Georgia on my mind in Savannah & Atlanta

Savannah, Georgia, feels like a cold glass of sweet tea on a sun-drenched yet cool fall day as you rock slowly on the wrap around porch while admiring the Spanish moss draped ever so gently along the arching live oak branches.

Savannah oozes Southern charm.

We arrived in time to take the Civil War walking tour, but don’t worry Savannah was truly spared from the ravages of the war, and I’ll get to that another time because today it’s all about a leisurely tour through one of Savannah’s historic homes, the Owens-Thomas House on Abercorn Street. So, sit back, relax and enjoy a glass of sweet tea while checking out a grand old Southern mansion.

The Owens-Thomas House on Abercorn Street in Savannah, Georgia, on the northeast corner of Oglethorpe Square, was designed by English architect William Jay of Bath for cotton merchant and banker Richard Richardson. Construction began in 1816 and was completed in 1819. Three years after the house’s completion, Richardson suffered financial losses and sold his house, which later came under possession of the bank. For eight years, Mrs. Mary Maxwell ran an elegant lodging house in the mansion. In 1830, planter, congressman, lawyer, and mayor of Savannah, George Welshman Owens, purchased the property for $10,000. It remained in the Owens family until 1951 when Miss Margaret Thomas, George Owens’ granddaughter, bequeathed it to the Telfair Museum of Art. (Oct. 18, 2017)

A selfie while standing at the Oglethorpe Square with the Owens-Thomas House behind me in Savannah, Georgia. (Oct. 18, 2017)

A view of the gardens and Carriage House from the back porch of the Owens-Thomas House in Savannah, Georgia. The Carriage House, built 1819, housed the stables and the slave quarters. (Oct. 18, 2017)

The slave quarters in the Carriage House of the Owens-Thomas House in Savannah, Georgia. The first floor, which now provides historical information on slavery in Savannah, was originally divided into one large room, possibly used as a common area, and two smaller rooms. Although George Welshman Owens owned some 400 slaves, only 14 slaves…mostly women and children…worked at this city house while the remaining slaves harvested cotton and rice at eight different plantations Owens owned. (Oct. 18, 2017)

Historical information on slavery in Savannah, Georgia, can be seen on the first floor of the slave quarters in the Carriage House of the Owens-Thomas House. (Oct. 18, 2017)

The wood roof of the first floor of the slave quarters in the Carriage House of the Owens-Thomas House in Savannah, Georgia, features the largest example of “haint” blue paint known to exist in America. According to Gullah culture, people in the coastal areas of Georgia, South Carolina, and northern Florida who were of African ancestry, the term “haint” was originally a variation of the word “haunt.” Haints are lost souls or the dead’s restless spirits. The haint blue color is representative of water and evil spirits are not able to pass over water. The paint was made by mixing indigo, lime and buttermilk. It was used on ceilings, around windows and doors and even under furniture. (Oct. 18, 2017)

The second floor of the slave quarters in the Carriage House of the Owens-Thomas House in Savannah, Georgia, was divided into four spaces. (Oct. 18, 2017)

The walls of the second floor slave quarters in the Carriage House of the Owens-Thomas House in Savannah, Georgia, show the bricks and 20th century mortar. (Oct. 18, 2017)

The back or rear entrance of the Owens-Thomas House in Savannah, Georgia. The garden sits between the house and the Carriage House. (Oct. 18, 2017)

The inside of the Owens–Thomas House in Savannah, Georgia, contains furnishings from the English Regency period and pieces from the Owens family dating from the years 1790 to 1840. This is the first floor master bedroom. (Oct. 18, 2017)

The Formal Dining Room inside the Owens-Thomas House in Savannah, Georgia. (Oct. 18, 2017)

The Ladies Parlor inside the Owens-Thomas House in Savannah, Georgia. (Oct. 18, 2017)

The Men’s Parlor inside the Owens-Thomas House in Savannah, Georgia. (Oct. 18, 2017)

The grand stair case inside the Owens-Thomas House in Savannah, Georgia. (Oct. 18, 2017)

A close-up of the spindles on the grand stair case inside the Owens-Thomas House in Savannah, Georgia. (Oct. 18, 2017)

Oglethorpe Square as seen from inside the front door…by the grand stair case…of the Owens-Thomas House in Savannah, Georgia. (Oct. 18, 2017)

View of the unusual bridge landing and the second floor front hall of the Owens-Thomas House in Savannah, Georgia. The bridge landing was used to get from one room to the next because the rooms upstairs had no connecting doors. (Oct. 18, 2017)

It’s called the “Lafayette Balcony” on the south side of the Owens-Thomas House in Savannah, Georgia. Revolutionary War hero Marquis de Lafayette was a guest of the city in 1825 and stayed at the home. On March 19, he is believed to have addressed a throng of enthusiastic Savannahians from this unusual cast-iron veranda. (Oct. 18, 2017)

Hungry and tired…Debra and I saw this old-fashioned Streamliner, home to Sandfly Bar-B-Que in Savannah within walking distance of our Airbnb apartment for dinner. (Oct. 18, 2017)

Just had to show off the inside of Sandfly Bar-B-Q’s Streamliner in Savannah where Debra and I walked to, from our Airbnb apartment, for dinner. (Oct. 18, 2017)

Another view of the inside of Sandfly Bar-B-Q’s Streamliner in Savannah, Georgia, where Debra and I walked to, from our Airbnb apartment, for dinner. (Oct. 18, 2017)

Me getting ready to dig into my smoked sausage smothered in onions, fries and collard greens at Sandfly Bar-B-Que in Savannah, Georgia. (Oct. 18, 2017)

It’s considered to have the largest National Historic Landmark District in the U.S. but really Savannah, Georgia, has the most trees I’ve ever seen embellishing a city. I love trees and in Savannah, live oak trees dot just about every historic neighborhood and pretty much all of its squares.

Yes, Savannah has squares because in 1733, the city’s founder, General James Edward Oglethorpe, laid the city out around four open squares with each surrounded by residential and civil blocks. The squares are mini-parks throughout the historical district and are named in honor or in memory of a person or historical event. Many of the squares also contain monuments, markers, memorials, statues, plaques and other tributes. But what they all seem to have in common are trees with that beautiful, but chigger bug inhabited, flowing Spanish moss and other greenery that make the squares a very peaceful place to sit and ponder life’s most deepest mysteries in the cool shade of the trees.

Along with its 22 squares and trees, Savannah also has a countless number of the most gorgeous houses and trees.

One of Savannah, Georgia’s, many historic homes. (Oct. 18, 2017)

Lafayette Square in Savannah, Georgia, was laid out in 1837 and named in honor of the Marquis de Lafayette, a wealthy French citizen and soldier who greatly assisted the American during the Revolutionary War. (Oct. 18, 2017)

The beautiful homes on Jones Street in Savannah, Georgia. (Oct. 18, 2017)

The Nathaniel Green Monument completed in 1830 at Johnson Square in Savannah, Georgia. This square was the first square laid out by Savannah founder General James Edward Ogelthorpe and was named in honor of Governor Robert Johnson of South Carolina, a friend of Ogelthorpe’s who provided assistance and supplies to Savannah in its earliest days. (Oct. 18, 2017)

One of the many beautiful homes on Jones Street in Savannah, Georgia. (Oct. 18, 2017)

A close up of the grass covered staircase on the home on Jones Street in Savannah, Georgia. (Oct. 18, 2017)

The homes on Jones Street in Savannah, Georgia. (Oct. 18, 2017)

The bench where Forest Gump (Tom Hanks) told his life story was located where the Chippewa Square stands in Savannah, Georgia. The original bench is now located in the Savannah History Museum. (Oct. 18, 2017)

A group of people enjoying a carriage ride and a view of the Owens-Thomas House by the Oglethorpe Square in Savannah, Georgia. (Oct. 18, 2017)

This quiet little square is secretly one of the best, with its Victorian gazebo and azalea flowers. It was one of Savannah’s last squares, designed in 1851, and received its name to honor Reverend George Whitfield, the founder of the oldest orphanage in the United States, the Bethesda Orphanage. The gazebo was a gift from actor Burt Reynolds. The square used to be a burial ground for African-American slaves, when it was against the law to bury slaves in your backyard. Andrew Bryan, the founder of the First African Baptist Church, and Henry Cunningham, minister of the Second African Baptist Church were both originally buried here. (Oct. 19, 2017)

The unrestored but timeless Noble Hardee Mansion on Bull Street in Savannah, Georgia, is now home to Alex Raskin Antiques. The house gets its name from its first owner, Noble Hardee, a cotton merchant who began building the home in 1860, but died before it’s completion. (Oct. 19, 2017)

More of the unrestored but timeless Noble Hardee Mansion on Bull Street in Savannah, Georgia, is now home to Alex Raskin Antiques. The house gets its name from its first owner, Noble Hardee, a cotton merchant who began building the home in 1860, but died before it’s completion. (Oct. 17, 2017)

Reynolds Square in Savannah, where the John Wesley Monument was erected in 1969, was laid out in 1734 and named after Georgia’s first Royal Governor. Originally named Lower New Square then later renamed in honor of Sir John Reynolds, Georgia’s first Royal Governor. (Oct. 18, 2017)

A close-up of the John Wesley statue at Reynolds Square in Savannah. Originally named Lower New Square, it was later renamed in honor of Sir John Reynolds, Georgia’s first Royal Governor. (Oct. 18, 2017)

This stone, at Reynolds Square in Savannah, is in honor of Tomo-Chi-Chi a 17th Century Creek leader and chief of a Yamacraw town on present-day Savannah. He gave his land to James Oglethorpe to build the city of Savannah. He remains a prominent character of early Georgia history. (Oct. 18, 2017)

Madison Square in Savannah was laid out in 1837 and named in honor of James Madison, the 4th President of the United States. The bronze statue honors William Jasper a Revolutionary hero from South Carolina who first earned distinction at the Battle of Sullivan’s Island in Charleston. The statue was completed in 1888. (Oct. 18, 2017)

The Ballastone, a boutique inn on Ogelthorpe Avenue in Savannah began life in 1838 as a prominent mansion. It’s rumored that actor Kevin Spacey stayed at the inn while filming the movie “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.” (Oct. 19, 2017)

The Savannah Police Officer Memorial in Savannah, Georgia, in front of the Savannah-Chatham police headquarters. (Oct. 19, 2017)

The Savannah College of Art and Design’s Lai Wa Hall in Savannah, Georgia, is home to the president’s office, executive administration and the ombudsman. Erected in 1877, the building was once the home of prominent Savannah financier and cotton broker Thomas M. Butler. The building was acquired by SCAD in 2002 and is located across from Forsyth Park. (Oct. 19, 2017)

The Forsyth Park with the Forsyth Fountain in the distance in Savannah, Georgia. Originally established in the 1840s on 10 acres of land, the park was expanded by 20 acres and named in honor of Georgia Governor John Forsyth in 1851. This is a location for large public events and celebrations. (Oct. 19, 2017)

The Forsyth Fountain at the Forsyth Park in Savannah, Georgia. Originally established in the 1840s on 10 acres of land, the park was expanded by 20 acres and named in honor of Georgia Governor John Forsyth in 1851. This is a location for large public events and celebrations. (Oct. 21, 2017)

The Forsyth Fountain at the Forsyth Park in Savannah, Georgia, a beautiful location to take after or before the wedding photos. Originally established in the 1840s on 10 acres of land, the park was expanded by 20 acres and named in honor of Georgia Governor John Forsyth in 1851. This is a location for large public events and celebrations. (Oct. 21, 2017)

More romantic wedding photos being taken at Forsyth Park in Savannah, Georgia. (Oct. 21, 2017)

The largest and the oldest statue stands at the center of Forsyth Park in Savannah, Georgia, is the Confederate Monument designed by Canadian Robert Reid. Savannah’s Ladies Memorial Association erected the monument to the Confederate dead in 1875. The bust, on this side of the monument is of Civil War General Lafayette McLaws and on the opposite end is Francis Bartow both placed there in the early 20th century. (Oct. 21, 2017)

Stately homes along Whitaker Street and across from Forsyth Park in Savannah, Georgia. (Oct. 21, 2017)

The Forsyth Park Inn on the corner of Hall and Whitaker just across from the Forsyth Park in Savannah, Georgia. (Oct. 21, 2017)

Another stately home on Whitaker Street, across from Forsyth Park, in Savannah, Georgia. (Oct. 21, 2017)

Another beautiful historic home with a wrap around porch in Savannah, Georgia. (Oct. 19, 2017)

The Pink House located by Reynolds Square in Savannah, Georgia is now a popular restaurant. It was originally built around 1789 as the home of James Habersham Jr. and avoided the great fire of 1796 that destroyed more than 300 colonial-era homes. Reynolds Square, which was laid out in 1734, was originally named Lower New Square, but was later renamed in honor of Georgia’s first Royal Governor, Sir John Reynolds. (Oct. 19, 2017)

Bicyclers enjoying an afternoon ride in Savannah, Georgia. (Oct. 19, 2017)

The birthplace of Juliette Gordon Low in Savannah, founder of Girl Scouts of the USA with help from Sir Robert Baden-Powell, founder of the Scouting Movement. She was born here in 1860, and she lived in and visited the house throughout her life. It was from this very home that marked the beginning of Girl Scouts in 1912. (Oct. 19, 2017)

This bronze statue of Georgia’s founder, James Edward Oglethorpe, was erected in 1910 at the Chippewa Square in Savannah, Georgia. The square was laid out in 1813 and was named for the Battle of Chippawa where American forces had a decisive victory against the British in the War of 1812. (Oct. 18, 2017)

A close-up of the bronze statue of Georgia’s founder, James Edward Oglethorpe at the Chippewa Square in Savannah, Georgia. (Oct. 18, 2017)

This Wright Square monument commemorates William Washington Gordon (1796-1842), founder and president of Georgia’s first railroad, the Central Railroad and Banking Co. The monument was designed by architects Henry Van Brunt and Frank M. Howe, and completed in 1883. (Oct. 18, 2017)

Beautiful Savannah, Georgia, escaped the Civil War (1861-1865) destruction but played a role in the slave trade as a receiver of enslaved West Africans during the late 18th century.

According to the New Georgia Encyclopedia: Following the settlement of Savannah in 1733, slaves from South Carolina cleared land, tended cattle, and labored on farms. By the late 1740s slaves from South Carolina were openly sold in Savannah. The demand for African slave labor increased with the establishment of rice and cotton fields. Between 1784 and 1798, West African slaves accounted for 78 percent of slaves taken to Savannah. In 1798, the Georgia legislature banned the direct importation of Africans.

The American Revolution (1765-1783) saw an upheaval in the slave trade but the slave-based cotton economy of the south kept the on-going struggle between blacks seeking freedom and whites seeking slave ownership to continue up and through the American Civil War (1861-1865).

Savannah is in a sense, a microcosm of the South in regards to slavery. And, it continued to be through the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. The African American Monument on River Street in Savannah depicts a family of four embracing each other in jubilation of being emancipated and the inscription by poet Maya Angelou says it all: “We were stolen, sold and bought together from the African continent. We got on the slave ships together. We lay back to belly in the holds of the slave ships in each others excrement and urine together, sometimes died together, and our lifeless bodies thrown overboard together. Today, we are standing up together, with faith and even some joy.”

This may seem like a lot of history and numbers to digest, but I assure you this is a very simplistic explanation for 284 years of history…which is something we can’t change, but we should always know.

I’ve so enjoyed getting to know Savannah, its past and its present, but it’s time to say good-bye. Next and final stop on the Debra/Diana road trip is Atlanta, Georgia.

Now the history of Savannah’s civil rights, the Ralph Mark Gilbert Civil Rights Museum, was once the Wage Earners Savings and Loan Bank built in 1914 by Robert Pharrow, an African-American contractor from Atlanta. (Oct. 20, 2017)

The entrance to the Ralph Mark Gilbert Civil Rights Museum named in honor of the late Dr. Ralph Mark Gilbert who is considered to be the father of Savannah’s modern day civil rights movement and leader of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) when he reorganized it in 1942. Savannah’s civil rights movement was charted by local African Americans and adhered to the principles of nonviolent protest. Dr. Gilbert also served as pastor of the historic First African Baptist Church on Franklin Square in Savannah for 16 years. (Oct. 20, 2017)

Me at the lunch counter inside the Ralph Mark Gilbert Civil Rights Museum in Savannah, Georgia. The lunch counter sit-ins in Savannah and other parts of the South were in protest of segregation that permeated in the schools, churches, buses, and businesses. The sit-ins were peaceful and effective. (Oct. 20, 2017)

The Beach Institute on East Harris Street in Savanah, Georgia, now serves as the African-American Cultural Center and offers and features arts and crafts with a African-American influence, including a collection of wood carvings by Ulysses Davis, a renowned folk artist. The Beach Institute, built in 1867 by the Freedmen’s Bureau, was established by the American Missionary Association for the education of newly freed slaves. The school was named for New Yorker Alfred S. Beach, editor of the Scientific American, who donated funds to purchase the site. (Oct. 20, 2017)

The “Great Seal of the United States” is the 40 piece Presidential Series by Ulysses Davis featuring presidents from George Washington to George Bush on display at the African-American Cultural Center in Savannah, Georgia. Davis, (1913-1990) a self-taught wood sculptor, created a make-shift art gallery around the walls of his West Savannah barbershop where he cut hair for 50 years while raising nine children with wife Elizabeth. (Oct. 20, 2017)

The Haitian Monument, at Franklin Square in Savannah, Georgia, is a memorial honoring more than 500 Haitian volunteers who fought with Revolutionary War hero General Casimir Pulaski during the 1779 Siege of Savannah. Created by sculptor James Mastin the monument was unveiled in 2007. The square was designed and laid out in 1790. It was named in 1791 for Benjamin Franklin, who served as an agent for the colony of Georgia from 1768 to 1778. The First African Baptist Church and the City Market surround Franklin Square. (Oct. 21, 2017)

A close-up of the statues of the Haitian Monument at Franklin Square across from the First African Baptist Church in Savannah, Georgia. The monument is dedicated to the 500 Haitian volunteer soldiers, the Casseurs Volontaires de Saint-Dominguez, who fought with Revolutionary War hero General Casimir Pulaski during the 1779 Siege of Savannah. (Oct. 20, 2017)

The First African Baptist Church in Savannah, Georgia, was organized in December 1773 by Rev. George Leile and is considered to be the oldest continuously operated African-American church in North America. Originally named the First Coloured Baptist Church, it was constructed from hand made Savannah gray bricks, now considered a valuable commodity, and completed in 1859 by slaves who worked the fields during the day and built this church at night. The slaves were not educated people but they built a sturdy church that has weathered many storms. (Oct. 21, 2017)

Inside the First African Baptist Church in Savannah, Georgia, which was built by slaves and completed in 1859. (Oct. 21, 2017)

The full panel stained windows of the First African Baptist Church in Savannah, Georgia, were installed in 1885 and extend from the ground floor into the pews upstairs. (Oct. 21, 2017)

The beautiful stained glass portraits at the altar of the First African Baptist Church in Savannah, Georgia, featured six of the 17 men who pastored the church. From top to bottom: Andrew Bryan (1788-1812); Andrew Cox Marshall (1812-1856) and William J. Campbell (1857-1877). (Oct. 21, 2017)

A close-up of the stained glass portrait of William J. Campbell pastor of the First African Baptist Church in Savannah, Georgia, from 1857 to 1877. (Oct. 21, 2017)

The balcony oak pews inside the First African Baptist Church in Savannah, Georgia, are original and like the church itself, made by the hands of slaves. (Oct. 21, 2017)

The balcony oak pews inside the First African Baptist Church in Savannah are original and nailed into the floors with an African dialect known as “Cursive Hebrew.” (Oct. 21, 2017)

If this oak tree could talk, what stories would it tell from its 200 to 300 years of life? Maybe about the hangings of African Americans? From one tour we were told this live oak tree named “Chandler Oak” along Dayton and E. Gaston Streets was the oldest tree in Savannah at 200 years of age. On another tour we were told this 300 year old live oak tree was called the “Hanging Tree,” because African Americans were hung here during Jim Crow. The term “Jim Crow” came to describe the form of racial segregation and discrimination that prevailed in the American South during the first half of the twentieth century. Under Jim Crow, black Georgians suffered from a system of discrimination that pervaded nearly every aspect of life from the constitutional right to vote to housing and employment, and access to public spaces and facilities. (Oct. 20, 2017)

The Laurel Grove South Cemetery entrance on Kollock Street in Savannah was a portion of the former Springfield Plantation and the early burial grounds for African American. The historical marker at the cemetery entrance states that in 1853, four acres were reserved by the city for this cemetery. (Oct. 21, 2017)

Laurel Grove South Cemetery in Savannah, the most significant final resting place for African Americans who died in the 19th and 20th Centuries. This headstone is for Westley Wallace Law (1923-2002) was a civil rights leader from Savannah, Georgia. He was president of the Savannah chapter of the NAACP, where he led his community and made great strides in desegregation through nonviolent resistance from 1950 to 1976. After his time with the NAACP W. W. Law spent much of the rest of his life advocating for African-American history and culture in Savannah. (Oct. 21, 2017)

The gravesite of Mother and Daughter Hamilton at the Laurel Grove South Cemetery in Savannah, Georgia. Daughter Belle Hamilton was born Sept. 21, 1864 and died Nov. 30, 1928 and Mother Annie Hamilton was born April 26, 1845 and died Aug. 20, 1911. (Oct. 21, 2017)

These vaults are considered to be the oldest graves at the Laurel Grove South Cemetery in Savannah, Georgia. (Oct. 21, 2017)

One of the oldest gravest at the Laurel Grove South Cemetery in Savannah, Georgia, is this one of the Rev. Andrew Bryan who was born around 1737 and who died Oct. 6, 1812. He was born and grew up as a slave on a plantation in Goose Creek, South Carolina. Bryan was ordained as a Baptist minister and became the second pastor of the First Coloured Baptist Church…now named the First African Baptist Church in Savannah, Georgia. (Oct. 21, 2017)

The Old Savannah Cotton Exchange in Savannah, Georgia. Marker Text: The Savannah Cotton Exchange building was completed in 1887, during the era when Savannah ranked first as a cotton seaport on the Atlantic and second in the world. In its heyday as a cotton port over two million bales a year moved through Savannah. The Cotton Exchange was the center of activity in the staple which dominated this city’s economic life before its evolution into a leading industrial seaport. The former Cotton Exchange is now the headquarters of the Savannah Chamber of Commerce. (Oct. 18, 2017)

This current parking lot was once the temporary holding place for slaves in Savannah, Georgia. To the right of this photo are arched dark and dingy underground storage openings called barracoons where slaves were held. The stones in the ground are ballast stones and were used as weights for the sailing ships arriving in Savannah. (Oct. 20, 2017)

These restaurants and stores along the East River Street in Savannah, Georgia, were former warehouse buildings and offices of traders and merchants who dealt in the cotton and rice – and slaves – which made Savannah wealthy. (Oct. 20, 2017)

The Georgia Queen tour boat docked at the Savannah River in Savannah, Georgia. (Oct. 20, 2017)

Me standing by the feet of the African American Monument River Street in Savannah, Georgia. The monument depicts a family of four embracing each other in jubilation of being emancipated. The chains at their feet represent the shedding of the deplorable life of Slavery. Erected July 27, 2002, the monument was designed by Savannah College of Art and Design Professor Dorothy Spradley. (Oct. 20, 2017)

This Cuban Restaurant on Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. in Savannah. But the MLK Boulevard was once called West Broad Street. From the 1700s to the 1960s, it was black Savannah’s 24-hour-a-day, seven-day-a-week social mecca. The strip was home to some of the nation’s oldest black churches and schools, and because most shopping and entertainment districts were segregated, black business flourished there. But over time the street’s appeal faded. However, as in most urban cities, redevelopment is taking place and higher prices are pushing people out. (Oct. 20, 2017)

Inside the Cuban Restaurant on Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. in Savannah, Georgia. (Oct. 20, 2017)

Me getting ready to dig into my late lunch of Arroz Con Gandules…translation is Puerto Rican pigeon peas with rice, plantains and pork chunks…at the Cuban Restaurant on Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. in Savannah, Georgia. (Oct. 20, 2017)

Atlanta

Atlanta is every bit the sprawling city, but for me coming to Atlanta is all about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the National Historic Sites from his birth and boyhood home to the Ebenezer Baptist Church he co-pastored with his father.

There’s no way to walk through Dr. King’s life at these various historic sites, listen to him speak and not be moved by his calm, striking, thoughtful and elegant demeanor. So much of what Dr. King spoke of still has profound merit: “Our loyalties must transcend our race, our tribe, our class, and our nation; and this means we must develop a world perspective.” And, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”

And, when Dr. King speaks of love, his words draw me in: “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” And, “I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear.”

Dr. King was a central figure in the Civil Rights Movement and a leading advocate of non-violence. Over the years, he was arrested 30 times for his civil rights actions. On April 4, 1968, at the age of 39, Dr. King was in Memphis to help lead sanitation workers in a protest. As he stood on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel, he was shot and killed.

“I just want to do God’s will. And, he’s allowed me to go to the mountain. And I’ve looked over, and I’ve seen the promised land. I may not get there with you, but I want you to know tonight that we as a people will get to the promised land. So I’m happy tonight. I’m not worried about anything. I’m not fearing any man.”

Auburn Avenue in Atlanta, Georgia, is the residential neighborhood surrounding the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site. Dubbed Sweet Auburn by John Wesley Dobbs, it refers to the “richest Negro street in the world,” with one of the largest concentrations of African-American businesses in the U.S. Oct. 23, 2017

The Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site on Auburn Avenue in Atlanta, Georgia, was established in 1980 to preserve the places where Dr. King was born, lived, worked, worshipped and is buried. (Oct. 23, 2017)

Me standing by the Behold Monument at the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site on Auburn Avenue in Atlanta, Georgia. Mrs. Coretta Scott King unveiled the monument on Jan. 11, 1990, as a tribute to her late husband and as an enduring inspiration to all who fight for dignity, social justice and human rights. Sculptor, Patrick Morelli, was inspired by the ancient African ritual of lifting a newborn child to the heavens and reciting the words: “Behold the only thing greater than yourself.” (Oct. 23, 2017)

The Ebenezer Baptist Church, built in 1914-1922, is part of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site on Auburn Avenue in Atlanta, Georgia. It is also where Dr. King served as co-pastor in the 1960s with his father. (Oct. 23, 2017)

The interior view of the Ebenezer Baptist Church pulpit at the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site on Auburn Avenue in Atlanta, Georgia. For nearly 80 years, Martin’s maternal grandfather, Rev. Adam Daniel “A.D.” Williams, and father Rev. Martin Luther “Daddy” King Sr., served as pastors. Dr. King’s grandmother Jennie C. Williams and mother Alberta “Mama” King diligently led various church activities. (Oct. 23, 2017)

A close up of the pulpit at the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta where Dr. King was baptized and both him and his father were pastors. The church is part of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site on Auburn Avenue. (Oct. 23, 2017)

The stained glass inside the Ebenezer Baptist Church part of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site on Auburn Avenue in Atlanta, Georgia. (Oct. 23, 2017)

The stained glass inside the Ebenezer Baptist Church part of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site on Auburn Avenue in Atlanta. (Oct. 23, 2017)

Martin Luther King Jr. was born Jan. 15, 1929 in this home on 501 Auburn Ave., in Atlanta, Georgia. It was the home of his maternal grandparents Rev. Adam Daniel “A.D.” Williams and Jennie C. Williams. His brother, Alfred Daniel “A.D.” and his sister Christine were also born in this house to parents Alberta Williams King and Martin Luther “Daddy” King Sr. And, yes, that’s me standing on the porch. (Oct. 23, 2017)

Photographs were not allowed inside the Birth Home of Martin Luther King Jr. in Atlanta, Georgia. This is a photo of a photo taken of the parlor located to the front of the house. This is where the family received guests and where the King children took piano lessons. The Birth Home is part of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site on Auburn Avenue and maintained the National Park Services and there was no charge to see the historic sites. (Oct. 23, 2017

The Dining Room, also a photo of a photo, inside the Birth Home of Martin Luther King Jr. in Atlanta, Georgia, is where the King family had formal dinners together every night. The Birth Home is part of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site on Auburn Avenue. (Oct. 23, 2017)

The kitchen, another photo of a photo, inside the Birth Home of Martin Luther King Jr. in Atlanta, Georgia, is where Grandmother Jennie Williams did most of the cooking for the family. The Birth Home is part of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site on Auburn Avenue. (Oct. 23, 2017)

Shotgun houses on Auburn Avenue are directly across from Dr. King’s boyhood home in Atlanta, Georgia. These duplexes are typical of the houses where Atlanta’s blue-collar laborers lived in the early 1900s. The Empire Textile Co. built them for its white mill workers, but they moved out after the 1906 Atlanta race riot, and black tenants began renting them. The houses are generally one room wide and up to four rooms deep. (Oct. 23, 2017)

More of the shot gun houses on Auburn Avenue are directly across from Dr. King’s boyhood home in Atlanta, Georgia. (Oct. 23, 2017)

The Historic Fire Station No. 6 in Atlanta, Georgia, built in 1894, stood guard over the city for nearly 100 years. In the 1960s, it became Atlanta’s first racially integrated firehouse. It was closed in 1991. (Oct. 23, 2017)

Inside the Historic Fire Station No. 6 in Atlanta, Georgia, with its exhibits on fire-fighting history including a 1927 LaFrance fire engine. (Oct. 23, 2017)

The King Center’s outdoor campus part of the Martin Luther Kin Jr. National Historic Site in Atlanta, Georgia, is where you can view the crypt of Dr. and Mrs. King, Eternal Flame, Freedom Walkway and Reflecting Pool. (Oct. 23, 2017)

The crypt of Dr. and Mrs. Martin Luther King Jr. by the Reflecting Pool, which is being refurbished, at the King Center, one of several buildings of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site on Auburn Street in Atlanta, Georgia. (Oct. 23, 2017)

The Eternal Flame serves as a reminder of the King’s undying commitment to their beloved community at the King Center which is all a part of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site in Atlanta, Georgia. (Oct. 23, 2017)

The Reflecting Pool, which is under renovation, at the King Center…part of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site on Auburn Avenue in Atlanta, Georgia. The pool surrounds the crypts of Dr. And Mrs. Martin Luther King, Jr. (Oct. 23, 2017)

The King Center, one of several buildings that make up the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site on Auburn Avenue in Atlanta, Georgia. (Oct. 23, 2017)

On Dec. 10, 1964, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was awarded the Noble Peace Prize for his nonviolent campaign against racism. The Nobel Peace Prize Medal can be seen inside the King Center’s Freedom Hall in Atlanta, Georgia. (Oct. 23, 2017)

On Dec. 10, 1964, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was the youngest person ever to be awarded the Noble Peace Prize for his nonviolent campaign against racism. The Nobel Peace Prize Medal can be seen inside the King Center’s Freedom Hall in Atlanta, Georgia. (Oct. 23, 2017)

The Visitor’s Center of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site on Auburn Avenue in Atlanta, Georgia. (Oct. 23, 2017)

The “I Have a Dream” International World Peace Rose Garden is part of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site on Auburn Avenue in Atlanta, Georgia. (Oct. 23, 2017)

The “International Civil Rights Walk of Fame,” commemorates courageous pioneers of social justice, is a walkable promenade near the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site in Atlanta, Georgia, features actual granite and bronze footstep impressions of those honored. (Oct. 23, 2017)

The “International Civil Rights Walk of Fame,” which commemorates some of the courageous pioneers who worked for social justice, is a walkable promenade near the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site in Atlanta, Georgia, features actual granite and bronze footstep impressions of those honored. (Oct. 23, 2017)

My feet-selfie by the granite footstep impressions of Julian Bond at the “International Civil Rights Walk of Fame,” a walkable promenade featuring actual granite and bronze footstep impressions of those honored. The promenade is located near the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site in Atlanta, Georgia. (Oct. 23, 2017)

This Mohandas K. Gandhi memorial tribute, by the “International Civil Rights Walk of Fame,” is located near the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site in Atlanta, Georgia. Dr. King studied the life and non-violent philosophy of Gandhi. (Oct. 23, 2017)

This is Israel. We struck up a conversation as I was taking photos of the Wheat Street Baptist Church on Auburn Avenue, behind us, in Atlanta, Georgia. Israel came to Atlanta 10 years again from Brooklyn, New York, and has seen the gentrification and “economic development” of the areas around Auburn Avenue change so much that its residents have been displaced. Israel said he’s not sure why he’s still in Atlanta but the place just speaks to his soul. I found him to be kind, charming and rather humorous. (Oct. 23, 2017)

The John Wesley Dobbs (1882-1961) Plaza is a memorial site on Auburn Avenue and Fort Street in Atlanta, Georgia. Dobbs was a leader in the voter registration movement, political thought and a famous orator who coined the phrase “Sweet Auburn.” (Oct. 23, 2017)

The John Wesley Hobbs sculpture on Auburn Streets in Atlanta, Georgia, was sculpted by Ralph Helmick. Based on the 12th century Nigerian Iife-sculpture tradition, the bronze sculpture forms a “portrait mask” of Mr. Dobbs with text and quotes inscribed on the interior from which Auburn Avenue can be literally “viewed through his eyes.” (Oct. 23, 2017)

Dr. King’s words are still relevant and speak volumes in the world we live in today. (Oct. 23, 2017)

Took a walk through two historical homes today at the Atlanta History Center, a museum and research center, located in the Buckhead district of Atlanta, Georgia. It was a nice way to spend a cool and sunny afternoon, while still taking in some history. The museum, which was founded in 1926, encompasses a little more than 30 acres and features historic gardens and houses on the grounds along with six permanent exhibits.

Me at Swan House in Atlanta, Georgia. The house and 28 acre grounds were acquired by the Atlanta Historical Center in the Buckhead District of Atlanta in 1966. The house, designed by Philip Trammel Shutze for Edward Inman, heir to a large cotton brokerage fortune and his wife Emily, was built in 1928. The house, maintained as a 1920s and 1930s historic house museum, contains most of the Inman family’s original furnishings. (Oct. 24, 2017)

The Swan House in Atlanta, Georgia appears to have two entrances, this driveway entrance and a rear garden entrance. Edward Inman, the home owner, was passionate about racing and car collecting. This 1929 Hudson graces the driveway entrance of the Swan House. (Oct. 24, 2017)

Edward Inman was passionate about racing and car collecting. This 1929 Hudson graces the driveway entrance of the Swan House in Atlanta, Georgia. (Oct. 24, 2017)

My feet selfie inside the entryway of the Swan House in Atlanta, Georgia. Don’t you just love the black and white marble floor? The house and grounds are part of the Atlanta Historical Center’s properties. (Oct. 24, 2017)

The floating staircase inside the Grand Hall entryway of the Swan House in Atlanta, Georgia. The Swan House and grounds were acquired by the Atlanta Historical Center in 1966 and is maintained as a 1920s and 1930s historical home. (Oct. 24, 2017)

The Library inside the Swan House in Atlanta, Georgia. (Oct. 24, 2017)

The Morning Room inside the Swan House in Atlanta, Georgia. (Oct. 24, 2017)

The decorative carved moldings above the doorways inside the Swan House in Atlanta, Georgia. (Oct. 24, 2017)

The Grand Hall leading to the Library and the Morning Room inside the Swan House in Atlanta, Georgia. (Oct. 24, 2017)

The kitchen in the Swan House in Atlanta, Georgia, was updated in the 1950s but the 1936 Magic Stove has been returned and a 1929 model refrigerator has been added. Most of the Inman’s staff were African American men and women who worked seven days a week and had Sunday off after serving the large midday meal. (Oct. 24, 2017)

Emily Inman’s upstairs bedroom inside the Swan House in Atlanta, Georgia. Like many wealthy people in the 1920s and 1930s, the Inmans had adjoining bedrooms. (Oct. 24, 2017)

The grandchildren’s upstairs bedroom inside the Swan House in Atlanta is decorated to replicate a child’s room in the 1930s. Edward Inman suffered a fatal heart attack at age 49. Emily Inman asked her oldest son Hugh, his wife Mildred and their children, Sam and Mimi live with her. Grandchildren Sam and Mimi shared this room with their nanny until they were old enough to have their own rooms. (Oct. 24, 2017)

The garden entrance of the Swan House in Atlanta, Georgia. (Oct. 24, 2017)

The Tullie Smith House, a small farm house, was built around 1840 by slaves for hog farmer Robert Smith. The house was located in Dekalb County, Georgia on 800 acres but was donated to and restored by the Atlanta History Center in the Buckhead district of Atlanta, Georgia. The 19th-century historic house museum, known as the Smith Family Farm, is like the Swan House, one of the properties operated by the center. (Oct. 24, 2017)

The bedroom of the Smith Family Farm at the Atlanta History Center in the Buckhead district of Atlanta, Georgia. (Oct. 24, 2017)

The loom room of the Smith Family Farm at the Atlanta History Center in Atlanta, Georgia. (Oct. 24, 2017)

Although this is not an original structure from the Smith Family Farm at the Atlanta History Center two wooden slave quarters were once on the property. This cabin was moved from Cliftondale which is located 25 miles southwest of Atlanta. (Oct. 24, 2017)

Inside the slave replica cabin of the Smith Family Farm at the Atlanta History Center in Atlanta, Georgia. The Smith family could have had anywhere from 15 to 17 slaves. In addition to hard labor on the land, slaves worked elsewhere depending on their gender and age. Cooking and food preservation, sewing, laundry, mile and butter duty, and yard sweeping were tasks typically assigned to women. Slave children were water bearers, errand runners, kitchen helpers, animal tenders, gardeners and often playmates to white children. (Oct. 24, 2017)

From the Civil War to the Civil Rights both have strong roots that took center stage in Atlanta. Along with its history, Atlanta is a thriving and diverse city that requires so much more than a handful of days to absorb all this city has to offer. But I’ve been on a history mission and Atlanta has most definitely provided me with a good sense of its past. For that matter, so have the cities Debra and I visited on this road trip which has taken us through nine cities in three states covering more than 2,800 miles over 23 days. From here I head to Florida to hang out with my siblings for some family time. But before I leave, here’s some more of Atlanta’s history, actually the history of US all, from its fine museums.