Memphis, TN — The historic Clayborn Temple, listed on the National Registry of Historic Places in 1979 for its architectural splendor, has now been reduced to rubble after a raging fire engulfed the former headquarters of the striking sanitation workers in 1968. Witnesses like M. Martin, an entrepreneur, couldn’t believe that the historic temple is now reduced to the dustpan of history, where age-old relics are swept aside and laid to rest. Clayborn Temple is its newest casualty.
Martin said he literally gasped when he turned the corner at Fourth and Linden and noticed the structure — which was ground zero for the Civil Rights Movement in Memphis — was all ablaze. He was on his way home from work and arrived before the first response teams. “I was coming down Fourth Street when I noticed this huge ball of flames lighting up the sky,” he said. “I could hear the fire trucks and the sirens heading in this direction. I thought the FedEx Forum was on fire.”
It didn’t take long for Martin to figure it out: It was Clayborn Temple that was on fire. “It was like somebody hit me in my chest,” he said.
Clayborn Temple was one of the last sites where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke before his assassination on April 4, 1968. The basement of the church was where the iconic I AM A MAN placard was printed.
The church was once home to a Presbyterian congregation, which opened in 1892. It was sold to the African Methodist Episcopal Church in 1949. The temple had been undergoing renovations for years. The price tag was $6 million.
“You could feel the heat all the way down the block,” Martin said. “But I managed to pull over and take some pictures. Just knowing that it was this building was an eerie feeling. It’s like you could feel yourself stuck in time.”
The Memphis Fire Department and the ATF are investigating the cause of the fire, which was reported around 1:30 Monday morning. Crews were still putting out hot spots around 9 a.m.
Memphis Mayor Paul Young visited the site on Monday. He said the work that went on at Clayborn Temple, one of Memphis’s greatest treasures, will continue.
“Clayborn Temple is more than a historic building. It is a sacred ground. It is the beating heart of the civil rights movement, a symbol of struggle, hope, and triumph that belongs not just to Memphis but to the world,” the mayor said in a press release. “Clayborn Temple has seen struggle before, and it has always overcome. So will we.”
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Courtesy photo by M. Martin
