16th Street Baptist Church

The 16th Street Baptist Church at 1530 6th Avenue North in Birmingham, Alabama, is one of the most significant sites in American civil rights history. Built in 1911 as a cornerstone of Birmingham's Black community, the church became a primary organizing hub for civil rights leaders throughout the 1950s and early 1960s. On September 15, 1963, members of the Ku Klux Klan detonated a bomb beneath the building's eastern stairwell, killing four young girls — Addie Mae Collins, Cynthia Wesley, Carole Robertson, and Carol Denise McNair — who were preparing for Sunday services in the basement. The bombing galvanized national and international attention and accelerated passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Romanesque Revival brick exterior has been meticulously restored, its dual towers and arched windows largely intact as they appeared in 1963. Inside, the original stained glass windows are preserved alongside a newer memorial window depicting a Black Christ figure, donated by the people of Wales as a symbol of international solidarity. Guided tours led by church deacons and volunteers cover the sanctuary, the basement memorial area, and the story of each of the four victims. The adjacent garden and memorial markers invite quiet reflection. Tours run Tuesday through Saturday during posted hours, and a $5 suggested donation is requested. The church remains an active congregation holding regular Sunday services — it is not simply a museum, and visitors should dress respectfully and maintain a quiet, contemplative demeanor throughout. The location within Birmingham's civil rights district makes it a natural anchor for a walking tour that also takes in Kelly Ingram Park and the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, both less than a block away.