Files
Download File (204.6 MB)
Loading...
Title on Reel (transcribed from original)
Memorial held for Martin Luther King at State Capitol 4-7-68 [2]
Date Created
1968-04-07
Reel Format
Super 8mm
Reel Description
This reel contains footage of a gathering at the Virginia State Capitol on April 7, 1968, in mourning of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on April 4. The majority of individuals wear dress clothes/church clothes. This appears to be a group of racially diverse participants.
Timestamp Description
00:00:09 Footage begins. Footage filmed from a distance of a crowd gathered on the capitol grounds. Several uniformed officers are in the crowd. The camera pans left to right to the back of the crowd.
00:00:31 Multiple clips of individuals walking on the capitol grounds.
00:00:45 Footage of the crowd gathered on the ground, filmed from behind the crowd. The camera pans right to left, and the steps leading to the portico are visible.
00:01:09 Footage of the crowd with the camera panning left to right. Several children are visible in the crowd. Some individuals clap.
00:02:01 Zoomed in footage of approximately six individuals standing away from the crowd underneath a tree. The camera pans right to show more individuals, including uniformed officers.
00:02:07 Multiple clips of footage of the crowd standing at the capitol building, with a portion of the building visible on the left, filmed from the ground level. The camera pans to the right, and several individuals look into it.
00:03:27 Footage ends.
Event Description
On April 7, 1968, over 3,000 people gathered at the Virginia State Capitol south portico to commemorate Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. following his assassination three days earlier on April 4th. The service began at 4PM, when the Sing Out South chorus sang "Freedom Isn't Free". Virginia State Conference Chairman of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) W. Lester Banks and opened the proceedings of prayers and eulogies. Richmond Mayor Morrill M. Crowe also addressed the crowd. Reverend E.E. Smith spoke as a stand-in for Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) president Reverend Curtis W. Harris. Another chorus present were the students from the St. Francis De Sales High School in Powhatan County. Several individuals carried palm fronds, with more distributed by a minister during the event. Other named speakers included Bishop John J. Russell of the Catholic Diocese of Richmond, Bishop Robert B. Hall of the Episcopal Diocese of Virginia, Dr. Theodore F. Adams of the First Baptist Church, Reverend E. William Judge of Third Street Bethel AME Church, Rabbi Saul Rubin of Beth Ahabah Temple, and Reverend James Carpenter of All Souls Presbyterian Church. State and capitol police patrolled the capitol grounds, as well as observing from the roof of the Hotel Richmond on 9th Street and Grace Street (Richmond Times-Dispatch, May 8, 1968).
Runtime
00:04:12
Personal Name Subject
King, Martin Luther, Jr., 1929-1968
Corporate Name Subject
Southern Christian Leadership Conference; National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
Topical Subject
King, Martin Luther, Jr., 1929-1968--Assasination; Demonstrations; Crowds, Civil rights movements; Civil rights movements--United States; Civil rights demonstrations; Civil rights workers; Memorials; Nuns; Clergy; Police; Police patrol--Surveillance operations; Electronic surveillance; Video surveillance
City/Location
Richmond (Va.)
Genre
color films (visual works)
Local Genre
moving image
Type
Moving Image
Digital Format
video/mp4
Language
eng
Rights Statement URL
Rights
This material is in the public domain in the United States and thus is free of any copyright restriction. Acknowledgement of Virginia Commonwealth University Libraries as a source is requested.
Collection
Richmond Police Department Surveillance Collection
Source
Memorial for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. at Virginia State Capitol Film Reel #02, 1968 April 7
File Name
VCU_M571_053.mp4