As I drove into Atlanta on Friday evening, I was greeted with snow flurries. Erm...huh?? Okay, it didn't amount to anything except a little dusting that was gone by morning, but still, it was unexpected. I had to laugh though when watching the morning news coverage on Saturday morning, which treated this little snow/sleet event as a major weather problem with coverage by 5 different reporters on location in 5 various spots - with nothing to show for it. As someone who has lived in Massachusetts, I was roaring with laughter at the coverage. It was the type of coverage that New England has for a blizzard, not a dusting. Ah, the south. But I will say it was a bit chilly - chillier than I expected, but not unreasonable.
After giggling over the news, I gathered myself up to see something of Atlanta. First stop, the
Martin Luther King, Jr. Historic Site. Established on October 10, 1980, the site consists of several buildings of historical significance in the Sweet Auburn historic district of Atlanta. The first building I visited was Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birth home on Auburn Avenue. Auburn Avenue was once the richest African-American street in the U.S. and MLK's maternal grandparents purchased the house in 1909 for $3,500 ($350,000 in today's money). When MLK's parents wed, they moved into the house and lived there until 1941. MLK was literally born in this house in a bedroom on the second floor. The first level includes the front porch, parlor, study, dining room, kitchen, laundry, bedroom and a bathroom. The second level includes four bedrooms and a bathroom. The house was then converted into a two-family dwelling and rented out as income for the King family. The house is still owned by the King family today. Part of the National Parks Service, the tour was guided by an enthusiastic and knowledgeable parks employee.
Next stop was the first firehouse in Atlanta, which was establish in 1894. The reason it is part of the MLK site, is that when he was a young boy, MLK would play in the playground that was installed by the firehouse after they demolished the stables. Once the firehouse received motorized firetrucks, the stables were not necessary anymore.
Then it was onto the King Center which houses historically significant items from MLK, Coretta Scott King, Gandhi, and Rosa Parks - all the people who were responsible for non-violent change. On display in the King Center are MLK's Nobel Peace Prize, Grammy Award, and Medal of Freedom (award posthumously). Outside the King Center is a beautiful reflecting pool where the tombs of MLK and his wife are located, near an eternal flame.
The original Ebenezer Baptist Church, the church where King and his father Martin Luther King, Sr. co-pastored, is also part of the national historic site and was next on my visit. For nearly 80 years, members of the King family pastored in this tiny church - starting with MLK's maternal grandfather. The church plays a significant part in the King family history: MLK was baptized here, also he was ordained here, his funeral was held here, and finally, his mother was shot and killed as she sat at the organ in the church. It was eerie to sit in this church.
After leaving the MLK Historic Site, I decided to visit the
Margaret Mitchell House, which was the home of author Margaret Mitchell from 1925 to 1932. Located in Midtown, at 990 Peachtree Street, the house was known as the Crescent Apartments when Mitchell and her husband lived in Apt. 1 on the ground floor. While living there, Mitchell wrote the bulk of her Pulitzer Prize-winning novel,
Gone with the Wind. This museum was amazing and provided so much interesting history on Ms. Mitchell's life in Atlanta, of facts surrounding her writing the novel, and of how the book advanced toward publication. She was a fascinating woman. Additionally, the museum has a separate building which houses donated GWTW artifacts, including photos taken during the movie's 1939 premiere in Atlanta; the original entryway to the Hollywood movie set of the O'Hara home, Tara; and the portrait of Scarlett O'Hara from the Butlers' mansion. A must see for lovers of GWTW (book and/or movie).
On Sunday, I made my last Atlanta site visit:
Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum. As someone who has an interest in politics, I enjoy visiting presidential museums and libraries. I've visited FDR's in Hyde Park, NY, JFK's in Boston, and Truman's Little White House in Key West, FL. As I was in Atlanta, seeing Jimmy Carter's was a must see for me. Jimmy Carter was the 39th President of the United States and the first president that I voted for. I can hear you say, "but Sandi, you were only 10 when he ran for office in 1976." That is accurate, but my elementary school held elections and I voted for him - he very definitively won in my elementary school. Much as I respected President Carter when he was in office, it was his humanitarian deeds after his "involuntary retirement from the presidency" that solidified for me what an amazing person he is. The museum houses a treasure trove of historical objects over the course of President and Mrs. Carter's lives; items from their childhood straight through to their most recent humanitarian works. Additionally, on display are the various awards received by the couple, including President Carter's Nobel Peace Prize, his Grammy award for a spoken word album, and President and Mrs. Carter's Medals of Freedom. For someone who has an interest in politics, it was fascinating.
Check out
all my photos from my Atlanta visit on my
GART photo site. Tomorrow, I head off to Tupelo, MS to see Elvis Presley's birthplace. Yeah, I know going from MLK's birthplace to Elvis's birthplace is going from the sublime to the ridiculous.
People have been asking me about my health. Mostly I'm feeling okay. I have an annoying mild cough that I have a feeling will not go away ever (side effect of lung tumors). My exhaustion level is pretty high. It doesn't take much for me to get tired. I have the occasional pain in weird places. Beyond that I'm feeling fine.
You might notice that I have not including travel stats for the past couple of blogs - I keep forgetting to write the mileage down. Hopefully, I'll remember to write it down in Tupelo.
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Full scale replica of the Oval Office,
including a copy of the Resolute Desk |
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