of traditional pop standards, big band, show tunes, and jazz. Bennett is also a painter, having created works under his birth ...
, and
Peter, Paul & Mary Peter, Paul and Mary was an American folk group formed in New York City in 1961 during the American folk music revival phenomenon. The trio consisted of tenor Peter Yarrow, baritone Paul Stookey, and contralto Mary Travers. The group's reperto ...
performed for the marchers. As well as being a National Historic Trail, the route is also designated a
National Scenic Byway A National Scenic Byway is a road recognized by the United States Department of Transportation for one or more of six "intrinsic qualities": archeological, cultural, historic, natural, recreational, and scenic. The program was established by Co ...
.


Driving

In common with other National Historic Trails, the National Park Service recommends that people wanting to follow the route drive.


Walking

The Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail has no designated safe path for pedestrians wanting to walk between the two cities. The highway is busy with trucks passing regularly at speed.


Cycling

To commemorate 55 years since the Selma to Montgomery marches, cyclists from over 30 states met in February 2020 to travel the route the marchers walked. Over 600 cyclists joined the group. It was only the second time the route had been cycled as a public commemorative act - the first time was in 2015 to mark the 50th anniversary of the march.


Reception

The Selma to Montgomery National Historic Route is one of the sites criticized for not emphasizing enough the role of African-American women in its route and interpretation.


References


External links


Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail

Databook for Walking the Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail

A Journey Along the Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail
{{Trail system Selma to Montgomery marches National Historic Trails of the United States History of African-American civil rights Selma, Alabama History of Montgomery, Alabama 1996 establishments in Alabama Protected areas established in 1996