A Walking Tour of Sweet Auburn: Hometown of the Modern Civil Rights Movement

Hello and welcome to your virtual tour of the Sweet Auburn district and Old 4th Ward! Today, we will start at 1022 Randolph Street. This is where Barlowe Reed, the main character of Nathan McCall’s Them, lives. As you can see, this is an empty piece of land which makes me wonder if there was ever a house here, or if McCall created an imaginary house through his novel. I also wonder if there could have been two houses here because this corner plot is a great deal larger than its surrounding plots of land.

Now, if we turn on to Auburn Avenue and continue down, we will come across Keturah’s friend’s house. I wanted to stop and point out this house to you because I want you to physically or mentally take a photograph of it. I want you to keep this house in mind when we see another historical house. I really like this antique Chevrolet not only because of its classic style, but because this is a great accessory to all of the vintage homes in this area that have stayed true to their original style. I think this car takes you back to that era with Martin Luther King, Jr. and many other famous civil rights activists and lets you see this area through their eyes.

Next, let’s continue down Auburn Avenue towards our next stop: Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthplace, located at 501 Auburn Avenue NE. I want you all to admire the architecture of this gorgeous house. Does it remind you of a place we just saw? This landmark’s great architecture is why we stopped to appreciate Keturah’s friend’s house. Notice how the architecture and colors are so similar. That’s because during the Civil Rights Movement almost every house in the Sweet Auburn District was in the Victorian style. Now, because of this neighborhood’s historical value, none of the houses are allowed to be torn down; they can only be repaired. MLK Jr.’s birth home is a wonderful place to look around and be able to look through the eyes of people who lived here during his time period.

Unfortunately, we don’t have enough time to tour MLK Jr.’s house, but if we continue down Auburn Avenue, we will find the everlasting flame in honor of Martin Luther and Coretta Scott King Jr. as well as their tomb. This important landmark is a an excellent place to stop and reflect on modern times and the influence MLK Jr. and his wife had on the Civil Rights Movement.

Next, as we continue down, we will stop at the corner of Auburn Avenue and Fort Street NE, to see the John Wesley Dobbs Plaza. Dobbs was the grandfather to Atlanta’s first African-American mayor, Maynard Jackson. Very close to the intersection is a larger than life bronze sculpture of John Wesley Dobbs’ head that creates fun photo opportunities.

Next, as we continue down Auburn Avenue, we will walk under the Downtown Connector. Unfortunately, for this neighborhood,when integration became legal, businesses and residents migrated to the west side of town. With the construction of the downtown connector, the Auburn community was physically and culturally divided. If you look to your right, you will see an amazing trompe l’oeil photo mural that depicts a past life street scene of this area before the highway divided Sweet Auburn. Take a moment to appreciate the skill of the artist who created such a realistic 3-D view on this flat concrete wall showing where once there was a vibrant neighborhood street.

Let’s continue down Auburn Avenue to 219 Auburn Avenue NE, the famous John Lewis Mural. This enormous mural is located on the side of an apartment building. Note his quote near his hand. A lot of planning and design went into this to make it easily seen from the highway. This is a very creative way of developing another great landmark that emphasizes this important home to the Civil Rights Movement.

No trip to the Old 4th Ward would be complete without stopping by the Sweet Auburn Municipal Market, sometimes called the Curb Market because before the market was integrated, African-Americans would have to buy their groceries outside on the curb. Inside, you’ll find restaurants lining the perimeter of the building with many produce stands, butcher shops, and seafood stands scattered in the center. This is a very fascinating place to come grab a meal and people watch.

For our last stop on this historical landmark tour, we will visit Ebenezer Baptist Church to hear a sermon from when Martin Luther King, Jr. was a preacher. I encourage you to look around at all of the intricate designs on the ceilings, sides of the pews, stained glass windows, and then close your eyes and envision Dr. King preaching to the audience. Just think, he grew up here with his father as a preacher and then followed in his footsteps. This is where his dream began.

I hope you’ve enjoyed your tour of the Sweet Auburn district!