Title	St. Luke African Methodist Episcopal Church: rear view
Creator(s)	West, Carroll Van
Date	2005?
Coverage	2000-2009
Property name	St. Luke African Methodist Episcopal Church
Property type	Church
National Register Reference	05000296 listed April 22, 2005
Community Name	Birmingham, Jefferson County, AL
Description	Color photograph of the rear (south) facade of the brick church. The basement level of the building is faced with fieldstone; the main level is of buff-colored brick. Eight windows on two levels line the wall of the sanctuary. The upper three are of stained glass. An exterior chimney is off center to the right. A concrete block utility building has been added, with ductwork leading to the sanctuary. A set of steps leads to a protruding entrance on the left side.
Historical Notes	St. Luke AME church, designed by Wallace Rayfield and built in 1926, was one of the leading Birmingham churches involved in the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights (ACMHR) during the key years for civil rights actions in Birmingham. Rev. Andrew W. Thomas, pastor from 1956-1969, was an early activist with ACMHR and opened his church to many of the mass meetings of that group. Among notable speakers at the church were Reverends Fred Shuttlesworth, Edward Gardner, James Bevel, Martin Luther King and Ralph Abernathy. The church was an important strategy center for planning of Project C in 1963, a campaign of nonviolent confrontational actions, such as lunch room sit-ins.
Collection Name	African American Churches
Subject-LCSH	African American Churches -- Tennessee
Subject-TGM	Churches
Type	Still image
Genre	Photograph
Medium	Paper
Extent	4 x 6 in.
Copyright status	Copyright of the creator. Reproduced with permission
Contributing Institution	Center for Historic Preservation, Middle Tennessee State University
Conditions for use	Credit Center for Historic Preservation, Middle Tennessee State University Reproduction permitted for non-profit educational and research purposes only
Digital Publisher	Digital Initiatives, James E. Walker Library, Middle Tennessee State University

St. Luke African Methodist Episcopal Church: rear view

Description