Central City in Birmingham in Jefferson County, Alabama — The American South (East South Central)
Former F.W. Woolworth Store Building
Destination
| | Birmingham Civil Rights Heritage Trail | |
Photographed by Mark Hilton, December 5, 2021
1. Former F.W. Woolworth Store Building Marker
Built 1939, 1901 3rd Ave. N.
The F. W. Woolworth department store was one of the first sites targeted for the ACMHR and SCLC's economic boycotts and lunch counter sit-ins of Project C during the April - May 1963 mass demonstrations in Birmingham. It is one of several anchor department stores that Project C leaders targeted in Birmingham's retail district because they had segregated lunch counters, water fountains and dressing rooms.
Rev. Abraham Woods, Jr. and his brother Rev. Calvin Woods led the lunch counter sit-ins....
Majorie White
Executive Director, Birmingham Historical Society, author of "A Walk to Freedom: The Reverend Fred Shuttlesworth and the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights, 1956-1964."
Lesson C23: Look around and name the downtown streets where most of the Birmingham retail boycotts took place. How many city blocks is the retail district from Sixteenth Street Baptist Church where the marchers organized?
Erected by the Birmingham Civil Rights Heritage Trail. (Marker Number C23.)
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Civil Rights
this page online
Location. 33° 30.938′ N, 86° 48.489′ W. Marker is in Birmingham, Alabama, in Jefferson County. It is in Central City. It is at the intersection of 19th Street North and 3rd Avenue North, on the left when traveling south on 19th Street North. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1899 3rd Ave N, Birmingham AL 35203, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in the American South and specifically in the Deep South. Globally, it is in North America, a Gulf of Mexico state, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Sitting in for Lunch (a few steps from this marker); S.H. Kress Store Building (a few steps from this marker); Shutting Down Downtown (a few steps from this marker); Loveman's Department Store/McWane Science Center (a few steps from this marker); S. H. Kress Five-And-Ten Cent Store (within shouting distance of this marker); Music in the Movement (within shouting distance of this marker); Woman in Paddy Wagon (within shouting distance of this marker); Integration Corner (within shouting distance of this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Birmingham.
Regarding Former F.W. Woolworth Store Building. The Civil Rights Activist Committee Home of the Foot Soldiers
Photographed by Mark Hilton, December 5, 2021
2. Former F.W. Woolworth Store Building Marker
Photographed by Mark Hilton, December 5, 2021
3. Former F.W. Woolworth Store Building Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on June 28, 2025. It was originally submitted on December 13, 2021, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama. This page has been viewed 1,815 times since then and 184 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on December 13, 2021, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama.
