Martin Luther King Jr. Timeline

Below, we have chronicled the life and times of Martin Luther King Jr. in a timeline with help from the online library at Louisiana State University.

1929

Martin Luther King Jr. is born on January 15 to the Reverend and Mrs. Martin Luther King Sr. His birthplace was Atlanta, Georgia. At the time, the family had one other child - a daughter. Later, they would have another son.

1944

He begins attending Morehouse College. Yes, you did read the dates correctly. Even at a young age, King Jr. was an extremely bright and intelligent man. He skipped over two grades in high school, which allowed him to start attending college at the age of 15.

1948

Martin Luther King Jr. graduates from Morehouse College, andoes g right on to study at the Crozer Theological Seminary. His father was a Reverend, and although King Jr. had doubts about Christianity early in life, he went on to fully embrace the mission of the religion and how it was connected to his goals.

On February 25 of this year, he was ordained into the Baptist ministry.

1951

He begins attending Boston University for graduate work. He studied systematic theology and received a Doctor of Philosophy.

1953

Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King were married. They established their residency in Montgomery, Alabama.

1955

During this year, he completed his degree from Boston University which he spoke about just a bit earlier. Furthermore, one of the most prominent events of the Civil Rights movement occurred here. Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on the bus, and on December 5, King was elected as the president of the Montgomery Improvement Association. Therefore, he came to the head of this boycott.

1957

Martin Luther King Jr. created the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. The group's mission was to fight against segregation and racism.

1959

He had been the pastor at the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church. However during this year, he decided to leave that position so that he could focus on the civil rights movement all of the time.

1960

He returned to the Church, as he became co-pastor with his father at the Ebenzer Baptist Church. He was arrested during one of the lunch counter sit ins which occurred during this year. He was supposed to spend four months in jail; however, John F. Kennedy and Robert Kennedy were able to get him out of the sentence.

1961

Martin Luther King Jr. convinces the Interstate Commerce Commission to prohibit segregation on public transportation going between states.

1962

He is arrested yet again for his public works.

1963

This year was a huge one for Martin Luther King Jr. His accomplishments and actions include:

Writing the Letter from Birmingham Jail
The Birmingham campaign becomes a major turning point for the Civil Rights movement.
He led the Freedom Walk.
The March on Washington occurs, and he makes the extremely famous I Have a Dream speech.

1964

At the age of 35, King becomes the youngest person ever to recieve the Nobel Peace Prize.

1965

King is once again arrested while he is campaigning for voting rights in Selma, Alabama.

1966

Martin Luther King Jr., along with other individuals, starts the March Against Fear in the south. He also moves into a Chicago slum tenement in order to bring to light the housing problems that the black community faced.

1967p

The Poor People's Campaign begins. Remember, King was about freedom and equality for all people. This campaign was not targeted at only black individuals who were facing poverty, but it was aimed at helping all people who were living in these types of poor conditions.

1968

Here, we come to the saddening end of Martin Luther King Jr.'s life. Before his assassination, he delivered his I've Been to the Mountaintop Speech and led a protest for sanitation workers.

On April 4, he was standing on the balcony at his hotel, and he was fatally shot.

Martin Luther King Jr.'s life ended in tragedy. However, he will always be remembered, and people across the nation pray that we continually work to make his soul proud and to make his wonderful spirit live on.