Associate Martin Luther King Jr. with a specific place. He grew up in Atlanta and attended Morehouse College. He spent his three years at Crothers Theological Seminary, just southwest of Philadelphia, before earning his doctorate from Boston University.
On July 30, 1967, King spoke at Charleston County Hall. Seated on the left is Esau Jenkins.File
His career as a pastor moved to Montgomery, Alabama, before returning to Atlanta. His civil rights work kept him in the Deep South, especially in Montgomery, Selma, and Birmingham. In 1963, he traveled to Washington, D.C. to deliver his “I have a dream” speech. In the last years of his life, King put a lot of his focus on Chicago and Memphis as he endeavored to launch a campaign for the poor.
South Carolina generally doesn’t come to mind when one thinks of King’s life.
However, he came to Palmetto State several times. Some of those visits were under the radar. He is a former slave man, entrepreneur, philanthropist, and state legislator who attends Southern Christian Leadership Conference meetings and strategy meetings at the Penn Center on St. Helena Island in Beaufort County. We stayed in a cottage named after Hastings Gaunt, who became He came to Penn Center five times between his 1964 and his 67 years.
Congressman Jim Cliburn, along with state legislators and local dignitaries, unveiled the historic marker by Kingstree Fields in 2016. This is where Martin Luther King Jr. gave his May 8, 1966 “Marching at the Ballot Box” speech.file/grace beam/staff
Civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. speaks at Emmanuel AME Church in 1962.Martin Luther King Center/Provided
His first visit to South Carolina was on September 28–30, 1959, when he was invited to a banquet at the Columbia Township Auditorium and spoke at a meeting of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. .
On April 12, 1962, he attended a meeting at Emmanuel AME Church with Esau Jenkins and others. He talked about making the American Dream a reality for everyone.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s speech on the importance of voting.
On May 8, 1966, he appeared on the playground of Tomlinson High School in Kingstree and gave his “Marching at the Ballot Box” speech, encouraging voters to register and participate.
On April 30, 1967, Dr. King addressed approximately 3,500 people at the Greenville Memorial Auditorium in support of striking bakery workers.
On July 30, 1967, he addressed 3,000 people at Charleston County Hall, commenting on urban riots and condemning violence.
He was scheduled to visit the Zion Baptist Church in Columbia on April 3, 1968. That appearance was canceled, so King was able to stay in Memphis to help the striking cleaning workers. The situation there was becoming precarious.
On April 4th, he was assassinated.
Scene of Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. in Charleston.
