Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail

Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail National Park Service The march route is a component of the National Trail System, and is administered by the National Park Service.

The Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail was established by Congress in 1996 to commemorate the events, people, and route of the 1965 Voting Rights March in Alabama. The route is also designated as a National Scenic Byway/All-American Road, awarded by the U.S. Department of Transportation. The Alabama Department of Transportation (ALDOT) is a key partner in interpreting and protecting this

historic route, with all project funding provided through the Scenic Byways Program. The 54-mile trail follows the historic march by beginning at the Brown Chapel AME Church in Selma and crossing the Edmund Pettus Bridge. As they crossed the bridge, the nonviolent marchers were stopped and beaten by law enforcement officers in what came to be known as “Bloody Sunday” on March 7, 1965. Outraged protesters from around the country joined the marchers for a subsequent five-day march that began in Selma on March 21, 1965, this time with state and federal law enforcement protection. The marchers traveled along U.S. Highway 80 in Dallas County, continued through Lowndes County and Montgomery County, and ended at the Alabama State Capitol in Montgomery. The Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) organized the logistics for the march, including providing food, water, sanitation, and other services for the marchers who camped out along the way. 25,000 marchers concluded the historic march in Montgomery on March 25, with many notable speakers addressing the crowd at a concluding rally near the capitol building; Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave one of his most famous speeches at the rally. The Voting Rights Act was signed on August 6, 1965.

It's National Trails Day! Celebrate your scenic, historic, and public land trails today by attending a trail clean-up, ...
06/06/2026

It's National Trails Day! Celebrate your scenic, historic, and public land trails today by attending a trail clean-up, guided hike, or volunteer event. Also make sure to check out America Gives, a partner of America250, to make 2026 the best year of volunteer service on record.

The Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail was established by Congress in 1996 to commemorate the people, events, and route of the 1965 Voting Rights March in Alabama.

National Trails Day is an annual event on the first Saturday of June hosted by the American Hiking Society.

Image courtesy of the American Hiking Society.

Leroy Moton was born on May 23, 1945. Moton grew up in Selma, AL and graduated from R.B. Hudson High School. He was ac...
05/29/2026

Leroy Moton was born on May 23, 1945. Moton grew up in Selma, AL and graduated from R.B. Hudson High School. He was active in many local civil rights demonstrations. For example, Moton volunteered to help coordinate transportation for volunteers and demonstrators during the Selma to Montgomery Voting Rights March.
On the night of March 25, 1965, Moton was riding in a car driven by Viola Liuzzo that was attacked by the Ku Klux Klan (K*K). Liuzzo died from injuries sustained in the attack while Moton survived. He later testified at the state and federal trials of the K*K members involved.

Moton often spoke about his participation in the Selma to Montgomery Voting Rights March and advocated for voting rights throughout his life. Prior to his death in 2023, Leroy Moton and his son had the opportunity to visit the Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail and provided an oral history of his experiences.

Happy birthday Leroy Moton!

Photo courtesy of NPS.

On May 17, 1954, the Brown v. Board of Education decision was announced. The landmark decision declared racial segregat...
05/28/2026

On May 17, 1954, the Brown v. Board of Education decision was announced. The landmark decision declared racial segregation in public schools unconstitutional and overturned legal precedent established by Plessy v. Ferguson. The decision is often considered the beginning of the Civil Rights Movement.

Several states, particularly in the Deep South, fought desegregation for years and decades after the decision. For example, some states cut funding for public schools, created private academies to avoid desegregating schools, or physically locked doors to prevent integration. Alabama Governor George Wallace infamously stood in front of the schoolhouse door at the University of Alabama to prevent Black students from registering for classes.

Today, the vast majority of the country have desegregated their schools, public spaces, and places of business. The Civil Rights Movement played a key role in making the Brown v. Board of Education decision a reality.

Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress.

Diane Nash celebrated her 88th birthday on May 15, 2026! Born and raised in Chicago, IL, Nash became heavily involved i...
05/28/2026

Diane Nash celebrated her 88th birthday on May 15, 2026! Born and raised in Chicago, IL, Nash became heavily involved in the Nashville Student Movement while attending Fisk University. At the height of the student-led protests in Nashville, Nash famously asked Mayor Ben West if he felt it was wrong to discriminate against someone based solely on their race or skin color. Mayor West admitted he did think it was wrong and Nashville soon after became one of the first cities in the South to integrate its lunch counters.

Nash later helped found the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and worked alongside Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. with the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). She worked and helped plan several notable civil rights demonstrations including the Freedom Rides, Birmingham Campaign, March on Washington, and the Selma to Montgomery marches. Nash has earned several awards in recognition of her work in the Civil Rights Movement, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2022.

Happy birthday Diane Nash!

Photo courtesy of WTVF (NewsChannel 5 - Nashville).

It’s Coretta Scott King’s birthday today! Born in 1927, Coretta Scott attended Lincoln Normal School in Marion, AL befo...
04/27/2026

It’s Coretta Scott King’s birthday today! Born in 1927, Coretta Scott attended Lincoln Normal School in Marion, AL before enrolling at Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio. She eventually transferred to the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, MA where she met Martin Luther King, Jr. The two were married on June 18, 1953.

Coretta Scott King was active in the Civil Rights Movement. In addition to raising four kids, King spoke at rallies, helped organize Southern Christian Leadership Conference events, raised funds through Freedom Concerts, and took part in civil rights demonstrations. For example, she walked with thousands of marchers during the 1965 Selma to Montgomery Voting Rights March, which influenced the passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act.

Following Dr. King’s assassination, Coretta Scott King continued advocating for social and civil rights causes. She founded The King Center and was a major force behind making Dr. King’s birthday a federal holiday. MLK Day was created in 1983 and the federal holiday has been observed on every third Monday in January since 1986.

Following her death in 2006, Coretta Scott King was buried next to her husband at The King Center in Atlanta, GA. The King Center is part of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park.



Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress.

Today's Earth Day! Created back in the 1970s, Earth Day celebrates natural resource stewardship and education.Remember ...
04/22/2026

Today's Earth Day! Created back in the 1970s, Earth Day celebrates natural resource stewardship and education.

Remember to check out events at your local park or trail and enjoy the day outdoors!

To learn more about Earth Day at a National Park Service site, check out https://www.nps.gov/subjects/npscelebrates/earth-day.htm for more information.

Image courtesy of NPS.

The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) was formed in April of 1960. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. invited s...
04/15/2026

The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) was formed in April of 1960. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. invited student leaders from across the country to a conference at Shaw University in Raleigh, NC. Ella Baker, who was the Director of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) at the time, planned and organized the conference.

Baker differed from Dr. King and SCLC on how SNCC should be run. Instead of becoming the youth leadership branch of SCLC, Baker encouraged student leaders to make SNCC an independent group. SNCC would also operate primarily through organizers at the field level rather than from a centralized location.

SNCC played a vital role in many Civil Rights Movement events and demonstrations including the Freedom Rides, March on Washington, Freedom Summer, and the Selma to Montgomery Voting Rights March. After SNCC dissolved, several members continued working for civil rights causes in various capacities at local, state and federal levels.

Photo courtesy of the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

61st Bridge Crossing Jubilee photos taken by NPS staff!
03/13/2026

61st Bridge Crossing Jubilee photos taken by NPS staff!

Bernard LaFayette died on March 5, 2026 at the age of 85. An icon of the Civil Rights Movement, LaFayette was involved ...
03/09/2026

Bernard LaFayette died on March 5, 2026 at the age of 85. An icon of the Civil Rights Movement, LaFayette was involved in several events throughout the era including the Nashville Student Movement, Freedom Rides, and the Selma to Montgomery Voting Rights March. LaFayette was also a member of several groups including the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), and the American Friends Service Committee.

LaFayette famously picked Selma, AL as the place to organize African Americans in the area and met with members of the Dallas County Voters League. From that connection, the Selma Voting Rights Movement was born. In time, members of SNCC and SCLC helped organize several voting rights demonstrations throughout the area. Eventually, the events of Bloody Sunday and the Selma to Montgomery Voting Rights March influenced the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Following the Civil Rights Movement, LaFayette continued advocating for nonviolent direct action in the United States of America and throughout the world. He often offered nonviolence trainings as part of the events for the Selma Bridge Crossing Jubilee.

We will miss you Dr. LaFayette!

Photos courtesy of the Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission, The April 4th Foundation, and The Tennessean.

Sixty-one years ago, a second march in Selma, AL began to cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge following the same route marche...
03/09/2026

Sixty-one years ago, a second march in Selma, AL began to cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge following the same route marchers took a couple of days earlier on Bloody Sunday.

Unbeknownst to many, an agreement had been reached between march leaders and police to stop the march and turnaround at the foot of the bridge to avoid any confrontations. US District Court Judge Frank M. Johnson, Jr. had also issued a restraining order that prohibited a full-scale march from Selma to Montgomery until court hearings would decide on any protections needed. The Williams v. Wallace decision issued within the next week defined the parameters marchers would follow for the 54-mile Selma to Montgomery March.

Following the disappointing turn of events for the marchers, many remained in Selma to plan for the next demonstration. One of those who planned on staying was James Reeb, a Unitarian Universalist minister from Boston, MA. Reeb was attacked by a group of men while he was walking with fellow clergymen back to Brown Chapel AME Church. He was struck in the head during the assault and died from his injuries on March 11.

President Lyndon B. Johnson would reference James Reeb in his “We Shall Overcome” speech to a joint session of Congress a few days later. Johnson proposed in this speech a framework for a bill that would eventually become the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Photo courtesy of the Unitarian Universalist Association.

Address

7002 US Highway 80 W
Hayneville, AL
36040

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 4:30pm
Tuesday 9am - 4:30pm
Wednesday 9am - 4:30pm
Thursday 9am - 4:30pm
Friday 9am - 4:30pm
Saturday 9am - 4:30pm

Telephone

+13342930597

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