Civil Rights Timeline

Jan. 15, 1929 - Dr. King is born - Born on Jan. 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Ga., he was the second of three children of the Rev. Michael (later Martin) and Alberta Williams King. Sept. 1, 1954 - Dr. King becomes pastor - In 1954, King accepted his first pastorate--the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Ala. He and his wife, Coretta Scott King, whom he had met and married (June 1953) while at Boston University. Dec. 1, 1955 - Rosa Parks defies city segregation …

…symbol of moral and social progress. King's birthday was declared a federal holiday in 1983. Apr. 8, 1968 - City Hall March - Coretta King leads a march of 42,000 to city hall to mourn her husbands death. Apr. 9, 1968 - Dr. King is buried - Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is buried at south View Cemetery. A crowd of 50,000 to 100,000 is present as they mourn the death of a towering symbol of moral and social progress for Black Americans.