The U.S. Civil Rights Trail Market in Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport gives travelers a unique opportunity to learn about the heroes of the movement as well as Birmingham’s particularly important role.

Hundreds of such stories are being unearthed and highlighted across the South in what amounts to a second stage of the civil rights movement — an effort to save places before they disappear and pay tribute to events before key individuals are gone.

More than 40 sites are listed on the Alabama Civil Rights Trail, which has gained significant attention mainly within the past decade.

Stretching across 15 states and the District of Columbia, the Civil Rights Trail tells the story of this decades-long movement for equality through museums, historical markers, and more. Here are a few of the lesser-known but particularly noteworthy small towns along the Civil Rights Trail.

All of these exhibitions highlight the complex stories and events that occurred during the 1950s and 1960s in Danville at the height of the civil rights movement.

National Museum of African American Music opened last year, while The Stax Museum of American Soul Music, sits on the original site of Stax Records studio, paying tribute to the artists who recorded there.

The fight for Civil Rights in the US was not one of contained narrative, but a series of episodes, the latest of which is still unfolding to this day. The locations of some of its most important battles, from the beautiful (marchers hand in hand in Selma, Alabama) to the nightmarish (those same marchers set on by police dogs) are writ into Southern soil and soul.

The U.S. Civil Rights Trail stretches across 15 states and includes over 120 historical sites and monuments. We’re highlighting some of the trail’s high-tech features and must-visit landmarks.

“Greensboro is known as one of the places where the Civil Rights Movement started. Now, you can experience history in a new way at the International Civil Rights Center and Museum in Greenboro, thanks to Alabama Tourism Director and author Lee Sentell.”

“The author of a book on notable U.S. civil rights locations was in Greensboro this week unveiling what’s called an ‘augmented reality component.’ The technology allows pictures, news clippings, and videos to come to life on your phone.”

“The path to civil rights was long and winding, bold and bloody, and in many ways continues as the nation struggles with today’s version of racial justice.”

“The roadmap of America’s struggle for civil rights runs through southern hotspots of Selma, Memphis, Jackson, Little Rock, Montgomery, Greensboro and Birmingham while extending to the western outpost of Topeka and northern crossroads of Washington, D.C.”

“Brown v. Board and Topeka are listed and detailed in ‘The Official U.S. Civil Rights Trail: What Happened Here Changed the World,’ a book authored by Lee Sentell, Alabama’s tourism director. The book shares history about the cities, states and landmarks that played a role in the civil rights movement.”

“You can’t tell the history of the South without talking about the Civil War, the Confederacy and the civil rights movement,’ Sentell said in a recent interview with Alabama NewsCenter.”

“Stretching across 14 states, the U.S. Civil Rights Trail connects more than 100 churches, schools, courthouses, homes, museums, and memorials that have played a role in the struggle of Black Americans to achieve fundamental freedoms.”

“By highlighting cities that played host to significant events during the civil rights movement, a new book aims to make that complex history easier to understand and pass its legacy on to younger generations.”

“The Official United States Civil Rights Trail’ companion book includes a timeline of events from 1954 through 1969 and a list of more than 120 civil rights landmarks as well as featuring 14 cities where people can visit sites that help bring the history to life.”

“Lee Sentell says the idea for ‘The Official United States Civil Rights Trail’ came from a conversation he had years ago with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s daughter Bernice.”

“The book serves as companion to the U.S. Civil Rights Trail website, and includes more than 120 destinations across 14 states, including nearly a dozen in Georgia such as historic Ebenezer Baptist Church and the Apex Museum.”

Thanks to the debut of the country’s first official Civil Rights Trail, you’ll soon be able to walk in the footsteps of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, and a number of other social justice heroes.