Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historical Park Cultural Landscape Report
Panamerican Consultants, Inc., Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates, Inc., Commonwealth Heritage Group, Inc., Liz Sargent HLA, National Park Service. 2020. Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historical Park Cultural Landscape Report. Cultural Landscape Report. U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service. Atlanta, Georgia
The purpose of this Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historical Park Cultural Landscape Report (CLR) is to expand the scope of work covered in the 1995 Birth Home block CLR to include additional areas within the current National Historical Park boundary. Martin Luther King, Jr. was born on January 15, 1929 at the house at 501 Auburn Avenue (the Birth Home), where he lived at this house until the age of twelve. The Birth Home block includes portions of the historically African American “Sweet Auburn” residential community of Atlanta, Georgia, which was, by law, a racially segregated community during Dr. King’s childhood. Additional areas and features addressed in this CLR are: Ebenezer Baptist Church, Heritage Sanctuary; Fire Station No.6; NPS Visitor Center and associated parking, promenade, Civil Rights Walk of Fame, Dreamer’s Park, and Peace Plaza; and the commercial corridor of Edgewood Avenue. These features currently do not have cultural landscape documentation. The CLR also includes the Birth Home block and will update the documentation and findings from the 1995 CLR. The CLR supports informed planning and guidance in decision making for protecting, maintaining, and interpreting the historic resources of this significant property. Over time, the cultural landscape of Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historical Park has evolved in response to growth and changes in land use within the urban context of Atlanta, expanded visitation numbers and visitor experiences, and management and maintenance practices. The National Park Service currently seeks to address several complex issues and questions about the most appropriate way to document, manage, and maintain the cultural landscape of the park. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., a leader of the American civil rights movement, is known for his work on equal rights and for his philosophy of nonviolent social change. In 1964, Dr. King was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize and became the second African American to receive this honor. Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historical Park commemorates King’s lifetime achievements. The park preserves the Martin Luther King Jr. Birth Home and the immediate historic neighborhood where King spent his youth. The larger “Sweet Auburn” community served as the economic, cultural, and religious center for Atlanta’s segregated black population from 1910 through the 1960s and greatly influenced King throughout his life. The site was designated as the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic Site on October 10, 1980.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Panamerican Consultants, Inc.; Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates, Inc.; Commonwealth Heritage Group, Inc.; Liz Sargent HLA; National Park Service
- Date of Issue
- 2020-08
- Publisher
- U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service
- Units
- MALU , SER
- Keywords
- African American, Atlanta, Birth Home Block, Black History, Civil Rights, community, Coretta Scott King, Ebenezer Baptist Church, Edgewood Avenue, family home, fire station, Martin Luther King Jr, Martin Luther King Jr Center for Nonviolent Social Change, MLK, political organizations, preservation district, Prince Hall Masonic Building, Religion, residential, segregation, social organizations, Southern Christian Leadership Conference, Sweet Auburn
- Subjects
- CRIS-CL: 550192: Martin Luther King, Jr Birth-Home