Rosa Parks Museum

 

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 the segregated South and the injustices faced by African American citizens. You will get an up-close view at the important roles that strategy, interracial partnerships, and women played within the movement.
 
In our main wing, witness Rosa Parks’ arrest, view a 1955 Montgomery city bus, and learn for yourself how a group of willing men and women led by the Montgomery Improvement Association fueled the resolve of a movement. Visitors will also view a 1956 station wagon used as the basis for an extensive carpooling system. 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.

Our Cleveland Avenue Time Machine in the Rosa Parks Museum's Children's Wing takes visitors back in time to the 1800s and the onset of Jim Crow segregation. Guests will "meet" Dred Scott, Homer Plessy, Harriett Tubman, and Henry "Box" Brown fought against this oppressive system.