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| 16th Street Baptist Church |
 |
| Edmund Pettus Bridge |
 |
Lorraine Motel and
Civil Rights Museum |
Tammy and I took a two-week Civil Rights tour of the South (Montgomery, Birmingham, Selma, Jackson, Memphis), plus added some other places of interest (Tupelo, Vicksburg, Natchez, Destin).
Montgomery
 |
| Mississippi Capitol |
 |
| Court Square Fountain |
Montgomery is a quiet, small city, with its downtown dominated by government buildings. But there is two hundred years of history in Montgomery, which was one of the largest slave trading centers in America. It was the first Capitol of the Confederacy, where Jefferson Davis was sworn into office. At the Winter Building, the command to fire on Fort Sumter was sent via telegraph on April 11, 1861. Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott kicked off a decade of the Civil Rights Movement. The amount of history in Montgomery is really remarkable.
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| Bus Boycott Monument |
 |
| Rosa Parks Statue |
Our first stop was the Rosa Parks Museum, located at the bus stop where she refused to give up her seat to a white passenger in 1955. The museum provides an engaging history of the events of that day, and how the subsequent Montgomery Bus Boycott launched a the decade of Civil Rights activism and progress.
 |
| Freedom Riders Museum |
The Freedom Riders Museum in the old Greyhound Terminal was small but excellent, covering the heroism of the protestors who withstood beatings and imprisonment, and the related legal battles and Supreme Court decisions.
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| Dexter Ave Baptist Parsonage |
 |
| Dexter Ave Baptist Church |
We visited the Dexter Avenue Church Parsonage where Martin Luther King lived while minister of the Dexter Avenue Church - he was just 25 years old in 1954 when he became minister of the church! It was in the kitchen of the Parsonage that Rev. King had an epiphany that God instructed him that nonviolent resistance was the path to peace.. That commitment was tested three days later when his home was bombed by white supremacists. A huge crowd formed, ready to fight back, but King convinced the crowd to disburse and go home peacefully, likely saving the Civil Rights movement from devolving into violence. Two doors down from the parsonage is the Harris home, where Freedom Riders sought refuge. Downtown, we saw the Dexter Avenue Church and the First Baptist church, where Freedom Riders hid from a hostile crowd while awaiting police protection.
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| Confederate Monument |
 |
Court Square Fountain
Dexter Ave to the Capitol |
 |
First Confederate
White House |
The state Capitol is impressive, and the nearby First Confederate White House is noteworthy. The Civil War Monument was dedicated by none other than Jefferson Davis in 1886, as part of the rewriting of history that took place after Reconstruction. Court Square has a beautiful fountain, and was the spot at which Rosa Parks boarded the bus on her fateful ride home.
 |
| F Scott Fitzgerald House |
The F Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald home and Museum was an interesting view into his life and two years living in Montgomery.
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| Memorial for Peace & Justice |
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| Memorial for Peace & Justice |
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| Peace & Justice Sculpture |
The Legacy Museum, from enslavement to mass incarceration (link) is remarkable, comprising four different locations. We spent three hours in the museum (no pictures allowed in the museum), which provides a detailed history of slavery, Reconstruction, Jim Crow segregation, the Civil Rights Movement, and mass incarceration. The National Memorial for Peace and Justice focuses on the over 4,000 victims of lynching between 1877 and 1930. Each metal box lists the names of lynching victims from a given county, and there are hundreds of these boxes! Montgomery Square is focused on Rosa Parks and the fight for Civil Rights. The Freedom Monument Sculpture Park tells the story of slavery through art installations and personal stories. Spending the requisite time in each location, it takes the better part of a day, but it is well worth it.
The NewSouth Bookstore is a publisher and purveyor of new and used books. The history section is excellent, especially the Montgomery, Alabama and Southern sections. I met Randall Williams, the editor-in-chief of NewSouth Books. He possesses a wealth of knowledge about Alabama, and the deep historical significance of Montgomery. I could have talked to him for hours!
Lunch at Little Donkey (Mexican) was very good, with a huge outdoor dining area. Dinner at The Exchange was very good pub grub. We stayed at the Renaissance, which is located in the Alley area which has restaurants and bars.
Selma
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| Brown Chapel AME |
 |
| Edmund Pettus Bridge |
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| First Baptist |
US-80 between Selma and Montgomery is the route taken by the Voting Rights protestors on their march to the Governor's office, it is now a National Historical Trail. There is a National Park Service Interpretation Center in Selma and another in Lowndes (the midpoint of the march). The Selma Center is closed for renovations so we visited Lowndes. The 25 minute documentary is excellent, as are the displays. They tell the story of the violence inflicted on marchers on Bloody Sunday, and the subsequent larger march led by Martin Luther King two weeks later. It is a must-do before visiting Selma. While in Selma, we visited the Brown Chapel AME Church where the marches departed, and we walked across the Edmund Pettus (Ku Klux Supreme Leader) Bridge. Note: Selma is a very depressed town. There is nothing to do other than visit these historical sites.
Birmingham
Birmingham was founded in 1871 as a planned city, taking advantage of the existing railroads through the area, and the discovery of iron and coal in the region. From the beginning, Birmingham was an industrial city, and became on of the largest producers of steel in America.
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| Civil Rights Museum |
 |
| A new Birmingham? |
In 1963, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) chose Birmingham as the target of their protests and civil disobedience. The racist and violent Public Safety Commissioner "Bull" Connor would make Birmingham notorious across the globe, and his extremism would ultimately undermine white supremacy and segregation in Birmingham.
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| Birmingham Jail |
Attempts at school desegregation caused an eruption of further violence. Martin Luther King was jailed in Birmingham during protests over segregation, when he authored the famous "Letter from the Birmingham Jail".
 |
| 16th St Baptist sanctuary |
 |
Window under which
bomb exploded |
The 16th Street Baptist Church was the site of a horrific bombing in 1963. Members of the local Ku Klux Klan chapter planted explosives in the church, timed to explode between Sunday school and the church service. Clearly, children were targeted, and four young girls were killed in the explosion. The heinous crime outraged the public, in the US and internationally. Birmingham civil leaders were forced to begin the slow process of desegregation.
 |
| A.C. Gaston Motel |
 |
Kelly Ingram Park, statue
of four bombing victims |
The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute provides a visually engaging overview of the Civil Rights Movement, and the key events in Birmingham. The adjacent Kelly Ingram Park has sculptures commemorating the events of 1963. The nearby AG Gaston Motel was the center of planning for Martin Luther King and others from SCLC and SNCC.
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| Highlands |
 |
| View from Railroad Park |
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| Vulcan statue |
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| Heaviest Corner |
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| Heaviest Corner |
Worth visiting: Railroad Park, the Vulcan status on Red Clay Hill, the Sloss Steel Plant, Five Corners at Highland (neighborhood with 1920s architecture). The main intersection at 1st Ave and 20th Street was deemed the "Heaviest Corner in the World" in 1909, sue to the early skyscrapers on each of the four corners.
Downtown Birmingham is pretty quiet, but there are a surprising number of quality restaurants, including seven Michelin recommendations. We enjoyed Bayonet (try the Double with Cheese, a tuna burger that tastes as good as the best burger you've had), Helen (great burger), and The Essential (Rigatoni with a twist - chorizo and Manchego), all three were exceptional. Other Michelin recommendations that we did not have a chance to try: Bib Gourmand - La Fête and Pizza Grace; Michelin Recommended - Current Charcoal Grill and Hot and Hot Fish Club
Salud Mexican had great tacos. Cannella Gelato was very good. It's on Morris Ave, a small street lined with early twentieth century merchant buildings and warehouses, some converted to restaurants, including Pizza Grace and La Fete. We stayed at the Fairfield Inn on 1st Avenue, which is a great location, near the restaurants clustered around 20th Street.
Reeds Books has a great selection of local fiction and non-fiction. Owner Jim was very helpful; when I asked how he was, he said "I'm great - I'm in a Bookstore!"
Mobile
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Basilica of
Immaculate Conception |
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| Chighizola House |
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| Old City Hall |
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Magnolia Cemetery
Confederate Burial lot |
Tammy has relatives from Mobile, so we visited Magnolia Cemetery to see some of their graves. The cemetery dates from the 1840s, and there is a substantial Confederate burial site.
 |
| Fort Conde |
The Mobile Visitor Center offers excellent self-guided walks: Dauphin Street Historic District, a walking/driving tour of seven historic districts, and one that highlights five historic homes. The History Museum of Mobile is very interesting, as is Fort Conde (included in the museum ticket).
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| Government St Mansion |
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| Government St Mansion |
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| Oakleigh House |
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| Battle House Hotel |
Government Street is incredible, with dozens of beautiful homes. The Oakleigh Mansion (1837) is beautiful, in a nice neighborhood. The Battle House Hotel (1851) has an impressive lobby with Tiffany domed ceiling, supported by four columns depicting the four empires that ruled Mobile: French, British, Spanish and American. Nearby
Dauphin Restaurant on the 34th floor of the Trustmark building has great food, outstanding gumbo, great views and service.
Fairhope: Located across Mobile Bay from Mobile, Fairhope is a Gilded Age planned community established in 1894 as a "Single-Tax" colony by the Fairhope Industrial Association, following the model of economist Henry George (previously created the single tax community of Des Moines). Main Street is very nice, with lots of shops and restaurants. Page and Palette Bookstore, Coffee Shop and Bar (link) is awesome, I didn't want to leave. The Fairhope Museum has some interesting insights into the creation of this Utopian village; the story behind the single tax corporation is very interesting. The waterfront and pier offer great views of Mobile Bay. Lunch at Panini Pete's (link) was good, with a table out on the patio.
Memphis
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Room 306 where MLK
spent his last night |
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| Room 306 balcony |
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| Lorraine Motel |
The highlight of Memphis is the National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel. The museum is excellent, taking you through the decades-long fight for civil rights, culminating in the assassination of Dr Martin Luther King. The tour ends at room 306, overlooking the balcony where he was shot. It's a fascinating and evocative experience.
 |
| Beale Street |
We made the obligatory tour of Beale Street, which was home to dozens of black businesses before urban renewal projects in the 1960s razed much of the street, leaving just two blocks. Rum Boogie Blues Hall had some great live music. The A Schwab General Store is fun to visit.
 |
| Sun Studios |
The Sun Studio tour was great! Considered the birthplace of Rock'n'roll, the studio was instrumental in the early careers of Elvis Presley, B.B. King, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Roy Orbison, Ike Turner, Carl Perkins, and others.
 |
Peabody Hotel Lobby
ducks in the fountain |
The Cooper-Young district has some restaurants and shops, including Burke Book Store has been open since 1875. Overton Square is a strip of restaurants in the Arts District. Downtown, we had drinks at the Peabody Lobby Bar, with the famous ducks in the fountain.
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| The Naked Truth |
South Main Arts district and National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel. Drinks at Earnestine and Hazel; the Central Station lobby bar is great. We had a good lunch at SOB (South of Beale). The Naked Truth mural presents an American flag depicting the names of dozens of school shootings, and the fifty stars are silhouettes of shooters. When we returned to our hotel, we learned that yet another school shooting had occurred in Bend Oregon, making the mural even more poignant.
 |
| The Cotton Exchange |
The Cotton Museum at the Cotton Market is very interesting, and includes a Cotton Row walking tour.
The famous Charlie Vergos Rondezvous is probably famous more for the atmosphere than the ribs. The brisket was better than the ribs, great coleslaw and beans. Wiseacre Brewing Company had some great beers, excellent Unicornucopia Belgian Quad, 18.5% ABV.; very good Barleywine. The pizza is excellent!
Oxford
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| Oxford Court House |
 |
| Oxford Square |
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| Court House |
The main square is iconic and picturesque, and is the best feature of Oxford. Square Books is awesome, with a large collection of local authors (Faulkner, Grisham), The Velvet Ditch, Boure for drinks on the balcony overlooking the Square. Big Bad Breakfast is half mile north of the square, great food.
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| Ole Miss |
 |
| Rowan Oak |
The Grove and the Circle on Old Miss campus are photo-worthy, and there are historical markers telling the story of the violent protest when the first black person registered at Ole Miss in 1962 (James Meredith was later killed). Near the square is Rowan Oak, the home of William Faulkner. It's interesting to tour the house and outbuildings.
Tupelo
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| Elvis Home |
We stopped in Tupelo to visit the Elvis Presley birthplace, a tiny two-room house. It was interesting to see it.
 |
| Holly Springs Court House |
Holly Springs has a lot of history for a tiny town. There was a significant Confederate Army victory, where the destroyed the Union supply depot and altered Grant's attack plans for Vicksburg. Holly Springs is also the birthplace of Civil Rights legend Ida B. Wells.
Clarksdale
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| Ground Zero |
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| Ground Zero |
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| Hooker's |
An hour south of Memphis in the Mississippi Delta, Clarksdale is the unofficial home of the Delta Blues. The Delta Blues Museum is an interesting overview of the growth of the Blues. Ground Zero Blues Club, co-owned by Morgan Freeman, is a fantastic music venue. The night we were there, an excellent Blues vocalist from Chicago was onstage with the house band - outstanding. Levon's is a nice venue for for music. Dinner at Hooker Grocer & Eatery (link) was very good and a great atmosphere. We stayed at the Travelers Hotel in Clarksdale, which was a great experience - it feels like you are literally in the 1930s.
Vicksburg
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| Anchuca Mansion |
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| Duff-Green Mansion |
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| Sunset over Mississippi |
Vicksburg sits on a bluff high above the Mississippi, and during the Civil War the Confederates used Vicksburg to block the Union's use of the river, thus cutting off commerce for much of the Ohio Valley. Seizing Vicksburg was a top priority for President Lincoln, opening the Mississippi to Union commerce, blocking supplies from reaching the Confederate Army via Vicksburg, and cutting the Confederacy in half. Ulysses S Grant led Union forces to lay siege to Vicksburg, forcing the surrender of the Southern port in 1863. The Vicksburg National Military Park museum provides a good 20 minute video overview of this pivotal battle in the Civil War.
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| Vicksburg Court House |
 |
| Courtroom |
The Old Court House Museum includes a wide array of local historical relics. The original Confederate "Stars and Bars" flies above the Court House instead of the US flag which I found confusing (and frankly un-American). The Civil War Museum is very interesting, with a small but eclectic collection. They have an original copy of the Crittenden Compromise which was an unsuccessful attempt to avoid secession. The nearby Biedenharn Coca-Cola Museum celebrates the first place where Coke was bottled (1894). Lunch at Key City Brewery was decent, with some interesting ales. Lorelei Books has a nice selection of new and used books in an historic building.
Windsor Ruins
 |
| Windsor Ruins |
Driving the Great River Road along the Mississippi, we took a detour to see the Windsor Ruins, comprised only of the Corinthian columns from the plantation house that was built in 1861 (surprising that they could acquire the material to build such a massive house during the Civil War). Apparently a dinner guest left a cigarette smoldering, which eventually set the mansion ablaze.
Natchez (rhymes with matches)
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| Victorian Home |
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| Jefferson St Methodist |
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| Kings Tavern |
Natchez is the oldest town on the Mississippi, settled by the French in 1792 and briefly controlled by the Spanish from 1763-1802. The cotton economy made Natchez immensely wealthy, with more millionaires per capita than any city in antebellum America. Unlike Vicksburg, the residents of Natchez surrendered to Union troops, avoiding the destruction of their town; Natchez has countless antebellum Victorian mansions that are beautiful. Main and Franklin Streets are lined with beautiful buildings, shops and restaurants. Kings Tavern is the oldest building in Natchez, dating from 1789.
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| First Presbyterian |
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| Melrose |
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| Stanton Hall |
The First Presbyterian Church is particularly pretty. There are numerous mansions in town and in the surrounding area, such as Stanton (1857) and Monmouth. Even more modest "middle class" houses from the mid nineteenth century are aesthetically interesting. Melrose Mansion is run by the National Park Services, the tour shows the original fixtures and furniture from 1850.
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| Longwood |
Longwood octagonal plantation house is really impressive. Designed by a Philadelphia architect and built by Pennsylvania Amish carpenters, its construction was halted by the Civil War. The William Johnson House is part of the National Park Service and has an interesting museum describing the former slave who became a merchant and slave owner. It is also the visitor center for the Natchez Trace Trail.
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| View of Mississippi |
Natchez under the hill, along the Mississippi river, has restaurants overlooking the Mississippi. Camp Restaurant has good sandwiches and beer selection.
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| Sunken Trace |
Natchez Trace Trail was an ancient trade route, blazed originally by Native Americans, and later used by settlers and traders. Before the age of steam riverboats, traders from the Ohio Valley would sail flatboats down the Mississippi to sell their wares, and sell the flatboat for lumber. They would then walk hundreds of miles back to their farms via the Natchez Trace - pretty amazing. We drive the Natchez Trace from Natchez to Jackson.
Jackson
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| Governor's House |
 |
| New State House |
We've been to a lot of disappointing places, Jackson might top the list. We walked all over downtown and struggled to find a restaurant. Finally we found Martin's which was pretty good. For dinner we went to Iron Horse Grill which was fine. Very few choices in downtown Jackson. The Fondren neighborhood is very small but much nicer than downtown, with numerous restaurants. We had a good breakfast at the Bean.
 |
| Confederate Monument |
 |
| Medgar Evers House |
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| Old State House |
The old Capitol building has a museum (closed the day we arrived), plus a huge Confederate Memorial with a statue of Jefferson Davis. The
Mississippi Civil Rights Museum and Mississippi History Museum are housed in the same complex, one tickets get access to both. In the suburbs we visited Medgar and Myrlie Evers home (
link), where Medgar was assassinated outside his home in 1963.
Laurel
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| Confederate Monument |
 |
| Laurel Mercantile |
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| Scotsman Woodshop |
Laurel MS is a really cute small town, with a bustling downtown that is attributable in large part to the HGTV show "Home Town" filmed there. Stop at the Scotsman Co Woodshop to get a town map and a self-guided walking tour of historic homes (quite a nice tour). Lunch at Cafe La Fleur was good.
Pensacola
Founded in 1556 by the Spanish, but not settled until 1698, Pensacola was the capitol of Spanish Florida. Known as the "City of Five Flags", Pensacola was ruled by Spain (1556-1719, 1722-1763, 1781-1821), France (1719-1722), Britain (1763-1781), the United States (1821-1861, from 1862), and the Confederate States of America (1861-1862).
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| Christ Church |
 |
| Old Pensacola |
The Pensacola Historic District downtown has buildings from 1805-1830, encompassing the area of the original Pensacola settlement (late British occupation through American territorial period). The Pensacola Museum of History provides a nice overview of the Spanish, French, British, Confederate and American occupations of the area, probably the most fought-over place in the United States. Christ Church dates from 1832 and is the oldest church in Florida.
Destin
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| Gulf Island Nat'l Seashore |
 |
| Gulf Island Nat'l Seashore |
We wanted to see the famous white sand beaches of the Florida panhandle. They did not disappoint - the sand is as white as snow and powder soft. On Golf Island National Seashore, we stopped to walk the beach. The water varies from emerald to sapphire in color - just beautiful. When we reached Destin, we had lunch on the water at The Back Porch, both the food and the view were fantastic. We visited Henderson Beach State Park, which is a beautiful stretch of pristine beach.
