Our Mission
Troy University’s Rosa Parks Museum is an active memorial to the life of civil rights
icon Rosa Parks and the lessons of the Montgomery Bus Boycott that brought racial
integration to transportation and international attention to civil rights. Located
in downtown Montgomery, Alabama at the site where Mrs. Parks was arrested, it is the
nation’s only museum dedicated to Rosa Parks. Our mission is to honor her legacy and
that of the boycott by providing a platform for scholarly dialogue, civic engagement,
and positive social change.
The museum’s collection contains a number of historically significant artifacts including
the original fingerprint arrest record of Mrs. Parks, a 1950s-era Montgomery city
bus, original works of art including statuary and quilts, court documents and police
reports, as well as a restored 1955 station wagon (known as a "rolling church") used
to transport protesters.
The Rosa Parks Museum:
- Collects, preserves, and exhibits artifacts relevant to the life and lessons of Rosa Parks, the Montgomery Bus Boycott, and the Civil Rights Movement.
- Provides educational programs and scholarly resources for K-12, adult, and lifelong learners.
- Reaches diverse audiences through various cultural events, educational programs, and temporary exhibitions designed to raise social consciousness, encourage cultural appreciation and acceptance, and promote peace.
Visitor Experience
Within the exhibits and artifacts found inside our museum, you’ll learn more about
the people behind the boycott as well as the political and social climates of 1950s
Montgomery. You’ll peer into the faces and hear the voices of brave men and women
who fought for freedom peacefully and effectively. Through our exhibits, you will
catch a glimpse of a time gone by--of a segregated South of the past. You will get
an up-close view at the important roles that strategy, interracial partnerships, and
women played within the movement.
Come witness Rosa Parks’ arrest, sit on a 1955 Montgomery public bus, attend a mass
meeting at Holt Street Baptist Church and learn for yourself how a group of willing
men and women—the Montgomery Improvement Association—fueled the resolve of a movement
with just 19 station wagons. While traveling through time, you’ll meet Rev. Dr. Martin
Luther King, Jr. and see the mass effect the Montgomery Bus Boycott and Civil Rights
Movement had on the world.
