Visitor Center for Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park

OPERATING HOURS

The Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historical Park Visitor Center is open from 9 AM to 5 PM year-round except when closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas Day, and New Year’s Day. However, times can always change, so before making travel plans be sure to get the current schedule on the National Park Service’s official Operating Hours and Seasons web page for the park.

AMENITIES

• Ranger-staffed information desk where you can pick up a park brochure and ask questions
• Get a free ticket for daily tours of the Martin Luther King Jr. Birth Home
• Theater where two park films are shown
• Exhibit Area
• Peace Plaza (located outside)
• Book and souvenir store
• Restrooms

Information desk at the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historical Park Visitor Center

PARK FILMS

Two films are shown on a rotating basis in the Visitor Center theater. A sign posted at the information desk states which film is up next and the time, plus an announcement is made over the public address system a few minutes before showtime. There are plenty of seats, so no need to rush into the theater or worry about missing a show due to a crowd.

The 28-minute film New Time, New Voice documents the life of Martin Luther King Jr., and in doing so, also covers key moments in the Civil Rights Movement, including the Montgomery bus boycott that started with Rosa Park’s arrest, lunch counter sit-ins, student protests, the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, and the Selma to Montgomery marches for voter rights. The film features interviews with Coretta Scott King, Andrew Young, Hosea Williams, and other Civil Rights leaders. There is also plenty of historical film footage and photographs, some of which depicts police attacks on the protesters, so the film may not be suitable for very young children.

Children of Courage is a 15-minute film that tells the story of the young children, teenagers, and college students who fought against segregation. As with New Time, New Voice, archival footage depicts violence against the protesters.

EXHIBITS

In the lobby is an interactive exhibit titled Children of Courage—which ties in with the film—designed to educate elementary, middle, and high school students about the Civil Rights Movement.

Children of Courage exhibit in the Visitor Center lobby

The main exhibit at the Visitor Center is called Courage to Lead. The story of the Civil Rights Movement and Martin Luther King Jr.’s role in it is recounted in six separate areas, each covering a different topic: Segregation; The King Family; Call To Lead; Visiting the Mountain; Expanding the Dream; Overcoming Loss. All sections are comprised of information panels, historical photographs, and a video featuring archival news footage and interviews with people who were part of the fight for Civil Rights.

Segregation section of the Courage to Lead exhibit

Call to Lead examines the early leaders of the Civil Rights Movement

The six exhibit areas are divided in half by the Freedom Road sculpture, which most people with knowledge of the Civil Rights Movement will assume is of protesters marching across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama. In fact, on display near Selma at the Lowndes Interpretive Center for the Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail is a very similar sculpture.

Freedom Road divides the Courage to Lead exhibit into two parts

Voting Rights March sculpture at the Lowndes Interpretive Center near Selma

The only artifact from King’s life on display within the Courage to Lead exhibit is the funeral carriage used to carry his coffin and body. This was an actual antique provided by a local antique shop. If you want to see other artifacts, be sure to visit Freedom Hall at the King Center, which is also part of Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historical Park. There you will find his Nobel Peace Prize, a Grammy Award, clothing, and other items belonging to both Martin and Coretta Scott King.

Funeral wagon of Martin Luther King Jr.

Photograph of King’s funeral

A third area of the Visitor Center is the DREAM Gallery, which features rotating exhibits. When I visited, the exhibit was about Jimmy Carter and Martin Luther King, Jr. and how they fought for similar causes, but in different eras. Jimmy Carter was the president who created Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic Site, the name of the park up until January 2019 when the designation was changed to National Historical Park. The exhibits change with time, so no telling what will be there when you visit.

Exhibit on Martin Luther King Jr. and Jimmy Carter in the DREAM Gallery

There are a couple of artifacts on display from Ebenezer Baptist Church and Fire Station No. 6, but as with Courage to Lead, most of the exhibits in the DREAM Gallery are information panels and historical photographs.

Display of artifacts and memorabilia in the DREAM Gallery

Off in a side room of the DREAM Gallery is a small area with information about Freedom Park, a 1.5-mile greenway that connects Jimmy Carter Presidential Library with Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historical Park. The greenway trail is open to both hikers and bikers.

Information about Freedom Park and the Freedom Trail

PEACE PLAZA

The Peace Plaza is located just outside the Visitor Center. Its main feature is the Martin Luther King Jr. “I Have a Dream” World Peace Rose Garden that was created in 1992. This is one of nine World Peace Gardens around the world that was established by the International World Peace Rose Gardens organization.

Martin Luther King Jr. “I Have a Dream” World Peace Rose Garden

Ebenezer Baptist Church can be seen to the right of the garden, and situated between the two is Behold, a bronze sculpture by Patrick Morelli that was unveiled on January 11, 1990. The Behold sculpture actually pre-dates the Visitor Center and Peace Plaza (built in 1996).

Behold sculpture

SCHEDULING YOUR TIME

For those really interested in Martin Luther King Jr. and the Civil Rights Movement, it takes about an hour to thoroughly read through all of the information and watch the videos in the Courage to Lead exhibit. The two films themselves take 45 minutes to watch, plus you could spend another 15-30 minutes at Children of Courage. Time spent at the DREAM Gallery all depends on the exhibits. For a typical tourist, plan to spend up to an hour at the Visitor Center, and for those who don’t want to miss a thing, as much as two hours.

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