Atlanta, Ga., April 7, 2015 – The Georgia Historical Society announced today that they will dedicate three new historical markers as part of the Georgia Civil Rights Trail, a statewide public education initiative commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Movement in Georgia. The three markers will be dedicated this week in Vienna, Columbus, and Americus respectively.
“The Georgia Civil Rights Trail recognizes the central role that Georgia played and the leadership that Georgians provided in the movement to end Jim Crow in America,” said Dr. W. Todd Groce, President and CEO of the Georgia Historical Society. “By adding these three markers in Southwest Georgia we are continuing to tell the story of the people and places in in our state who changed history.”
The Georgia Civil Rights Trail initiative focuses broadly on the economic, social, political, and cultural history of the Civil Rights Movement by guiding audiences to the sites where history happened, inviting them to stand on the ground where struggles and events took place, and providing a foundation upon which to build and cultivate a deeper understanding of the past and its relevance to the present.
“These markers join over 65 other GHS markers across the state in recognizing the struggle for African-American freedom and equality since the Civil War,” added Groce.
The first Civil Rights Trail Marker to be dedicated this week will be Vienna High and Industrial School, A Georgia Equalization School. Established in 1959, Vienna High and Industrial School was a consolidated school for African Americans during segregation. The marker is erected by the Georgia Historical Society, the City of Vienna, the Vienna Historic Preservation Commission, and the Georgia Natural Resources Foundation. The dedication will take place at 2:00 p.m. at 216 Ninth Street, Vienna, GA.
The second Civil Rights Trail Marker dedication will be held Friday, April 10 in Columbus for Primus King and his 1944 challenge to end the “whites only” primary in Georgia. The marker is erected by the Georgia Historical Society, the City of Columbus, Historic Columbus, and the Georgia Department of Economic Development. The marker dedication will take place at 11:00 a.m. at the Government Center, 100 10th Street, Columbus.
The final dedication of the three will be held Saturday, April 11 in Americus when GHS unveils a marker for Sumter County in the Civil Rights Movement, commemorating the 1961 incarceration of Dr. Martin Luther King in the Sumter County Jail and the Sumter County Movement that repeatedly challenged segregation until 1965.
All three dedications are open to the media and the public.
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ABOUT GEORGIA HISTORICAL SOCIETY
Georgia Historical Society (GHS) is the premier independent statewide institution responsible for collecting, examining, and teaching Georgia history. GHS houses the oldest and most distinguished collection of materials related exclusively to Georgia history in the nation.
To learn more visit georgiahistory.com
ABOUT THE GEORGIA HISTORICAL MARKER PROGRAM
The Georgia Historical Society has administered Georgia’s historical marker program since 1998, erecting over 200 historical markers across Georgia on a wide variety of subjects. Now, online mapping tools allow you to design statewide driving routes based on historical markers, while mobile apps give information about markers nearby. Visit georgiahistory.com for more ways to use Georgia’s historical markers and experience history where it happened.