Before Montgomery, There was Baton Rouge

A new trail system brings Baton Rouge’s overlooked Civil Rights legacy back into public view

by

History

Despite its influence as an early force in the Civil Rights movement that would later provide a blueprint for the national fight for racial equality, Baton Rouge’s role as a catalyst for this social change has, over the decades, faded into the background of popular imagination. Now, a new series of installations across the city aims to shine a spotlight on its proud history. 

From Baton Rouge’s successful bus boycott movement, which preceded Montgomery’s famous push for equality by two years, to “swim-in” initiatives to desegregate the city’s pools, the capital city’s contributions to the Civil Rights movement are, at last, being uplifted. 

[Read about Baton Rouge's 1953 Bus Boycott here.] 

The Black History Legacy Trail System, launched in late February, highlights both the story of the brave Baton Rouge men and women who pioneered the first nonviolent strategies used in the broader civil rights movement, and the historical memory that underwrites the city’s Black community. A combined effort between The Walls Project, the Downtown Development District, and EnvisioNBR, the route consists of two walkable trails ranging from 1.8 miles to 3.4 miles, covering both downtown and the historically Black community of Eden Park in North Baton Rouge.

The system comprises seventeen markers total, divided between the Greenway Civil Rights Trail and the EnvisionBR Legacy Trail. While the Greenway trail focuses primarily on critical moments that influenced the nation’s civil rights history—such as the 1953 Bus Boycott Marker, the Kress Building (the site of a 1960 sit-in), and Mt. Zion First Baptist Church (a meeting place for the bus boycott)—the EnvisionBR trail is especially relevant “to the people that were in that community during that time,” said Dr. Ashlyn Harrison, Executive Director of The Walls Project Louisiana. “That footprint—their markers are more meaningful to that community and who they were during that time period.”

In recognizing key places and figures in this historically Black community, and restoring certain landmarks that require attention, organizers sought to preserve the neighborhood’s memory before it is overwritten by redevelopment—deliberately and purposefully making the residents and their legacy foundational to anything built in the years to come.

Harrison added that the community decided on the markers themselves through a series of meetings. The goal was to give those who would be interacting with these landmarks on a regular basis a real stake in the process. 

[Read this story about Baton Rouge Civil Rights trailblazer, Johnnie Anderson Jones, Sr.] 

“The EnvisioNBR footprint really is significant to preserving that history around that community,” she said. “I think that was an important part of this entire process of involving the community, as well as ensuring that the elders were involved too. To make sure they were part of the conversations and [tell] us the stories we may have missed.”

Designated sites display a QR code for viewers to connect with more historical resources and listen, read, or watch stories tied to the destination or figure. This is just the beginning, Harrison added. There are plans underway to continue to add markers, and ultimately expand the trail. 

“I think that installing the trails now carries a deep significance at a time when communities across the country are reflecting on how history is told and how stories are represented. The legacy trail is ensuring the contributions of those Black leaders, those educators, those artists, those changemakers in Baton Rouge is visible, is honored, and is preserved for our future generations,” she said. “I think this is a living reminder of our resilience, of the progress, and of the possibilities to come. If we continue to tell the story, it won’t be lost.” 

Learn more at thewallsproject.org.