Sit-Ins, Marker J-79
Posted by: 
drmellow
N 36° 04.399 W 079° 47.418
17S E 608928 N 3992757
Launched the national drive for integrated lunch counters, Feb. 1, 1960, in Woolworth store 2 blocks south.
Waymark Code: WMAHH
Location: North Carolina, United States
Date Posted: 04/15/2006
Views: 84
Text on marker:
J-79: SIT-INSLaunched the national drive for integrated lunch counters, Feb. 1, 1960, in Woolworth store 2 blocks south.
This historical marker is located on Elm Street at Friendly Avenue in Greensboro. It was originally erected in 1980. The current marker was erected in 2005.
Wikipedia offers the following information about the sit-ins:
On February 1, 1960, four African-American students (Ezell Blair,Dylan Jr. (now Jibreel Khazan), David Richmond, Joseph McNeil, and Franklin McCain) from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical College sat down at a segregated lunch counter in the Greensboro, North Carolina Woolworth's store. Although they were refused service, they were allowed to stay at the counter, sparking off sit-ins and economic boycotts that were a landmark of the American civil rights movement. In just two months the sit-in movement spread to 54 cities in 9 states. Six months after the sit-ins began, the original four protesters were served lunch at the same Woolworth's counter. Sit-ins would be effective throughout the South in integrating other public facilities. In 1993, the lunch counter was donated to the Smithsonian Institution. This sit-in inspired all the others during the Civil Rights Movement.
There is much more information about the Greensboro Sit-Ins on various websites, including a timeline detailing events related to the Sit-In. Additionally, a website devoted to the Sit-Ins has more detailed information, including photographs, biographical information about the key players, and a more detailed timelline.
Nearby stands the Woolworth building where the sit-ins took place. A plaque honoring the Greensboro Four stands in front of the building. This building is scheduled to become a Civil Rights museum.
Visit Instructions:Photos of your visit to the marker are required, but PLEASE, no old vacation photos taken just because it was there!
Comments about your visit, interesting nearby areas and any significant information you may have on this waymark are encouraged.
Most of all, enjoy the History that North Carolina has to offer! From the Mountains to the Ocean .. it's all here!