Gunter Hill Campground

Paul Grist State Park

Prairie Creek

Alabama State Capitol

Located in Montgomery, Alabama, the state capitol was the destination of the 1965 Selma to Montgomery March.

• An imposing white government building with tall pillars and gray stairs leading from a city street to the front entrance.

Alabama: Brown Chapel AME Church Selma

Both the building and the members of Brown Chapel AME Church played pivotal roles in the Selma, Alabama, marches that helped lead to the passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. The starting point for the Selma-to-Montgomery marches, Brown Chapel also hosted the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) for the first three months of 1965.

• A tall brick building with twin spires and stained glass windows facing the street.

Alabama: Dexter Avenue Baptist Church Montgomery

This church in Montgomery, Alabama was the backbone of the 1955-1956 Montgomery bus boycott--the first locally-initiated mass protest against racial discrimination and a "model" for other grass-roots demonstrations. The boycott proved how members of a black community could unite in resistance to segregation, and it heralded a new era of "direct action."

• A tall red-brick building on a city street corner.

Alabama: First Baptist Church

First Baptist Church, along with its close neighbor, Brown Chapel AME Church, played a pivotal role in the Selma, Alabama, marches that helped lead to the passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act.

Alabama: Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail

On August 6, 1965, President Lyndon Johnson signed, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which extended equal voting rights for African-Americans. As both White and Black non-violent supporters led by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. fought for the right to vote in Central Alabama, today, you can trace their march toward freedom on the 54-mile trail and connect with their stories at the Interpretive Centers.

Alabama: The Edmund Pettus Bridge

The Selma-to-Montgomery March for voting rights ended three weeks--and three events--that represented the political and emotional peak of the modern civil rights movement. On "Bloody Sunday," March 7, 1965, some 600 civil rights marchers headed east out of Selma, Alabama on U.S. Route 80.

Alabama: U.S. Post Office and Courthouse Montgomery

Thanks to a courageous and insightful federal judge--Frank M. Johnson, Jr.--this Montgomery, Alabama, courthouse became one of few official buildings in the South where civil rights claims could receive an impartial hearing and be won.

City of St. Jude (Campsite 4)

Founded during the mid-1930s by Catholic priest Father Harold Purcell when segregation was the norm in the Southeast, the City of St. Jude Hospital in Montgomery, Alabama pioneered nondiscriminatory health, education, and social services.

David Hall Farm (Campsite 1)

The march from Selma to Montgomery lasted 5 days, 4 nights. The first night, March 21, 1965, thousands camped on the property of Mr. David Hall.

• Directly next to a busy road, a large brown sign reads, "Campsite 1, David Hall Farm, March 21, 1965".

Elmore Bolling Marker

Entering Lowndes County

Alabama: Lowndes County

Entering Montgomery County

Historic Tabernacle Baptist Church in Selma

Tabernacle Baptist Church was the site of the first mass meeting in the Selma Voting Rights Movement.

• A two-story yellow-brick building with a round alcove on top and square pillars at the corners. The front and side of the building have matching architecture.

Lowndes Tent City

Lowndesboro Schoolhouse

Mt. Gillard Missionary Baptist Church

Robert Gardner Farm (Campsite 3)

The march from Selma to Montgomery lasted 5 days, 4 nights. The third night, March 23, 1965, several hundred people camped on the farm of Mr. Robert Gardner.

• A side road off Highway 80 leads southward. Green grass and a trees frame a brown sign which reads "Selma to Montgomery Trail. Campsite 3. Robert Gardner Farm. March 23, 1965."

Rosie Steele Property (Campsite 2)

The march from Selma to Montgomery lasted 5 days, 4 nights. The second night, March 22, 1965, several hundred people camped on the property of Ms. Rosie Steele.

• A large brown sign along the highway designates what was Ms. Rosie Steele's property. Today a few rural houses back off the highway remain.

Viola Liuzzo Memorial

Lowndes Interpretive Center

• Lowndes Interpretive Center
• The Lowndes Interpretive Center is located roughly halfway between Selma and Montgomery along the Trail on U.S. Highway 80 West near Whitehall, AL. The center has exhibits, including interactive exhibits, that tell the story of the history of the Voting Rights Movement, the 1965 Selma to Montgomery Voting Rights March, and the Tent City that housed 20 families over a two year period following the passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. Visitors may view the film "Never Lose Sight of Freedom" in the theater.

Montgomery Interpretive Center

• Montgomery Interpretive Center
• The Montgomery Interpretive Center is located on the campus of Alabama State University in Montgomery, AL. Inside the center, exhibits tell the history of the last leg of the 1965 Selma to Montgomery Voting Rights March, the student involvement in the Voting Rights Movement, and the rally that occurred at the City of St. Jude campus the fourth night of the march. A 20-minute film about student protests in Montgomery during March 1965 is available for viewing.

Selma Interpretive Center

• Selma Interpretive Center
• This visitor center is currently closed for construction.

Temporary Location - Selma Welcome Center

• Temporary Location - Selma Welcome Center
• The Selma Welcome Center is the temporary location for the Selma Interpretive Center, right next to the permanent location of the Selma Interpretive Center.

Lowndes County Driving Guide - Work in Progress

A driving guide to the Historic Civil Rights sites in Lowndes County, Alabama

The Selma to Montgomery March Driving Tour

The Selma to Montgomery March was a multi-day event, traveling 54 miles from Brown Chapel African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church on March 21, 1965, in Selma to the steps of the Alabama State Capitol in Montgomery on March 25, 1965. This driving tour will follow the steps of the March, with several stops along the way that can be explored on foot or driven past. To follow the tour with a vehicle, please plan for about 70 miles of travel and 90 minutes of time.