The modest craftsman bungalow on the corner of Lapsley Street and Anderson Avenue in Selma, AL holds untold stories and secrets. Built in 1916, as part of a Works Progress Administration (WPA) initiative, the home’s original owner was Booker T. Washington. Purchased by the Boynton family in the early 1940s, the home hosted dozens of scholars, artists, civil rights leaders and other luminaries as they passed through Selma. It was also a gathering place for Selma residents, young and old, who stopped by to look for work or share a meal and conversation.
During the voting rights campaign in Selma, the home served as an informal gathering place for civil rights leaders, including Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Ambassador Andrew Young, Diane Nash, Rev. C.T. Vivian, Professor Bernard Lafayette and others, as they planned and strategized next steps in the movement. As legend has it, the first draft of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 was written there, on the living room floor
1315 Lapsley Street is listed on the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage, but has fallen into a terrible state of disrepair, thanks to years of neglect by former tenants and neighborhood vandals. The Gateway Educational Foundation purchased the home from the National Voting Rights Museum in 2008 and was able to quickly complete some initial, critical repairs, but absent greater investment, the house is in danger of being demolished.
The Gateway Educational Foundation plans to restore the property and create a wax museum on the premises that will celebrate Selma’s role in the Civil Rights Movement, honor the legacy of its unsung heroes and empower visitors – and especially young people – about the role they can play as change makers.