U.S. Civil Rights Trail Expands with Six New Historic Sites in Four States
The U.S. Civil Rights Trail is expanding in 2026, with the addition of historic sites in Virginia, Louisiana, Tennessee and Florida, offering travelers new destinations to explore pivotal stories, places, and voices that shaped the nation’s civil rights movement.
“Every year, the U.S. Civil Rights Trail continues to grow, giving visitors new opportunities to experience the people and places that shaped history,” said Mark Ezell, Chairman of the U.S. Civil Rights Trail Marketing Alliance. “These new sites add unique and powerful stories that will truly deepen our understanding of the civil rights movement.”
The six new sites include:
The Historic Caroline County Courthouse Campus in Bowling Green, Virginia
The courthouse, former Sheriff’s office, and Old Jail are at the center of one of America’s most defining civil rights moments. On January 6, 1959, Richard and Mildred Loving were arrested, tried and briefly jailed for violating the Racial Integrity act, the law banning interracial marriage in Virginia. This campus illustrates the beginning of a legal fight that reshaped the meaning of marriage and equality in the United States.
The Gloucester Museum of History in Gloucester Virginia
This site highlights the lives and legacies of barrier breakers like Irene Morgan, T.C. Walker and Robert Russa Moton. Their stories of sacrifice, resilience, tenacity and leadership are told through exhibits and brought to life through a 12-stop driving tour of historic landmarks.
Texas & Pacific Railway Depot in Natchitoches, Louisiana
This architectural and historic landmark is one of Louisiana’s best-preserved examples of a segregated public building, with separate entrances, ticket windows, restrooms, and waiting rooms for Black and white passengers. Once the heart of the city’s African American community, the depot tells a dual story: while it stands as a stark reminder of segregation and racial oppression, it also served as a gateway to opportunity, as countless African Americans passed through on their way to Northern and Western cities during the Great Migration.
Jefferson Street Sound Museum
This site is where music, community and the Civil Rights Movement came together in Nashville, Tennessee. From the 1940s through the 1970s, Jefferson Street was a center of Black creativity and activism. Clubs and churches along the street carried the music that energized the movement, and the Sound Museum offers an intimate look at the musicians and moments that defined Nashville’s role in the Civil Rights Movement, while celebrating the businesses and community leaders who shaped Jefferson Street’s legacy.
The Museum of Christian & Gospel Music in Nashville, Tennessee
The museum highlights the artists, innovators and traditions that shaped one of America’s most influential musical forms and its powerful role in the fight for civil rights. Through immersive galleries, recordings, and rare artifacts, the museum traces how gospel music carried stories of hardship, hope and unwavering faith to become a vital force for community strength and social change. And it honors the musicians whose work inspired activists and helped soundtrack the pursuit of equality.
Jacksonville Civil Rights Trail in Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville’s civil rights history is shaped by the leaders who emerged at every level of community life, and how they worked across neighborhoods and generations to challenge injustice. The trail uses place-based markers, education, and storytelling, to highlight where history unfolded and to connect visitors to the streets, neighborhoods, and institutions where organizing took root. The Trail honors both landmark events and everyday leaders that sustained the movement, inviting visitors to reflect on the power of community action to create lasting change.
Learn more by visiting The U.S. Civil Rights Trail.
Courtesy of Groups Today.
Photos courtesy of U.S. Civil Rights Trail.
