The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. points to a bullet hole in a St. Johns County home in 1964. | Florida archives, News4Jax
Published on May 3, 2024 at 4:05 pm
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A house in St. Augustine that was firebombed and shot at during a key time in the Civil Rights Movement is now moving to a new location, News4Jax reports.
The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was scheduled to stay at the Canright House during the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in May 1964.
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That is, until it was vandalized by segregationists.
King was famously photographed inside the house, pointing to where a bullet came through a glass door into the home.
The house is now on its way to a new location to preserve its history.
Earlier this year, the St. Johns County Board of County Commissioners voted unanimously to move the historic beach cottage from 5480 Atlantic View to Collier-Blocker-Puryear Park on North Holmes Boulevard in St. Augustine.
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The house, which became a symbol of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, was purchased by a couple in 2021 and then donated to the county.
The county said the St. Johns County Parks Foundation secured state funds to move the historic house, and the commissioners chose Collier-Blocker-Puryear Park in West Augustine, on West King Street, as the new home for the building.
Because the new sites is 20 minutes from the house’s original location on Atlantic View in Butler Beach, the county is footing the $250,000 bill for the longer distance. The additional funds could come from Tourist Development Council reserve funds or General Funds reserves.
The plot of land on Atlantic View is now empty as crews begin the process of moving the house.
Until Sunday, the house will be on Weff Road, a little more than a half mile from Atlantic View.
The move from Weff Road to Collier-Blocker-Puryear Park is expected to happen starting Sunday morning and could take between six and 10 hours.
This story was produced by News4Jax, a Jacksonville Today news partner.
