The Catalyst of the Modern Civil Rights Movement
In 1955, 14-year-old Emmett Till traveled to Money, Mississippi, to visit relatives. He was kidnapped, tortured, and murdered after reportedly whistling at a white woman. His mother, Mamie Till-Mobley, insisted on an open-casket funeral near their hometown of Chicago. Her brave decision let the world see the racist violence inflicted upon her son and set the Civil Rights Movement into motion.
2 June 2026
This is a new unit in the NPS system, established July 25, 2023. The monument includes three sites, one in Illinois and two in Mississippi. The Illinois site consists of the Roberts Temple Church of God in Christ in Bronzeville, Chicago. The church was the site where Mamie Till insisted on an open casket funeral service for her son to let the world see what had been done to her son. More than ten thousand attended the services for Emmett Till and this set in motion the beginnings of the Civil Rights Movement. There are currently no visitor services at the Church and only the exterior of the Roberts Temple Church of God in Christ is open to visitors. Information is currently at the Pullman NHP. We picked up info on the unit at Pullman NHP, and we will pick up the Mississippi sites at a later date.
Our 187th NPS Unit