11 Black History Sites on the Map
11 Black History Sites on the Map
Take a virtual tour of the USA’s most important black history sites
Take a virtual tour of the USA’s most important black history sites
There are so many iconic places where black history was made and each one is worth traveling to. But if you cannot go in person, Google Maps can take you there virtually with a 360-degree street view of any historic location you wish to see.
Celebrate Black History month by visiting the landmarks like the 16th street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama or Little Rock Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas where the national guard had to escort the first nine black students to school or the Johnson House stop on the underground railroad in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
1. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial - Washington D.C.
The Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial at 1964 Independence Avenue SW, Washington DC, features a 30 ft statue of the Civil Rights leader that was carved into the Stone of Hope. Some of his most memorable quotes are etched into the memorial. While you are there, walk to the Lincoln Memorial where King gave his "I have a Dream" speech and to the National Museum of African History and Culture.
2. The Monroe Elementary School - Topeka, Kansas
The Monroe Elementary School at 1515 SE Monroe St. in Topeka, Kansas is the location that the famous Brown v. Board of Education ordered to be desegregated. This 1954 landmark Supreme Court case abolished school segregation in the United States once and for all.
3. The Motown Museum - Detroit, Michigan
The Motown Museum is in the original building of Motown Records. "Hitsville USA" 2648 Grand Blvd. in Detroit, Michigan, was established in 1959 by Berry Gordy. This recording label helped start some of the greatest black musical artists including Mary Wells, Otis Redding, The Supremes, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, the Temptations, the Jackson 5, and many more.
4. Johnson House - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Johnson House at 6306 Germantown Avenue is Philadelphia's only intact site on the Underground Railway. It was owned by a family of Quaker abolitionists and served as a safe house for slaves making their way to freedom.
5. The 16th Street Baptist Church - Birmingham, Alabama
The 16th Street Baptist Church on 1530 6th Av. N in Birmingham, Alabama was a former civil rights meeting place and was bombed by the KKK in 1963, killing four girls - Addie Mae Collins, Cynthia Wesley, Carole Robertson, and Carol Denise McNair - and injuring 22.
6. The F. W. Woolworth Retail Store - Greensboro, North Carolina
The F. W. Woolworth Retail Store in Greensboro, North Carolina where the "whites only" lunch counter sit-in occurred that challenged the laws of segregation is now the home of The International Civil Rights Center & Museum.
7. The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum - Kansas City, Missouri
The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum at 18th and Vine in Kansas City, Missouri was founded by a group of former Negro league players and commemorates the time (1920-1951) before baseball was desegregated by Jackie Robinson in 1947 when the Brooklyn Dodgers started him on first base.
8. Little Rock Central High School - Little Rock, Arkansas
Little Rock Central High School, 1500 S Park St in Little Rock, Arkansas is where the Little Rock Nine students had to be escorted by the Arkansas National Guard and the US Army to desegregate the school in 1957.
9. The Mary McLeod Bethune Council House - Washington D.C.
The Mary McLeod Bethune Council House at 1318 Vermont Ave, Washington DC was the home of the National Council of Negro Women and feminist Mary McLeod Bethune from 1943 to 1949.
10. Buffalo Soldiers National Museum - Houston, Texas
The Buffalo Soldiers were a group of former slaves, freemen, and civil war veterans who served in peacetime and were credited as helping to forge the Wild West.
11. The Apollo Theater - New York City, New York
The Apollo Theater, 253 W. 125th in Harlem in New York City, New York was the venue for African American performers beginning in the 1930s. some of the performers who got their start at the Apollo include Billie Holiday, Pearl Bailey, Sammy Davis, JR, Aretha Franklin, Dionne Warwick, and so many more. DJ Cool started hip-hop and rap music at the Apollo. While in NYC you can also take a Harlem Renaissance walking tour.