Remembering MLK’s visit to Hattiesburg

HATTIESBURG, Miss. (WDAM) - Around 54 years ago, Martin Luther King Jr. walked the streets of Hattiesburg.

King visited Mount Zion Baptist Church on March 19, 1968, during the prime of the civil rights movement, encouraging those around him to never give up on their dreams.

“Everything had to be done in secret,” said Forrest County NAACP Chapter President Clarence Magee.

Magee is describing the way King had to enter the city. With tensions high, He said it was not safe for King to travel in daylight.

“When he left, leaving here, I know the family who drove him away, and that was done in secret.”

Mt. Zion Baptist Church hosted freedom school in 1964 as a part of Freedom Summer. It is listed as the number 11 stop on the Freedom Summer Trail Audio Tour of Hattiesburg.

The tour highlights key events during Hattiesburg’s civil rights.

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