Medgar Evers Home — Assassination Conspiracy

Your investigation begins at the Medgar and Myrlie Evers Home National Monument, a preserved ranch house in Jackson's Elraine neighborhood. It was here, in the carport, that Medgar Evers was assassinated on June 12, 1963, by Byron De La Beckwith, returning after midnight from a meeting where he was unloading 'Jim Crow Must Go' T-shirts. This event, weeks after his home was firebombed during a sit-in organized by Evers, marks the first murder of a nationally significant civil rights leader and served as a catalyst for the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Designated a National Monument by the U.S. Congress in 2016 and part of the National Register of Historic Places, this site is an essential entry point for understanding the history of Jackson and Mississippi.

A short distance away, the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum, opened on February 27, 2018, in downtown Jackson, offers an in-depth context. Spanning 200,000 square feet, it houses a permanent exhibit dedicated to Medgar Evers' assassination and the Jackson Movement. The museum, located about 3 miles from the Evers Home and part of the Two Mississippi Museums complex, features artifacts from the 1963 murder investigation and a timeline of Medgar Evers' NAACP work, which began in 1952 in the Mississippi Delta. This is a crucial step to connect personal events with the broader efforts of the movement in Mississippi.

Your journey then takes you to the Mississippi State Capitol, a neoclassical building completed in 1903 in downtown Jackson, with its 180-foot dome. This location was the scene of numerous civil rights protests in the 1960s, including actions organized by Evers during the 1963 Jackson Movement. Located approximately 3.5 miles southeast of the Evers Home, the capitol and governor's grounds also hosted major rallies after Evers' assassination, highlighting the political significance of his actions and death for Mississippi.

The Smith Robertson Museum and Cultural Center, located 2.5 miles from the Evers Home near downtown, is another significant stop on your thematic circuit. Housed in Jackson's first public school for white children, built in 1894 and renovated as a museum, it features exhibits on the civil rights era, including Evers' Jackson campaigns. This site, which was desegregated in the 1970s following the Civil Rights Act spurred by Evers' death, highlights African American history in Mississippi and displays Evers family artifacts, enriching your understanding of Jackson's heritage.

Finally, your exploration leads you to the Farish Street Historical District, a historic African American commercial district that thrived in Jackson from the 1920s to the 1960s. This district, located 3 miles east of the Evers Home and designated a National Register Historic District in 1999, was a focal point for NAACP meetings and Evers' organizing during the 1963 Jackson Movement. Businesses here were firebombed weeks before his assassination, linked to the sit-ins he led. It is here that you gauge Medgar Evers' profound impact on Jackson's social and economic fabric, and the resilience of a community facing oppression, a key element of Mississippi's history and the Civil Rights Trail.