Civil Rights Museum, Memphis

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at a window in the rear of the young and morrow building james earl ray shot and killed martin luther king jr. on april 4 th 1968. today the young and morrow building is part of the national civil rights museum.

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in modern times the most significant event in the history of memphis was the assassination of martin luther king jr. in 1968. martin luther king was a frequent visitor at the lorraine motel when he visited memphis. james earl ray had been stalking king and found a bathroom window in the young and morrow building across the street from the motel with a clear view of king's room. on april 4 th 1968 king was standing on the balcony outside of room 306 when he was shot by ray. ray escaped but was captured a couple of months later at heathrow airport in london. james earl ray was tried and convicted of king's murder and received a 99 year prison sentence. today the lorraine motel is part of the national civil rights museum. for those interested in civil rights history the national civil rights museum is a must see site in memphis.

I must admit I found the second part of the Museum much more interesting than the more popular main part. I nearly missed it when I left the building and was told by one of the girls working in it not to miss the place "across the road". When I asked what was there she said: "It's the alleged place from which the alleged killer shot the alleged bullet that killed King."

That summary still best sums up what can be seen over there.

This is Memphis' equivalent to the Texas School Book Depository in Dallas, the place from which James Earl Ray, a small time crook without any deep interest in politics, - well, allegedly - shot King. There are nearly as many unanswered and controversial questions surrounding this assassination as there are with regards to Dealy Plaza and the Little Grassy Knoll: If it was him, why did Ray do it? Was he hired to commit the crime? By whom? Ray was a poor shot in the Army and it was virtually impossible to place an accurate shot from the window he was to have been behind from. Only one drunk witness ever identified Ray... after two early contradictory statements and only after the FBI paid him $30.000 worth of bar taps. Ray only confessed to the crime under pressure and later recanted. Ray himself was arrested several months afterwards at Heathrow Airport. Although he had no known source of income he had spent $25.000 while on the run.

I am a sucker for a good conspiracy theory and all possible scenarios are presented in the Museum. Even King's own family now don't appear to believe that Ray was MLK's killer and for a very short period after Ray's death in 1998 a judicial review had even reversed the initial verdict.

The truth as they say is probably still out there... though don't expect to see it revealed any time soon.

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Here, at the Lorraine Motel, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated, as he sought to support the striking Sanitation Workers. Here, you can walk through American History in a way not experienced by the leaders of this nation, you'll be with the workers and minorities. You'll see the drama of the events and the risks taken by African-Americans to be seen as full members of society.
In addition, you'll look into the assassination of Dr. King, the controversies and supposed conspiracies. All will be examined from every angle. For all Americans and international visitors, this is an eye-opening look into a past that was not seen by many and avoided by some.

I have to be honest I did not know that Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in Memphis and I certainly had no idea that the city had turned the Lorraine Motel that it happened in appropriately into a Civil Rights Museum. But as luck would have it, prior to the trip, I was watching the movie “Elizabethtown,”which detailed a road trip that brought the main characters to Memphis, just to visit the Motel infamous for the assassination. The U2 song “Pride” was playing and it had never dawned on me what it was about until then even though I'd heard it countless times before. It was quite powerful in the movie and I knew I'd have to see it in person someday. Well, that day came but unfortunately, there was little time to actually go into the museum and they had a photography ban for the interiors so seeing it from outside would have to suffice. It was nonetheless a profound feeling standing there and knowing a great visionary had been struck down in the prime of his life. It was particularly odd for me as it was exactly the same color and near layout as the motel my parents owned that I grew up in while in New Jersey. I will try and properly visit the museum next time in Memphis but for those not so inclined it is well worth driving by and seeing the site of the atrocity commited against mankind.

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at the Civil Rights Museum. It's hard to describe the depths of emotion I felt here. You'll just have to visit the converted Lorraine Hotel where Dr. Martin Luther King spent his final moments on Earth. The museum was founded in 1991, with costs over just 9 million. Visitors can follow a well layout timeline of the American civil rights struggle, stemming from the 1600s when black slavery was institutionalized through the heights of the civil rights movemnts in the latter part of the 1900s. Though the museum highlights King heavily, numerous crusaders are praised. The museums actually consists of two buildings, one is the original Lorraine Hotel site, and the other building is where King assassinator, Lee Harvey Oswald shot the civil rights leader.

Several of the exhibits are just haunting and may shock some visitors, especially those not so familiar with the battle tested American civil rights movement. One can't help but to shed some tears viewing the sit-in display of protesters and of the area where one can stand just a few feet away from where King's life was snuff out prematurely.

Notes:

No photography allowed in the museums. Cameras should be left in the car or with lobby area in front of museum.

Hours (for summer):
Monday-Saturday 9 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Free Time (Mondays): 3 p.m. – 6 p.m. for Tenneessee residents only
Sunday 1 p.m. – 6 p.m.
Closed on Tuesdays

Admission:
Adults $12.00
Seniors $10.00
Students w/id $10.00
Children 4-17 years $8.50
3 and under Free
Members Free

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Martin Luther King was shot and killed on the balcony of this motel. To commemorate his existence and what he did for furthering Civil Rights, the motel was converted into a museum. Inside the museum follows the struggles Martin Luther King and many of the other Civil Rights leaders had to face. Across the street lies another museum linked to the Civil Rights Museum. This museum is the apartment building in which the assasin shot his rifle at Martin Luther King and murdered him.

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The Lorraine Motel, the scene of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., has fittingly been made into a museum that chronicles the fight for civil rights for African-Americans beginning in the 17th century. The motel has been preserved and looks just as it does in the famous B&W photo of King collegues pointing towards the direction of the gunshot from the second floor balcony. The exhibits are very well done with wonderful displays including a bus with a figure of Rosa Parks sitting near the front and a recording of a threatening bus driver; a Woolworth's counter that was the scene of sit-ins, and stirring TV footage related to the integration of Central High School in Little Rock. It's amazing and sad to me that these events happened during my lifetime. There is also a very well-done audio tour narrated by Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee. The walk through the exhibits culminates in a viewing of the motel room from where Dr. King emerged moments before he was shot.

The second part of the tour takes you across the street and examines the investigation that followed with timelines, actual evidence, and the bathroom in the boarding house from which James Earl Ray allgeedly fired the fatal shot. Also presented are various conspiracy theories and the evidence that supports them

A very well-done museum and a must-see for any visitor to Memphis.

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The Memphis tour drove us by this museum - we did not go in. The first picture I took through the van window and is the only one I have of the Civil Rights Museum protester. She has a street stand where she sits whenever the museum is open. She apparently makes a pretty good living here -- according to the tour guide, she was a guest in the Lorraine Motel when King was shot, and she objected to being evicted so that they could make a museum of it.

Unfortunately, when I went back the next day (Tuesday) to get a better picture of her, the museum was closed and so she was not there.

The ring on the balcony in the second picture is where M. L. King was standing when he was shot. The third picture shows the cars which were parked in the hotel lot at the time of the assassination including a limo

In addition to the section of the museum that is in the motel, (Room 306 and 307 are just as they were when Dr. King was assassinated in 1968) there is an additional part in the Young and Morrow building and the 420 Main Street rooming house where the fatal shot was allegedly fired by James Earl Ray. This section was opened in 2002.

Hours of Operation:
Monday-Saturday 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Free Time (Mondays): 3 p.m. – 5 p.m.
Sunday 1 p.m. – 5 p.m.
Closed on Tuesdays

Summer Hours ( June – August)
Monday-Saturday 9 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Free Time (Mondays): 3 p.m. – 6 p.m.
Sunday 1 p.m. – 6 p.m.
Closed on Tuesdays

*Admission:
Adults $12.00
Seniors $10.00
Students w/id $10.00
Children 4-17 years $8.50
3 and under Free

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The Lorraine Motel, where Martin Luther King, Jr was assassinated still stands, only it's now The National Civil Rights Museum. Once in the museum you walked around follow a time line which chronicles the movement to achieve civil rights for blacks from the very beginning to basically when Martin Luther King, Jr. was killed right on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel. Then you take a walk across the street to the second part of the museum which takes you thru right after he was shot to the arrest and trial of the man accused of his murder. They also lay out different reasons as to why the assasination took place (the guy on his own or was it a conspiracy, etc) and let's you decide what you think after seeing all the facts. There is also an exhibit on various important world human rights movements and those who were involved in definitely was very interesting and there was a great deal I didn't know.
It's closed on Tuesdays and admission for adults is $12 (i think it's an extra $2 to have the audio tour)