In the Ralph Mark Gilbert Civil Rights Museum on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, the stories and history of Savannah's Civil Rights leaders are alive and well.

Museum Director Vaughnette Goode-Walker said the museum has hosted over 900 visitors over the course of Black History Month. But Goode-Walker believes the history of the Civil Rights Movement shouldn’t be solely observed in February.

“I don't use the term ‘Black history.’ It's American history,” Goode-Walker said. “It's what happened to Black people here, in America, in Savannah, in Georgia.”

The museum chronicles the lives and experiences of both the city’s Civil Rights leaders and Black Savannah residents, featuring an immersive recreation of the Azalea Room of Levy’s Department Store, where Blacks Savannahians could buy clothing but could not eat in the restaurant.

Goode-Walker said that many visitors to the museum were alive to experience the real Levy’s and the racial discrimination of that era.

“Telling the story in today's times, it's almost like it's yesterday, because so many people who come here have memories of things that happened to them during the 1960s,” Goode-Walker said. “We hear lots of stories like that, just around this one exhibit.”

It’s an exciting year for the Civil Rights Museum.

Goode-Walker is proud to report the museum will be getting a Georgia Historical Marker honoring the life and legacy of Dr. Gilbert, following extensive research and writing by the director herself.

Named for the 13th pastor of Savannah's First African Baptist Church, Gilbert is recognized for his significant contributions to the 20th century Civil Rights Movement in Savannah. He played a key role in revitalizing the local chapter of the NAACP in the 1940s. Gilbert also mentored Westley Wallace Law, who succeeded him as the NAACP leader in 1950 and later led the city's protest movement during the 1960s.

“We have Dr. Gilbert's papers here. Mrs. Gilbert donated his papers: 500 of his type-written sermons, his plays, the information from when he was in the movement, his letters, his politics,” Goode-Walker said. “That helped me to write the paper to get the marker.”

The historical marker is planned to be placed in June, but the museum is open for tours year-round. Tickets can be purchased on their website. 

For Goode-Walker, the preservation of Savannah’s Civil Rights History is a duty she performs for the community.

“Savannah does come here. They come here through our high schools, they come here through our churches. We are a museum for our community,” Goode-Walker said.