We arrived here about noon from Atlanta. First stop was the Arlington Antebellum plantation. This house had been built in the 1850’s and had been through 4 owners before becoming a museum in 1954. Not much of the furniture was original, but saw and heard new things: A corner chair was designed for men with swords, so they could wear the sword while sitting, or for a lady with a hoop dress. There was a piece in the reception hall that had a low mirror, so the ladies could see if there petticoats were showing before they left the house. Then there were stairs to one of the beds (because it was so high), that also stored the chamber pot. Since ladies often had pock marks from small pox or chicken pox, they would wear beeswax on their face to hide the blemishes. This led to expressions like “cracking a smile” or “don’t melt your beeswax”.
Our second stop was the Civil Rights Museum. This followed up very well with our Martin Luther King visit yesterday. Birmingham was one of the hold-outs to desegregation, and had a large share of violence. Here was where Rosa Parks didn’t give up her seat on the bus, eventually leading to the desegregation of public transportation. Downtown businesses remained segregated for years, until over 800 youths were arrested in a march. The businesses finally backed down. Here too, was a lot of violence, when the freedom buses rode through town. Freedom buses were ridden by a mix of black and whites in accordance with the court decisions. Unfortunately, about half the museum was being renovated, but I would highly recommend this museum if you’re interested in the history of black gaining equality.
Our second stop was the Civil Rights Museum. This followed up very well with our Martin Luther King visit yesterday. Birmingham was one of the hold-outs to desegregation, and had a large share of violence. Here was where Rosa Parks didn’t give up her seat on the bus, eventually leading to the desegregation of public transportation. Downtown businesses remained segregated for years, until over 800 youths were arrested in a march. The businesses finally backed down. Here too, was a lot of violence, when the freedom buses rode through town. Freedom buses were ridden by a mix of black and whites in accordance with the court decisions. Unfortunately, about half the museum was being renovated, but I would highly recommend this museum if you’re interested in the history of black gaining equality.
