Explore the fight for U.S. civil rights

Discover the U.S. Civil Rights Trail

U.S. Civil Rights Trail Welcomes Three New Sites

The U.S.Civil Rights Trail is proud to add three important landmarks to the collection of 130-plus U.S. Civl Rights Trail sites.
Download the Press Release
Check Out the 2025 U.S. Civil Rights Trail Travel Guide

This year, find group travel ideas for New Site Additions, Iconic Objects, Historic Experiences, and Art and Famous Stories along trail.
Discover The Guide
Bringing Birmingham’s civil rights story to the world

The U.S. Civil Rights Trail Market wins major award
READ MORE
What Happened Here Changed the World

On the 60th Anniversary of the September 15, 1963 bombing that killed 4 young girls at the 16th St. Baptist Church in Birmingham, AL we remember what it means.
16th Street Baptist Church
Rick Steves discusses the origins of the Trail

The U.S. Civil Rights Trail was featured on a recent episode of Travel with Rick Steves. Listen to the conversation between Rick and Lee Sentell as they discuss the trail’s beginnings and the U.S. Civil Rights Trail’s growth and expansion.
Listen Now

WALK IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF GIANTS

The fight for American civil rights spanned decades, cities and states – from Topeka, Kansas, to Memphis, Tennessee, from Atlanta, Georgia, to Selma, Alabama and all the way to Washington, D.C. Chart the course of the Movement through the Civil Rights Trail and see firsthand the struggle for equity and the power of equality.

FROM A DREAM TO A REALITY

Landmarks

The U.S. Civil Rights Trail is a collection of churches, courthouses, schools, museums and other landmarks across 15 states that played a pivotal role in advancing social justice in the 1950s and 1960s, shifting the course of history.

VIEW THE SITES

Stories

From powerful speeches to brave sit-ins and unifying marches, the fight for civil rights in America can be told through countless sites and stories that have the power to awe and inspire everyone.

EXPERIENCE THE FIGHT

Experience

Walk in the footsteps of giants. Actually visit the places where the Civil Rights Movement was forged. Create your itinerary and see firsthand how the face of a nation was changed forever.

Plan Now

CHOOSE A SITE AND START YOUR JOURNEY THROUGH HISTORY

If I can help somebody as I pass along,
If I can cheer somebody with a word or song,
If I can show somebody he’s traveling wrong,
Then my living will not be in vain.

If I can do my duty as a Christian ought,
If I can bring salvation to a world once wrought,
If I can spread the message as the master taught,
Then my living will not be in vain.

Drum Major's Instinct, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.