Historical marker to be erected in Fredericksburg on 60th anniversary of Freedom Rides
The bus filled with 13 activists including John Lewis, left from D.C. and arrived in Fredericksburg on May 4, 1961. (Photos provided to 7News)
FREDERICKSBURG, Va. (7News) — A Greyhound Bus terminal that stood on Princess Anne Street in Fredericksburg in the 1960s is now a fire station.
The location represents an important part of Fredericksburg's history.
"They really announced to the world young people willing to fight for what's right," said Chris Williams, Assistant Director of the James Farmer Multicultural Center at the University of Mary Washington.
Freedom Riders risked their lives protesting segregated interstate transportation facilities in 1961.
More than 400 volunteers traveled through the south in attempting to use 'whites-only' restrooms, lunch counters, and waiting rooms.
"It was a multi-racial coalition working together for the betterment of U.S. society," said Williams.
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Williams has been pushing for the erection of a marker outside the fire station to share the history of the first stop of the first 'Freedom Ride.'
The bus filled with 13 activists including John Lewis, left from D.C. and arrived in Fredericksburg on May 4, 1961.
The marker acknowledges Farmer, who helped organize the Freedom Rides and reads, "On the morning of 4 May, the Freedom Riders first stopped here at the Greyhound Bus Terminal, where they integrated the restrooms and lunch counter without incident."
"An effort to tell the comprehensive story of Black Americans here in the City of Fredericksburg, but to a larger extent, this country," said Williams.
May 4th in Fredericksburg is also being proclaimed 'Freedom Riders Day.'
