Martin Luther King Jr. Timeline

Martin Luther King was a prominent American black activist and one of the leading political figures of the 20th Century.

Timeline:

1929: Martin was born on January 15th in Atlanta, Georgia to the Reverend Martin Luther King, Sr. and Alberta Williams King. He was initially named Michael King Jr.
1932: He attended nursery school.
1934: His name was changed to Martin.
1939: He sang at the Atlanta premiere of the movie Gone with the Wind.
1942: Martin attended high school.
1944: Martin entered Morehouse College in Atlanta.
1948: Luther graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology from Morehouse. He was selected as the assistant pastor at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta. He enrolled in Crozer Theological Seminary in Chester, Pennsylvania.
1951: Martin graduated form Crozer Theological Seminary with a Bachelor of Divinity degree. He started doctoral studies in systematic theology at Boston University.
1953: Luther married Coretta Scott in Marion, Alabama.
1954: He was made pastor of the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama.
1955: Martin received a Doctorate of Philosophy from Boston University. His first child Yolanda Denise was born. Rosa Parks was arrested in Montgomery, Alabama for refusing to follow the Jim Crow laws, which required her to give up her seat on the bus to a white passenger. The Montgomery bus boycott led by Luther began.
1956: Martin’s house was bombed. A United States district court ended racial segregation on all Montgomery public buses.
1957: Martin founded the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). He became its president and remained so until his death. His second child Martin Luther King III was born. Time magazine put him on its cover. He visited Ghana in West Africa. He delivered his first national address called ‘Give us the ballot’ at the Prayer Pilgrimage for Freedom at the Lincoln Memorial.
1958: Luther had a meeting with President Eisenhower. His book, 'Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story' is published. He was stabbed by a black woman, Izola Curry while signing books in a Harlem department store.
1959: Luther visited the Gandhi Family in India. He wrote The Measure of a Man.
1960: Luther shifts residence to Atlanta. He was arrested at a sit-in in Atlanta.
1961: Martin’s third child, Dexter was born. He met President Kennedy to solicit his support for the civil rights movement. He was arrested in Albany, Georgia.
1963: The Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy ordered the FBI to wiretap Luther. He led the Birmingham protests. He wrote ‘Letter from Birmingham Jail’. His fourth child, Bernice Albertine was born. His book 'Strength to Love' was published. He organized the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. He delivered his famous ‘I have a Dream’ speech in front of the Lincoln Memorial.
1964: Luther won the Nobel Peace Prize for employing non-violent means to end racial prejudice in the United States. He met President Lyndon B. Johnson. He met Malcolm X. He was arrested in Florida for trying to eat in a white-only restaurant. His book 'Why We Can't Wait' was published.
1965: Luther organized a march from Selma to Montgomery. He delivered the ‘How Long, Not Long’ speech.
1966: Luther tried to spread the civil rights movement to the north. He resumed James Meredith’s ‘March Against Fear’ from Memphis to Jackson, Mississippi.
1967: He opposes the Vietnam War. He delivered a speech ‘Beyond Vietnam’ at the New York City Riverside Church.
1968: Luther led black sanitary public works employees in Memphis, Tennessee. He delivered his ‘I’ve been to the Mountaintop’ speech at Mason Temple. He led the "Poor People’s Campaign’ to tackle economic injustice. He was assassinated at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis on April 4. This led to riots in more than 100 US cities.