National Civil Rights Museum, Memphis, TN
The National Civil Rights Museum is actually a collection of museums and historical buildings in the “Home of the Blues.” The exhibits take you through the history of the civil rights movement in the United States from the 17th century to the present.
It is created around the former Lorraine Motel, which was the site of the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968. Following the assassination of King, Room 306, where King died, and the neighboring room were preserved as a memorial to the activist leader.
During the segregation era, the Lorraine Motel lodged African American clientele. Interestingly, guests through the 1960s were musicians including Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin, Otis Redding, Wilson Picket, and many others.
Two other buildings and their adjoining property, also connected with the King assassination, have been acquired as part of the museum complex.
