24 May 2013. September 15, 1963 - A bomb blast at the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, kills four African-American girls during church services. Within days of the bombing, investigators began to focus their attention upon a KKK splinter group known as the "Cahaba Boys". The church's pastor, the Reverend John Cross Jr., attempted to placate the crowd by loudly reciting the 23rd Psalm through a bullhorn. On September 15, 1963, a bomb explodes during Sunday morning services in the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, killing four young girls: Addie Mae Collins (14), Cynthia Wesley (14), Carole Robertson (14) and Carol Denise McNair (11). Spanning from the Pyrenees to the Medi Following Cook's testimony, Baxley introduced police sergeant Ernie Cantrell. [28], Four girlsAddie Mae Collins (age 14, born April 18, 1949), Carol Denise McNair (age 11, born November 17, 1951), Carole Rosamond Robertson (age 14, born April 24, 1949), and Cynthia Dionne Wesley (age 14, born April 30, 1949)were killed in the attack. 
Relatives of the four victims openly wept in relief. 
[20], One of the key witnesses to testify on behalf of the prosecution was the Reverend Elizabeth Cobbs, Chambliss's niece. 
The deaths in a sense, are on the hands of each of us. But by September 20, the FBI was able to confirm that the explosion had been caused by a device that was purposely planted beneath the steps to the church,[59] close to the women's lounge. [99] In spite of a rebuttal argument by the defense, Judge Garrett ruled that some sections were too prejudicial, but also that portions of some audio recordings could be introduced as evidence. Shortly thereafter, she had heard "the most horrible noise", before being struck on the head by debris. The medal honors the girls sacrifice and how it served as a catalyst for the Civil Rights Movement. In the weeks following the September 4 integration of public schools, three additional bombs were detonated in Birmingham. [52] Reportedly, Carole's mother, Alpha, had expressly requested that her daughter be buried separately from the other victims. 
One of the defense witnesses was a retired chef named Eddie Mauldin, who was called to testify to discredit prosecution witnesses' statements that they had seen Blanton in the vicinity of the church before the bombing. [8], In the years leading up to the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing, Birmingham had earned a national reputation as a tense, violent and racially segregated city, in which even tentative racial integration in any form was met with violent resistance. Though Cash died in 1994, Cherry and Blanton were arrested and charged with four counts of murder in 2000. The scene in Birmingham, Alabama, after the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing, 15 September, 1963. [77] But at a pre-trial hearing on October 18,[78] Judge Wallace Gibson ruled that the defendant would be tried upon one count of murderthat of Carol Denise McNair[78]and that the remaining three counts of murder would remain, but that he would not be charged in relation to these three deaths. On November 14, 1977, Robert Chambliss, then aged 73, stood trial in Birmingham's Jefferson County Courthouse. Martin Luther King Jr. described Birmingham as "probably the most thoroughly segregated city in the United States. This page was last edited on 4 April 2023, at 16:31. Although the Federal Bureau of Investigation had concluded in 1965 that the bombing had been committed by four known KKK members and segregationists: Thomas Edwin Blanton Jr., Herman Frank Cash, Robert Edward Chambliss, and Bobby Frank Cherry,[6] no prosecutions were conducted until 1977, when Robert Chambliss was tried by Attorney General of Alabama Bill Baxley and convicted of the first-degree murder of one of the victims, 11-year-old Carol Denise McNair. 
Chambliss had been indicted by a grand jury on September 24, 1977, charged with four counts of murder, for each dead child in the 1963 church bombing. All articles are regularly reviewed and updated by the HISTORY.com team. Now the Jury Must Decide", "Bobby Frank Cherry, 74, Klansman in Bombing, Dies", "Gary T. Rowe Jr., 64, Who Informed on Klan In Civil Rights Killing, Is Dead", "Long Fight Predicted In Case Against Rowe", "Paid FBI Informer Tells Of Murder, Silence", "Memorial Dedicated For Church Bombing Victims On Anniversary", "Siblings of the bombing: Remembering Birmingham church blast 50 years on", "Girl Living in Darkness After Church Bombing", "Alabama church bombing victims honoured by Welsh window", "American civil rights: the Welsh connection", "Death spares scrutiny of Cash in bomb probe", "Pastor Was At Church When Bomb Killed Four", United States Government Publishing Office, "A History of American Protest: When Nina Simone Sang what Everyone was Thinking", "American Guernica, LKM Music - Hal Leonard Online", "Still Reeling From the Day Death Came to Birmingham", "Television Review: A Father's Guilt; A Son's Wrenching Decision", "That Which Might Have Been, Birmingham 1963 - Phoenix, Arizona - Smithsonian Art Inventory Sculptures on Waymarking.com", "Memorial project for 16th Street Baptist Church bombing raises $200,000 of $250,000 goal", "Four Spirits unveiled across from Sixteenth Street Baptist Church", "Four Spirits Statue, Memorial to 16th Street Baptist Church Bombing Victims, Unveiled", Details of Robert Chambliss's 1979 appeal against his conviction, John F. Kennedy's speech to the nation on Civil Rights, Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States, Chicago Freedom Movement/Chicago open housing movement, Green v. County School Board of New Kent County, Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights, Council for United Civil Rights Leadership, Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), "Woke Up This Morning (With My Mind Stayed On Freedom)", List of lynching victims in the United States, Spring Mobilization Committee to End the War in Vietnam, African American founding fathers of the United States, Birmingham Civil Rights National Monument, Medgar and Myrlie Evers Home National Monument, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=16th_Street_Baptist_Church_bombing&oldid=1148190533, African-American history in Birmingham, Alabama, Attacks on religious buildings and structures in the United States, Massacres in religious buildings and structures, Racially motivated violence against African Americans, September 1963 events in the United States, Terrorist incidents in the United States in 1963, Short description is different from Wikidata, All Wikipedia articles written in American English, Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2023, All articles containing potentially dated statements, Articles with unsourced statements from September 2020, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0. Most parishioners were able to evacuate the building as it filled with smoke, but the bodies of four young girls (14-year-old Addie Mae Collins, Cynthia Wesley and Carole Robertson and 11-year-old Denise McNair) were found beneath the rubble in a basement restroom. 
[120] Cherry pleaded not guilty to the charges and did not testify on his own behalf during the trial. The police were reportedly responding to Black youths throwing rocks at cars driven by white people. [48]:386 On September 29, he was indicted upon charges of illegally purchasing and transporting dynamite on September 4, 1963. [11] Their demands included that public amenities such as lunch counters and parks be desegregated, the criminal charges against demonstrators and protestors should be removed, and an end to overt discrimination with regards to employment opportunities. Maxine McNair, the last living parent of any of the children killed in the 1963 bombing of Birminghams 16th Street Baptist Church, died Sunday at age 93. It is a sound that I will never forget, that will forever reverberate in my ears. Even though the legal system was slow to provide justice, the effect of the bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church was immediate and significant. Bobby Frank Cherry was tried in Birmingham, Alabama, before Judge James Garrett, on May 6, 2002. 
June 26, 2020 - Blanton dies in prison of natural causes, according to a statement released by Alabama Gov. 
From left, 11-year-old Denise McNair and 14-year-olds Carole Robertson, Addie Mae Collins and Cynthia Wesley were killed while attending Sunday services. You can navigate days by using left and right arrows. "[112], Blanton was sentenced to life imprisonment. [8] When the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) and the Congress on Racial Equality became involved in a campaign to register African Americans to vote in Birmingham, tensions in the city increased. 999 cigarettes product of mr same / redassedbaboon hacked games WebSarah Collins Rudolph, who survived a racist church bombing that killed sister Addie Mae Collins and three other girls in 1963, stands with husband George Rudolph at the However, none of these explosions had resulted in fatalities. Each received a $100 fine (the equivalent of $972 as of 2023[update]) and a suspended 180-day jail sentence. [50]), Chambliss was questioned by the FBI on September 26. Webj bowers construction owner // birmingham church bombing victims autopsy. In 1963, the eyes of the world were on Birmingham, Alabama, a flashpoint for the civil rights movement. In spite of the darkness of this hour, we must not become bitter We must not lose faith in our white brothers. Web16th Street Baptist Church bombing, terrorist attack in Birmingham, Alabama, on September 15, 1963, on the predominantly African American 16th Street Baptist Church In his eulogy, Dr. King said, "These children -- unoffending, innocent and beautiful -- were the victims of one of the most vicious and tragic crimes ever perpetrated against humanity. On April 10, 2001, Judge James Garrett indefinitely postponed Cherry's trial, pending further medical analysis. The church was used as a meeting-place for civil rights leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr., Ralph David Abernathy, and Fred Shuttlesworth, for organizing and educating marchers. He said the U.S. Army "ought to come to Birmingham and take over this city and run it.". 
[7] Herman Cash died in 1994, and was never charged with his alleged involvement in the bombing. September 26, 1977 - Chambliss, 73, a retired auto mechanic, is indicted by a Jefferson County grand jury on four counts of first-degree murder. September 12, 2013 - Fifty years after the bombing, all four girls who died are awarded Congressional Gold Medals. Many of the civil rights protest marches that took place in Birmingham during the 1960s began at the steps of the 16th Street Baptist Church, which had long been a significant religious center for the citys Black population and a routine meeting place for civil rights organizers like King. Before his trial, Chambliss remained free upon a $200,000 bond raised by family and supporters and posted October 18. Blanton was convicted and sentenced to life in prison. On May 22, 2002, Cherry was convicted and sentenced to life, bringing a long-awaited victory to the friends and families of the four young victims. "[44] A Milwaukee Sentinel editorial opined, "For the rest of the nation, the Birmingham church bombing should serve to goad the conscience. The day following the bombing, a young white lawyer named Charles Morgan Jr. addressed a meeting of businessmen, condemning the acquiescence of white people in Birmingham toward the oppression of Blacks. 
), One individual who went to the scene to help search for survivors, Charles Vann, later recollected that he had observed a solitary white man whom he recognized as Robert Edward Chambliss (a known member of the Ku Klux Klan) standing alone and motionless at a barricade. The Anniston and Birmingham bus attacks, which occurred on May 14, 1961, in Anniston and Birmingham, both Alabama, were acts of mob violence targeted against civil rights activists protesting against racial segregation in the Southern United States. [39], Violence escalated in Birmingham in the hours following the bombing, with reports of groups of Black and white youth throwing bricks and shouting insults at each other. HISTORY reviews and updates its content regularly to ensure it is complete and accurate. As a result, no federal charges were filed in the '60s. "[32], The prosecution called a total of seven witnesses to testify in their case against Blanton, including relatives of the victims, John Cross, the former pastor of the 16th Street Baptist Church; an FBI agent named William Fleming, and Mitchell Burns, a former Klansman who had become a paid FBI informant. The tragic 1963 bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, helped set America on a course toward passing the Civil Rights Act of 1964. [62][63] At the time, no federal charges were filed against Chambliss or any of his fellow conspirators in relation to the bombing. [17], In response to the church bombing, described by the Mayor of Birmingham, Albert Boutwell, as "just sickening", the Attorney General dispatched 25 FBI agents, including explosives experts, to Birmingham to conduct a thorough forensic investigation. He said that Cherry had signed an affidavit in the presence of the FBI on October 9, 1963, confirming that he, Chambliss, and Blanton were at these premises on this date.[125]. Barbara Ann Cross also testified for the prosecution. 2023, A&E Television Networks, LLC. These instructions were relayed to the crowd present by a single youth with a bullhorn. A well-known Klan member, Robert Chambliss, was charged with murder and with buying 122 sticks of dynamite. Addie Mae Collins, 14Denise McNair, 11Carole Robertson, 14Cynthia Wesley, 14. The other victims were Addie Mae Collins, Cynthia Wesley and Carole Robertson. September 16, 1963 - President John F. Kennedy responds by saying, If these cruel and tragic events can only awaken that city and state - if they can only awaken this entire nation to a realization of the folly of racial injustice and hatred and violence, then it is not too late for all concerned to unite in steps toward peaceful progress before more lives are lost., September 16, 1963 - Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. holds a press conference in Birmingham, Alabama, saying that the US Army ought to come to Birmingham and take over this city and run it.. She was 93. Witnesses are reluctant to talk and physical evidence is lacking, so charges are not filed. [132] Nonetheless, a 1979 investigation cleared Rowe of any involvement in the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing. WebThe Birmingham church bombing occurred on September 15, 1963, when a bomb exploded before Sunday morning services at the 16th Street Baptist Church in appreciated. Beam of sunlight streaming Your effort and contribution in providing this feedback is much Herman Frank Cash died of cancer in February 1994. King later spoke before 8,000 people at the funeral for three of the girls (the family of the fourth girl held a smaller private service), fueling the public outrage now mounting across the country. Thomas Edwin Blanton Jr. was brought to trial in Birmingham, Alabama, before Judge James Garrett on April 24, 2001. ", "Today in 1963: The Bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church", "Justice Story: Birmingham church bombing kills 4 innocent girls in racially motivated attack", "Former Klansmen indicted for murder in 1963 bombing of Birmingham, Alabama church", "16th Street Baptist Church Bombing (1963) (U.S. National Park Service)", "Letter From Birmingham City Jail (Excerpts)", "Theophilus Eugene "Bull" Connor (1897-1973) (U.S. National Park Service)", "Birmingham Confrontation Reconsidered: An Analysis of the Dynamics and Tactics of Mobilization", "Ghosts of Alabama: The Prosecution of Bobby Frank Cherry for the Bombing of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church", "Memories of An Imperial City: Race, Gender, and Birmingham, Alabama", "Six Negro Children Killed in Alabama Sunday", "Former Klansman Is Guilty Of Bomb Deaths", "16th Street Baptist Church Bombing Survivors Recall a Day That Changed the Fight for Civil Rights: 'I Will Never Stop Crying Thinking About It', "Killer of Four in 1963 Blast Dies in Prison", "John Cross Jr. Pastor at Bombed Church, Dies at 82", "The Birmingham Church Bombing: Bombingham", "Remembering the Birmingham Church Bombing", "John Cross Jr., Pastor at Bombed Church, Dies at 82", "Awarding Congressional Gold Medal to Addie Mae Collins, Denise McNair, Carole Robertson, and Cynthia Wesley", "From the archive, 16 September 1963: Black church bombed in Birmingham, Alabama", "Father Recalls Deadly Blast At Ala. Baptist Church", "1963 Birmingham Church Bombing Fast Facts", "New Memorial for 16th St. Baptist Church on Sun, 56 Years After Bombing", "16th Street Baptist Church Bombing: Forty Years Later, Birmingham Still Struggles with Violent Past", "40 years for Justice: Did the FBI Cover for the Birmingham Bombers? Hanes noted conflicting testimony among several of the 12 witnesses called by the defense to testify as to Chambliss's whereabouts on the day of the bombing. Immediately after the blast, church members wandered dazed and bloodied, covered with white powder and broken stained glass, before starting to dig in the rubble to search for survivors. Mourners embrace at the funeral. Brogdon testified on May 16 that Cherry had boasted to her that he had been the individual who planted the bomb beneath the steps to the church, then returned hours later to light the fuse to the dynamite. At this service, the Reverend C. E. Thomas told the congregation: "The greatest tribute you can pay to Carole is to be calm, be lovely, be kind, be innocent. [67]), Although both Blanton and Cherry denied their involvement in the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing, until his death in 1985, Robert Chambliss repeatedly insisted that the bombing had been committed by Gary Thomas Rowe Jr. Rowe had been encouraged to join the Klan by acquaintances in 1960. The files were sealed by order of J. Edgar Hoover. "[9] Birmingham's Commissioner of Public Safety, Theophilus Eugene "Bull" Connor,[10] led the effort in enforcing racial segregation in the city through the use of violent tactics. Most crucially, Blanton can also be heard saying that he was not with Miss Vaughn but, two nights before the bombing, was at a meeting with other Klansmen on a bridge above the Cahaba River. [26], The explosion blew a hole measuring seven feet (2.1m) in diameter in the church's rear wall, and a crater five feet (1.5m) wide and two feet (0.61m) deep in the ladies' basement lounge, destroying the rear steps to the church and blowing a passing motorist out of his car. [57], Initially, investigators theorized that a bomb thrown from a passing car had caused the explosion at the 16th Street Baptist church. This appeal was dismissed on May 22, 1979. Robinson, aged 16, 9:01 AM EDT, Wed September 7, 2022, A grieving relative is led away from the site of the. WebBIRMINGHAM, Ala. Maxine McNair, the last living parent of any of the four Black girls killed in a 1963 Alabama church bombing, died Sunday. At the historic Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, photos of the four girls killed in the infamous Sept. 15, 1963 bombing. Changing the day will navigate the page to that given day in history. Crucial testimony at Cherry's trial was delivered by his former wife, Willadean Brogdon, who had married Cherry in 1970. Johnson warned the jurors they would have to distinguish between evidence and proof. [60] By the time of the announcement, Herman Cash had also died; however, Thomas Blanton and Bobby Cherry were still alive. As late as the 1960s, however, it was also one of Americas most racially discriminatory and segregated cities. WebSeptember 15, 1963 - A bomb blast at the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, kills four African-American girls during church services. More than 20 other members of the congregation were injured in the blast. WebThe blast killed Denise McNair, 11, and three 14-year-olds: Carole Robertson, Cynthia Morris, also referred to as Cynthia Wesley, and Addie Mae Collins, who was Rudolphs [66] This information was relayed to the Director of the FBI, J. Edgar Hoover;[67] however, no prosecutions of the four suspects ensued. Two other Klansmen were prosecuted and sentenced to life imprisonment in 2001 and 2002. Heres a look at the Birmingham, Alabama, church bombing that killed four African-American girls during church services in 1963. At least 14 others are injured in the explosion, including Sarah Collins, the 12-year-old sister of victim Addie Mae Collins, who loses an eye. With its large African American congregation, the 16th Street Baptist Church served as a meeting place for civil rights leaders like Martin Luther King, Jr., who once called Birmingham a symbol of hardcore resistance to integration. Alabamas governor, George Wallace, made preserving racial segregation one of the central goals of his administration, and Birmingham had one of the most violent and lawless chapters of the Ku Klux Klan. According to Vann's later testimony, Chambliss was standing "looking down toward the church, like a firebug watching his fire". 
Robinson, aged 16, was shot in the back by a policeman as he fled down an alley,[43] after ignoring police orders to halt. ", "Beauty from the Ashes of 16th Street Baptist Church", "Church Bomb Kills 4 Girls in Ala.; 2 Die in Fighting", "The Speech That Shocked Birmingham the Day After the Church Bombing", "Ceremony recalls victim of civil rights violence", "First of 4 Birmingham Bomb Victims is Buried", "We Shall Overcome Historic Places of the Civil Rights Movement", "Funeral Speakers Say Deaths Of Three Children Not In Vain", "Martin Luther King's 'Eulogy for the Martyred Children', "The ghosts of Alabama: After 37 years, two men are indicted for a bombing that transfigured the civil rights movement", "Birmingham Klansman Guilty in Dynamite Case; Two Other Defendants Face Trial Today--Dr. King Gives City an Ultimatum on Jobs", "FBI: A Byte Out of History: The '63 Baptist Church Bombing", "Murderer Of 4 Birmingham Girls Found Guilty (38 yrs later)", "Former Klansman convicted in deadly 1963 bombing of Birmingham, Alabama church", "Cherry convicted: Jury verdict in bombing hailed as 'justice finally', "Birmingham Church Bombing Conviction Ended an Obsession of the Prosecutor", "Bill Baxley Reflects on 16th Street Baptist Church Bombing", "Former Prosecutor Says FBI Delayed Alabama Conviction", "Former Klansman Convicted In Bombing Death", "Another Redemption: Baxley in Birmingham", "Puzzle Pieces Put Together in Bombing Case", "Alabamian Guilty in '63 Blast that Killed Four Girls", "Robert E. Chambliss, Figure in '63 Bombing", "Former Klansman convicted of deadly Alabama church bombing 40 years on", "Klansman convicted of killing black girls", "As Church Bombing Trial Begins in Birmingham, the City's Past Is Very Much Present", "Former Klansman who was Key Witness at Bombing Trial Dies", "Church Bombing Verdict Hinges on how Jurors Understand Tapes", "Jury Hears More Old Tapes in Church Bombing Trial", "Birmingham church bomber guilty, gets four life terms", "Testimony Concludes in Trial On Birmingham Church Blast", "Former Klansman Convicted in 1963 Church Bombing", "Former Klansman faces prison in 1963 Killings", "1 Klansman survives Ala church bombing cases", "Sixteenth Street Baptist Church bomber up for parole next month", "16th Street Baptist Church bomber Thomas Blanton denied parole", "Thomas Blanton, Who Bombed a Birmingham Church, Dies at 82", "Witnesses Say Ex-Klansman Boasted of Church Bombing", "Design of Bomb Still Uncertain 38 Years Later", "Explosives Expert Testifies In Church Bombing Trial", "Prosecutor Says Justice 'Overdue' in '63 Bombing", "More Than Just a Racist? But she also feels the death of someone like Johnny -- a kid who may have had some problems but didn't deserve to die -- belongs in the annals of civil rights history. 
[11] The intentional scope of these activities was to see the end of segregation across Birmingham and the South as a whole. [127], When asked by the judge whether he had anything to say before sentence was imposed, Cherry motioned to the prosecutors and stated: "This whole bunch lied through this thing [the trial]. Martin said: "The cold-blooded callousness of this hate crime has not diminished by the passage of time." 2. Although informative to the FBI, Rowe actively participated in violence against both Black and white civil rights activists. Stressing that Blanton should not be judged for his beliefs, Robbins again vehemently criticized the validity and poor quality of the audio recordings presented, and the selectivity of the sections which had been introduced into evidence. 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Relatives of the four victims openly wept in relief. [20], One of the key witnesses to testify on behalf of the prosecution was the Reverend Elizabeth Cobbs, Chambliss's niece. The deaths in a sense, are on the hands of each of us. But by September 20, the FBI was able to confirm that the explosion had been caused by a device that was purposely planted beneath the steps to the church,[59] close to the women's lounge. [99] In spite of a rebuttal argument by the defense, Judge Garrett ruled that some sections were too prejudicial, but also that portions of some audio recordings could be introduced as evidence. Shortly thereafter, she had heard "the most horrible noise", before being struck on the head by debris. The medal honors the girls sacrifice and how it served as a catalyst for the Civil Rights Movement. In the weeks following the September 4 integration of public schools, three additional bombs were detonated in Birmingham. [52] Reportedly, Carole's mother, Alpha, had expressly requested that her daughter be buried separately from the other victims. One of the defense witnesses was a retired chef named Eddie Mauldin, who was called to testify to discredit prosecution witnesses' statements that they had seen Blanton in the vicinity of the church before the bombing. [8], In the years leading up to the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing, Birmingham had earned a national reputation as a tense, violent and racially segregated city, in which even tentative racial integration in any form was met with violent resistance. Though Cash died in 1994, Cherry and Blanton were arrested and charged with four counts of murder in 2000. The scene in Birmingham, Alabama, after the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing, 15 September, 1963. [77] But at a pre-trial hearing on October 18,[78] Judge Wallace Gibson ruled that the defendant would be tried upon one count of murderthat of Carol Denise McNair[78]and that the remaining three counts of murder would remain, but that he would not be charged in relation to these three deaths. On November 14, 1977, Robert Chambliss, then aged 73, stood trial in Birmingham's Jefferson County Courthouse. Martin Luther King Jr. described Birmingham as "probably the most thoroughly segregated city in the United States. This page was last edited on 4 April 2023, at 16:31. Although the Federal Bureau of Investigation had concluded in 1965 that the bombing had been committed by four known KKK members and segregationists: Thomas Edwin Blanton Jr., Herman Frank Cash, Robert Edward Chambliss, and Bobby Frank Cherry,[6] no prosecutions were conducted until 1977, when Robert Chambliss was tried by Attorney General of Alabama Bill Baxley and convicted of the first-degree murder of one of the victims, 11-year-old Carol Denise McNair. Chambliss had been indicted by a grand jury on September 24, 1977, charged with four counts of murder, for each dead child in the 1963 church bombing. All articles are regularly reviewed and updated by the HISTORY.com team. Now the Jury Must Decide", "Bobby Frank Cherry, 74, Klansman in Bombing, Dies", "Gary T. Rowe Jr., 64, Who Informed on Klan In Civil Rights Killing, Is Dead", "Long Fight Predicted In Case Against Rowe", "Paid FBI Informer Tells Of Murder, Silence", "Memorial Dedicated For Church Bombing Victims On Anniversary", "Siblings of the bombing: Remembering Birmingham church blast 50 years on", "Girl Living in Darkness After Church Bombing", "Alabama church bombing victims honoured by Welsh window", "American civil rights: the Welsh connection", "Death spares scrutiny of Cash in bomb probe", "Pastor Was At Church When Bomb Killed Four", United States Government Publishing Office, "A History of American Protest: When Nina Simone Sang what Everyone was Thinking", "American Guernica, LKM Music - Hal Leonard Online", "Still Reeling From the Day Death Came to Birmingham", "Television Review: A Father's Guilt; A Son's Wrenching Decision", "That Which Might Have Been, Birmingham 1963 - Phoenix, Arizona - Smithsonian Art Inventory Sculptures on Waymarking.com", "Memorial project for 16th Street Baptist Church bombing raises $200,000 of $250,000 goal", "Four Spirits unveiled across from Sixteenth Street Baptist Church", "Four Spirits Statue, Memorial to 16th Street Baptist Church Bombing Victims, Unveiled", Details of Robert Chambliss's 1979 appeal against his conviction, John F. Kennedy's speech to the nation on Civil Rights, Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States, Chicago Freedom Movement/Chicago open housing movement, Green v. County School Board of New Kent County, Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights, Council for United Civil Rights Leadership, Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), "Woke Up This Morning (With My Mind Stayed On Freedom)", List of lynching victims in the United States, Spring Mobilization Committee to End the War in Vietnam, African American founding fathers of the United States, Birmingham Civil Rights National Monument, Medgar and Myrlie Evers Home National Monument, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=16th_Street_Baptist_Church_bombing&oldid=1148190533, African-American history in Birmingham, Alabama, Attacks on religious buildings and structures in the United States, Massacres in religious buildings and structures, Racially motivated violence against African Americans, September 1963 events in the United States, Terrorist incidents in the United States in 1963, Short description is different from Wikidata, All Wikipedia articles written in American English, Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2023, All articles containing potentially dated statements, Articles with unsourced statements from September 2020, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0. Most parishioners were able to evacuate the building as it filled with smoke, but the bodies of four young girls (14-year-old Addie Mae Collins, Cynthia Wesley and Carole Robertson and 11-year-old Denise McNair) were found beneath the rubble in a basement restroom. [120] Cherry pleaded not guilty to the charges and did not testify on his own behalf during the trial. The police were reportedly responding to Black youths throwing rocks at cars driven by white people. [48]:386 On September 29, he was indicted upon charges of illegally purchasing and transporting dynamite on September 4, 1963. [11] Their demands included that public amenities such as lunch counters and parks be desegregated, the criminal charges against demonstrators and protestors should be removed, and an end to overt discrimination with regards to employment opportunities. Maxine McNair, the last living parent of any of the children killed in the 1963 bombing of Birminghams 16th Street Baptist Church, died Sunday at age 93. It is a sound that I will never forget, that will forever reverberate in my ears. Even though the legal system was slow to provide justice, the effect of the bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church was immediate and significant. Bobby Frank Cherry was tried in Birmingham, Alabama, before Judge James Garrett, on May 6, 2002. June 26, 2020 - Blanton dies in prison of natural causes, according to a statement released by Alabama Gov. From left, 11-year-old Denise McNair and 14-year-olds Carole Robertson, Addie Mae Collins and Cynthia Wesley were killed while attending Sunday services. You can navigate days by using left and right arrows. "[112], Blanton was sentenced to life imprisonment. [8] When the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) and the Congress on Racial Equality became involved in a campaign to register African Americans to vote in Birmingham, tensions in the city increased. 999 cigarettes product of mr same / redassedbaboon hacked games WebSarah Collins Rudolph, who survived a racist church bombing that killed sister Addie Mae Collins and three other girls in 1963, stands with husband George Rudolph at the However, none of these explosions had resulted in fatalities. Each received a $100 fine (the equivalent of $972 as of 2023[update]) and a suspended 180-day jail sentence. [50]), Chambliss was questioned by the FBI on September 26. Webj bowers construction owner // birmingham church bombing victims autopsy. In 1963, the eyes of the world were on Birmingham, Alabama, a flashpoint for the civil rights movement. In spite of the darkness of this hour, we must not become bitter We must not lose faith in our white brothers. Web16th Street Baptist Church bombing, terrorist attack in Birmingham, Alabama, on September 15, 1963, on the predominantly African American 16th Street Baptist Church In his eulogy, Dr. King said, "These children -- unoffending, innocent and beautiful -- were the victims of one of the most vicious and tragic crimes ever perpetrated against humanity. On April 10, 2001, Judge James Garrett indefinitely postponed Cherry's trial, pending further medical analysis. The church was used as a meeting-place for civil rights leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr., Ralph David Abernathy, and Fred Shuttlesworth, for organizing and educating marchers. He said the U.S. Army "ought to come to Birmingham and take over this city and run it.". [7] Herman Cash died in 1994, and was never charged with his alleged involvement in the bombing. September 26, 1977 - Chambliss, 73, a retired auto mechanic, is indicted by a Jefferson County grand jury on four counts of first-degree murder. September 12, 2013 - Fifty years after the bombing, all four girls who died are awarded Congressional Gold Medals. Many of the civil rights protest marches that took place in Birmingham during the 1960s began at the steps of the 16th Street Baptist Church, which had long been a significant religious center for the citys Black population and a routine meeting place for civil rights organizers like King. Before his trial, Chambliss remained free upon a $200,000 bond raised by family and supporters and posted October 18. Blanton was convicted and sentenced to life in prison. On May 22, 2002, Cherry was convicted and sentenced to life, bringing a long-awaited victory to the friends and families of the four young victims. "[44] A Milwaukee Sentinel editorial opined, "For the rest of the nation, the Birmingham church bombing should serve to goad the conscience. The day following the bombing, a young white lawyer named Charles Morgan Jr. addressed a meeting of businessmen, condemning the acquiescence of white people in Birmingham toward the oppression of Blacks. ), One individual who went to the scene to help search for survivors, Charles Vann, later recollected that he had observed a solitary white man whom he recognized as Robert Edward Chambliss (a known member of the Ku Klux Klan) standing alone and motionless at a barricade. The Anniston and Birmingham bus attacks, which occurred on May 14, 1961, in Anniston and Birmingham, both Alabama, were acts of mob violence targeted against civil rights activists protesting against racial segregation in the Southern United States. [39], Violence escalated in Birmingham in the hours following the bombing, with reports of groups of Black and white youth throwing bricks and shouting insults at each other. HISTORY reviews and updates its content regularly to ensure it is complete and accurate. As a result, no federal charges were filed in the '60s. "[32], The prosecution called a total of seven witnesses to testify in their case against Blanton, including relatives of the victims, John Cross, the former pastor of the 16th Street Baptist Church; an FBI agent named William Fleming, and Mitchell Burns, a former Klansman who had become a paid FBI informant. The tragic 1963 bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, helped set America on a course toward passing the Civil Rights Act of 1964. [62][63] At the time, no federal charges were filed against Chambliss or any of his fellow conspirators in relation to the bombing. [17], In response to the church bombing, described by the Mayor of Birmingham, Albert Boutwell, as "just sickening", the Attorney General dispatched 25 FBI agents, including explosives experts, to Birmingham to conduct a thorough forensic investigation. He said that Cherry had signed an affidavit in the presence of the FBI on October 9, 1963, confirming that he, Chambliss, and Blanton were at these premises on this date.[125]. Barbara Ann Cross also testified for the prosecution. 2023, A&E Television Networks, LLC. These instructions were relayed to the crowd present by a single youth with a bullhorn. A well-known Klan member, Robert Chambliss, was charged with murder and with buying 122 sticks of dynamite. Addie Mae Collins, 14Denise McNair, 11Carole Robertson, 14Cynthia Wesley, 14. The other victims were Addie Mae Collins, Cynthia Wesley and Carole Robertson. September 16, 1963 - President John F. Kennedy responds by saying, If these cruel and tragic events can only awaken that city and state - if they can only awaken this entire nation to a realization of the folly of racial injustice and hatred and violence, then it is not too late for all concerned to unite in steps toward peaceful progress before more lives are lost., September 16, 1963 - Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. holds a press conference in Birmingham, Alabama, saying that the US Army ought to come to Birmingham and take over this city and run it.. She was 93. Witnesses are reluctant to talk and physical evidence is lacking, so charges are not filed. [132] Nonetheless, a 1979 investigation cleared Rowe of any involvement in the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing. WebThe Birmingham church bombing occurred on September 15, 1963, when a bomb exploded before Sunday morning services at the 16th Street Baptist Church in appreciated. Beam of sunlight streaming Your effort and contribution in providing this feedback is much Herman Frank Cash died of cancer in February 1994. King later spoke before 8,000 people at the funeral for three of the girls (the family of the fourth girl held a smaller private service), fueling the public outrage now mounting across the country. Thomas Edwin Blanton Jr. was brought to trial in Birmingham, Alabama, before Judge James Garrett on April 24, 2001. ", "Today in 1963: The Bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church", "Justice Story: Birmingham church bombing kills 4 innocent girls in racially motivated attack", "Former Klansmen indicted for murder in 1963 bombing of Birmingham, Alabama church", "16th Street Baptist Church Bombing (1963) (U.S. National Park Service)", "Letter From Birmingham City Jail (Excerpts)", "Theophilus Eugene "Bull" Connor (1897-1973) (U.S. National Park Service)", "Birmingham Confrontation Reconsidered: An Analysis of the Dynamics and Tactics of Mobilization", "Ghosts of Alabama: The Prosecution of Bobby Frank Cherry for the Bombing of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church", "Memories of An Imperial City: Race, Gender, and Birmingham, Alabama", "Six Negro Children Killed in Alabama Sunday", "Former Klansman Is Guilty Of Bomb Deaths", "16th Street Baptist Church Bombing Survivors Recall a Day That Changed the Fight for Civil Rights: 'I Will Never Stop Crying Thinking About It', "Killer of Four in 1963 Blast Dies in Prison", "John Cross Jr. Pastor at Bombed Church, Dies at 82", "The Birmingham Church Bombing: Bombingham", "Remembering the Birmingham Church Bombing", "John Cross Jr., Pastor at Bombed Church, Dies at 82", "Awarding Congressional Gold Medal to Addie Mae Collins, Denise McNair, Carole Robertson, and Cynthia Wesley", "From the archive, 16 September 1963: Black church bombed in Birmingham, Alabama", "Father Recalls Deadly Blast At Ala. Baptist Church", "1963 Birmingham Church Bombing Fast Facts", "New Memorial for 16th St. Baptist Church on Sun, 56 Years After Bombing", "16th Street Baptist Church Bombing: Forty Years Later, Birmingham Still Struggles with Violent Past", "40 years for Justice: Did the FBI Cover for the Birmingham Bombers? Hanes noted conflicting testimony among several of the 12 witnesses called by the defense to testify as to Chambliss's whereabouts on the day of the bombing. Immediately after the blast, church members wandered dazed and bloodied, covered with white powder and broken stained glass, before starting to dig in the rubble to search for survivors. Mourners embrace at the funeral. Brogdon testified on May 16 that Cherry had boasted to her that he had been the individual who planted the bomb beneath the steps to the church, then returned hours later to light the fuse to the dynamite. At this service, the Reverend C. E. Thomas told the congregation: "The greatest tribute you can pay to Carole is to be calm, be lovely, be kind, be innocent. [67]), Although both Blanton and Cherry denied their involvement in the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing, until his death in 1985, Robert Chambliss repeatedly insisted that the bombing had been committed by Gary Thomas Rowe Jr. Rowe had been encouraged to join the Klan by acquaintances in 1960. The files were sealed by order of J. Edgar Hoover. "[9] Birmingham's Commissioner of Public Safety, Theophilus Eugene "Bull" Connor,[10] led the effort in enforcing racial segregation in the city through the use of violent tactics. Most crucially, Blanton can also be heard saying that he was not with Miss Vaughn but, two nights before the bombing, was at a meeting with other Klansmen on a bridge above the Cahaba River. [26], The explosion blew a hole measuring seven feet (2.1m) in diameter in the church's rear wall, and a crater five feet (1.5m) wide and two feet (0.61m) deep in the ladies' basement lounge, destroying the rear steps to the church and blowing a passing motorist out of his car. [57], Initially, investigators theorized that a bomb thrown from a passing car had caused the explosion at the 16th Street Baptist church. This appeal was dismissed on May 22, 1979. Robinson, aged 16, 9:01 AM EDT, Wed September 7, 2022, A grieving relative is led away from the site of the. WebBIRMINGHAM, Ala. Maxine McNair, the last living parent of any of the four Black girls killed in a 1963 Alabama church bombing, died Sunday. At the historic Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, photos of the four girls killed in the infamous Sept. 15, 1963 bombing. Changing the day will navigate the page to that given day in history. Crucial testimony at Cherry's trial was delivered by his former wife, Willadean Brogdon, who had married Cherry in 1970. Johnson warned the jurors they would have to distinguish between evidence and proof. [60] By the time of the announcement, Herman Cash had also died; however, Thomas Blanton and Bobby Cherry were still alive. As late as the 1960s, however, it was also one of Americas most racially discriminatory and segregated cities. WebSeptember 15, 1963 - A bomb blast at the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, kills four African-American girls during church services. More than 20 other members of the congregation were injured in the blast. WebThe blast killed Denise McNair, 11, and three 14-year-olds: Carole Robertson, Cynthia Morris, also referred to as Cynthia Wesley, and Addie Mae Collins, who was Rudolphs [66] This information was relayed to the Director of the FBI, J. Edgar Hoover;[67] however, no prosecutions of the four suspects ensued. Two other Klansmen were prosecuted and sentenced to life imprisonment in 2001 and 2002. Heres a look at the Birmingham, Alabama, church bombing that killed four African-American girls during church services in 1963. At least 14 others are injured in the explosion, including Sarah Collins, the 12-year-old sister of victim Addie Mae Collins, who loses an eye. With its large African American congregation, the 16th Street Baptist Church served as a meeting place for civil rights leaders like Martin Luther King, Jr., who once called Birmingham a symbol of hardcore resistance to integration. Alabamas governor, George Wallace, made preserving racial segregation one of the central goals of his administration, and Birmingham had one of the most violent and lawless chapters of the Ku Klux Klan. According to Vann's later testimony, Chambliss was standing "looking down toward the church, like a firebug watching his fire". Robinson, aged 16, was shot in the back by a policeman as he fled down an alley,[43] after ignoring police orders to halt. ", "Beauty from the Ashes of 16th Street Baptist Church", "Church Bomb Kills 4 Girls in Ala.; 2 Die in Fighting", "The Speech That Shocked Birmingham the Day After the Church Bombing", "Ceremony recalls victim of civil rights violence", "First of 4 Birmingham Bomb Victims is Buried", "We Shall Overcome Historic Places of the Civil Rights Movement", "Funeral Speakers Say Deaths Of Three Children Not In Vain", "Martin Luther King's 'Eulogy for the Martyred Children', "The ghosts of Alabama: After 37 years, two men are indicted for a bombing that transfigured the civil rights movement", "Birmingham Klansman Guilty in Dynamite Case; Two Other Defendants Face Trial Today--Dr. King Gives City an Ultimatum on Jobs", "FBI: A Byte Out of History: The '63 Baptist Church Bombing", "Murderer Of 4 Birmingham Girls Found Guilty (38 yrs later)", "Former Klansman convicted in deadly 1963 bombing of Birmingham, Alabama church", "Cherry convicted: Jury verdict in bombing hailed as 'justice finally', "Birmingham Church Bombing Conviction Ended an Obsession of the Prosecutor", "Bill Baxley Reflects on 16th Street Baptist Church Bombing", "Former Prosecutor Says FBI Delayed Alabama Conviction", "Former Klansman Convicted In Bombing Death", "Another Redemption: Baxley in Birmingham", "Puzzle Pieces Put Together in Bombing Case", "Alabamian Guilty in '63 Blast that Killed Four Girls", "Robert E. Chambliss, Figure in '63 Bombing", "Former Klansman convicted of deadly Alabama church bombing 40 years on", "Klansman convicted of killing black girls", "As Church Bombing Trial Begins in Birmingham, the City's Past Is Very Much Present", "Former Klansman who was Key Witness at Bombing Trial Dies", "Church Bombing Verdict Hinges on how Jurors Understand Tapes", "Jury Hears More Old Tapes in Church Bombing Trial", "Birmingham church bomber guilty, gets four life terms", "Testimony Concludes in Trial On Birmingham Church Blast", "Former Klansman Convicted in 1963 Church Bombing", "Former Klansman faces prison in 1963 Killings", "1 Klansman survives Ala church bombing cases", "Sixteenth Street Baptist Church bomber up for parole next month", "16th Street Baptist Church bomber Thomas Blanton denied parole", "Thomas Blanton, Who Bombed a Birmingham Church, Dies at 82", "Witnesses Say Ex-Klansman Boasted of Church Bombing", "Design of Bomb Still Uncertain 38 Years Later", "Explosives Expert Testifies In Church Bombing Trial", "Prosecutor Says Justice 'Overdue' in '63 Bombing", "More Than Just a Racist? But she also feels the death of someone like Johnny -- a kid who may have had some problems but didn't deserve to die -- belongs in the annals of civil rights history. [11] The intentional scope of these activities was to see the end of segregation across Birmingham and the South as a whole. [127], When asked by the judge whether he had anything to say before sentence was imposed, Cherry motioned to the prosecutors and stated: "This whole bunch lied through this thing [the trial]. Martin said: "The cold-blooded callousness of this hate crime has not diminished by the passage of time." 2. Although informative to the FBI, Rowe actively participated in violence against both Black and white civil rights activists. Stressing that Blanton should not be judged for his beliefs, Robbins again vehemently criticized the validity and poor quality of the audio recordings presented, and the selectivity of the sections which had been introduced into evidence. 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