What is the Edmund Pettus Bridge famous for?
The Edmund Pettus Bridge, now a National Historic Landmark, was the site of the brutal Bloody Sunday beatings of civil rights marchers during the first march for voting rights.
How did the Edmund Pettus Bridge get its name?
The bridge is named after Edmund Pettus, a lawyer, judge, Confederate brigadier general, state-level leader (“Grand Dragon”) of the Alabama Ku Klux Klan, and U.S. senator.
What happened at the Edmund Pettus Bridge?
On “Bloody Sunday,” March 7, 1965, some 600 civil rights marchers headed east out of Selma on U.S. Route 80. They got only as far as the Edmund Pettus Bridge six blocks away, where state and local lawmen attacked them with billy clubs and tear gas and drove them back into Selma.
Where was Edmund Pettus Bridge?
Selma
The Edmund Pettus Bridge spans over the Alabama River at downtown Selma, AL. It is a steel through-arch bridge that was designed by Henson K. Stephenson and erected in 1939. The bridge was named for Edmund Winston Pettus, a former Confederate Brigadier General and U. S. Senator from Alabama.
Where is the Edmund Pettus Bridge?
SelmaEdmund Pettus Bridge / Location
What state is the Edmund Pettus Bridge?
AlabamaEdmund Pettus Bridge / State
What is the Edmund Pettus Bridge?
The Edmund Pettus Bridge is a bridge that carries U.S. Route 80 Business (US 80 Bus.) across the Alabama River in Selma, Alabama.
Who was Edmund Pettus and what did he do?
The bridge is named after Edmund Winston Pettus, who was born in Limestone County, Alabama, to John Pettus and Alice Taylor Winston in 1821. He graduated from a public high school and attended Clinton College. He then went on to Tuscumbia, Alabama, to study law and was admitted into the state’s bar association in 1842.
Should Selma’s Pettus Bridge be renamed?
Because of Pettus’ role in supporting slavery and racism in the United States, there have been efforts to rename the bridge, including one coinciding with the 50th anniversary of the Selma to Montgomery marches in 2015. Changing the name would require approval from the Alabama Legislature.
What did Robert Pettus do during Reconstruction?
Pettus served as chairman of the state delegation to the Democratic National Convention for more than two decades. In 1877, during the final year of Reconstruction, Pettus was named Grand Dragon of the Alabama Ku Klux Klan. With earnings from his law practice, he bought farm land.