WALB (Television station : Albany, Ga.)

Description

This silent WALB newsfilm clip from August and September, 1962, shows the ruins of three African American churches from Georgia's Terrell and Lee counties that burned down after they were used for voter registration meetings. The clip begins on Sunday, September 9, 1962, when fire destroyed Mount Olive Baptist and Mount Mary Baptist churches, two churches in Sasser, Terrell County, Georgia. First, the ruins of Mount Olive Baptist Church appear. Ashes cover the church steps, the church bell lies on its side in the rubble, and the brick supports and chimney stand out among the smoldering remains. Next, after a break in the clip, ruins of Mount Mary Baptist Church are also seen, including metal roofing material, two sets of steps, and brick supports. Nearby, African American women and children watch the smoldering piles and comfort one another. Former baseball player Jackie Robinson, who was in Albany when the churches burned, later inspected the sites and served as honorary head of the fundraising effort to rebuild the churches, donating one hundred dollars to the cause. Finally, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. walks beside the ruins of Shady Grove Baptist Church near Leesburg, in Lee County, on August 15, 1962. Reverends Ralph D. Abernathy and Wyatt T. Walker of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) stand beside other men who observe the ruins. A white man with a notepad appears to be speaking to a gathered crowd. Three of the four cinderblock walls of the church remain, although the east wall...

Record Contributed By

Walter J. Brown Media Archives and Peabody Awards Collection

Record Harvested From

Digital Library of Georgia