The Beavers set off in mid-June for a few days of national-parking on our way to Hattiesburg, MS for a family reunion. Because many of the stops were rooted in Civil Rights, we often refer to this trip as our Civil Rights Tour of the South. Anniston, Alabama was our first stop.
I (Benjamin) had only been to Anniston once before, back in 2007 with a couple of college friends. We had our sights set on Graceland and St. Louis. To help us pass the time along the way, we had found a lot of ‘World’s Largest’ items. Turns out that Anniston, AL has the World’s Largest Office Chair. So, when I realized we were coming back, I had to recreate the picture that I had made 16 years prior.
But the Freedom Riders National Monument was the main reason for our visit. And you’re in for a treat. I’m passing the baton to my lovely wife Tiffany so that she can write up the trip report from her perspective. Enjoy!
“Guest” blogger Tiffany here.
After a brief layover in Atlanta to get some sleep, we headed toward Alabama to begin our Civil Rights tour of the South. Our first stop was Anniston, Alabama. The best word to describe the small town is “tired.” My only prior experience in Anniston was a church children’s camp from elementary school. As a 3rd grader at summer camp I had no idea what the Civil Rights Movement even was, much less that a major event in that movement happened only a few miles from our cabins.
Our first stop in Anniston was the Calhoun Chamber of Commerce. We stopped there to get our National Park Passports stamped, and for the girls to become junior rangers. The visitor center at the Freedom Riders National Monument, which was our main reason for stopping in Anniston, wasn’t open that day. Hence the need to stop at the Chamber of Commerce first. (In actuality, this park was just designated as a part of the NPS within the last handful of years, and the permanent VC at the bus station is still being developed.) We left there and drove a few blocks to the Greyhound bus station that has now been turned into the Freedom Riders National Monument.
Prior to this visit, I only had a vague idea of what the Freedom Riders did. I’m grateful to now know much more. Quoting from the National Park Service unigrid (pamphlet):
“In 1961, an interracial group of 13 men and women boarded buses to challenge laws that required races to be separated when traveling between states. They were ‘Freedom Riders.’ On May 14 [1961], in Anniston, Alabama, white segregationists firebombed one of the buses in an attempt to stop the Rides. Photos of the attack appeared in hundreds of newspapers, shocking the American public and inspiring over 400 people to leave their homes and participate in over 50 Freedom Rides. Would you get on the bus?”
Prior to these Freedom Rides, the Supreme Court had ruled in several cases that both (a) segregated bus seating was unconstitutional, and (b) the segregation of interstate transportation facilities, including bus terminals, was also unconstitutional. But as was often the case in the century following the Civil War, southern states could care less what the Supreme Court said. The Freedom Rides were indented to test these rulings. A mixed-race group of Riders began their journey in Washington, D.C. on May 4, 1961, headed to New Orleans. By the time they departed Atlanta toward Birmingham on May 14, the group was split into two busses. The first bus arrived at the Anniston Greyhound Bus Depot. It was met by an angry mob, including Ku Klux Klan members, who attacked and rocked the bus and slashed its tires.
Although the visitor center at the bus depot was closed, we were able to see a large mural painted on the alley wall where the bus stopped. This mural of the bus also had a timeline of events as well as photos and stories from the day the bus was attacked with the Freedom Riders on board. Out front there was even a speaker with a recording, and you could listen to the first-person account of one of the Freedom Riders (Hank Thomas) who braved the harrowing journey. I was overcome with emotion as I read the stories of the brave Riders, both Black and White, who risked great personal injury and the possibility of death to ride together.
But the bus depot wasn’t where the story ended.
The bus continued on toward Birmingham, its Riders unaware that the tires had been slashed. The mob followed, just waiting for the tires to blow. This happened just outside of the town. The bus stopped, a window was broken, flaming rags were thrown aboard, and the mob attempted to trap the passengers inside. When they escaped, the Riders were met with iron pipes, bats, and fists as the police stood by and watched.
We followed the road out of Anniston to the place where the bus broke down and was attacked. Now it is just a big, triangle-shaped field between a main road and a smaller, frontage road. The most redeeming part of the whole story is that when the bus and its riders were attacked, they were right in front of Forsyth & Son Grocery Store on Old Birmingham Highway. While the racist adults threatened and beat the Riders (or passively stood by and watched), 12-year-old Janine Forsyth, whose family owned the store, brought glasses of water to the passengers. On a sign there, there is a photo of Freedom Rider Hank Thomas hand-in-hand with Janine Forsyth years later as they were remembering that day.
But don’t let this fool you into thinking the prejudices of the past are far in the rearview mirror, because right across the street from the site of the bus’s burning there flies an extremely large Confederate flag. I doubt this is a coincidence. Nevertheless, we left the flag in our rearview mirror and drove on toward Birmingham. (Much of this info was taken from the National Park Service brochure on the Freedom Riders National Monument.)
It’s me, Benjamin, again. Tiffany will also be featured on the write-up of our second park of the trip–Birmingham Civil Rights National Monument. But before you go check that out, don’t miss the pictures of us Beavers at the Buc-ee’s headed to Birmingham. We stopped there because, well, that should be obvious. (The hot pink frisbee in Sage’s lap was a perfect purchase as it made a great car tray for snacks, and we enjoyed throwing the frisbee throughout our trip.)
Beavers in the Park 