Washington D.C. – Today, U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell (AL-07) announced over $3.1 million in funding from the National Park Service’s (NPS) African American Civil Rights Grant Program that is being awarded to preserve historic sites in Alabama related to Civil Rights and the African American struggle for equality. Each year, Sewell leads the congressional effort to increase funding for the NPS African American Civil Rights Grant Program to preserve America’s Civil Rights sites and HBCUs.

“As the Representative of Alabama’s Civil Rights district, I take seriously my responsibility to ensure that we preserve the living legacy of the Civil Rights Movement,” said Rep. Sewell. “Each year, I’m proud to lead the effort in Congress to increase funding for the National Park Service’s African American Civil Rights Grant Program to ensure that America’s civil rights history lives on. This $3.1 million is a big win for the State of Alabama and will help ensure that faces and places of the Movement are never forgotten!" 

NPS has awarded the following grants, which total $3,149,900, for historic sites in Alabama:

• $74,800 to the City of Anniston for Story Mapping and Formalization of Operations and Maintenance for the Anniston Civil Rights Trail
• $750,000 to the Historic Bethel Baptist Church Community Restoration Fund in Birmingham for historic preservation
• $750,000 to the St. Paul United Methodist Church in Birmingham for preservation and restoration
• $750,000 to the Dexter Avenue King Memorial Baptist Church in Montgomery for repair and rehabilitation
• $75,000 to the Alabama Historical Commission in Montgomery for the Freedom Rides Museum Vintage Greyhound Bus Virtual Reality Experience 
• $750,000 to the Alabama Historical Commission in Montgomery for rehabilitation of the second floor of the Moore Building

The African American Civil Rights Grant Program helps document, interpret, and preserve sites and stories related to the African American struggle to gain equal rights as citizens. The grants are funded by the Historic Preservation Fund (HPF) and administered by the NPS. Grants fund a broad range of planning, development, and research projects for historic sites including: survey, inventory, documentation, interpretation, education, architectural services, historic structure reports, preservation plans, and "bricks and mortar" repair.

Established in 1977 and authorized at $150 million per year through 2023, the HPF has provided more than $2 billion in historic preservation grants to states, Tribes, local governments, and nonprofit organizations. For fiscal year 2023, $24 million will be available for African American Civil Rights grants in the summer of 2023.

“The National Park Service is proud to award this grant funding to our state and local government, and nonprofit partners to help them?recognize places and stories related to the African American experience,” said NPS Director Chuck Sams.“ Since 2016, the African American Civil Rights program has provided over $100 million to document, protect, and celebrate the places, people and stories of one of the greatest struggles in American history.” 

For more information about NPS historic preservation programs and grants, please visit nps.gov/stlpg/.