City Center in Chattanooga in Hamilton County, Tennessee — The American South (East South Central)

Sit-in Movement of 1960

“Conduct and courage lead to honor”

Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, May 10, 2025

1. Sit-in Movement of 1960 Marker

Inscription. Here at the S & H Kress & Company “five and dime” store, on February 19, 1960, 15 members of the Howard High School Class of 1960 joined the nationwide efforts of peaceful sit-ins. Arrested and charged with a felony, all students bonded out with the help of the NAACP, headed by James R. Mapp, and the legal representation of attorney Robert H. Craig. All charges against the students were eventually expunged from their records. Their arrests did not deter the students from continuing peaceful sit-ins at other segregated lunch counters. The actions of these students and many others from Howard High helped desegregate the city of Chattanooga.

The 15 students were: Melvin Davis, Norvell Horton, Phillip Westmoreland, Irene Ricks, Tommy Gordon, Andrew Smith, Frizell Thomas, Ernest Horton, Patricia McGhee, Shirley Jones, Imogene Leslie, Marvin Nicholson, Frankie Hartsfield, James Gaines, and Rudolph Graham.

Erected by Alton Park Development Corporation • Cornerstones, Inc.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Civil Rights. A significant historical date for this entry is February 19, 1960.

Location. 35° 2.766′ N,

Paid Advertisement

Click or scan to see
this page online

85° 18.56′ W. Marker is in Chattanooga, Tennessee, in Hamilton County. It is in City Center. It can be reached from the intersection of Market Street (Tennessee Route 8/27) and East Martin Luther King Boulevard, on the right when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 862 Market St, Chattanooga TN 37402, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the American South,

specifically in the Upper South,

in Appalachia,

and specifically in Southern Appalachia. Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the original Cherokee Nation,

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: Site of Crutchfield House (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); Crutchfield House (about 400 feet away); The Chattanooga Rotary Club (about 400 feet away); Looking Back (about 400 feet away); a different

Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, May 10, 2025

2. Sit-in Movement of 1960 Marker

marker also named Looking Back (about 500 feet away); Robert Schwartz and Company Building (about 500 feet away); First Coca-Cola Bottling Company In The United States (about 600 feet away); The Union Depot (about 600 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Chattanooga.

Another marker is no longer nearby. First Union Occupation of the City (was about 500 feet away but has been confirmed missing).

Also see . . .
1. History Makers 2008: Howard High School, Class of 1960. By the end of the 1950s, several American cities had experienced non-violent civil rights protests. The movement had not yet touched the daily life of the city of Chattanooga until February 19, 1960, when thirty local African-American high school students walked into three downtown Chattanooga variety stores and quietly took seats at their traditionally segregated lunch counters. (Public Broadcasting System, aired June 30, 2008) (Submitted on June 5, 2025, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)

2. February 1960 – Chattanooga sit-ins. These images, recently unearthed by the Chattanooga History Center and

Chattanooga Sit-ins image. Click for full size.

Courtesy Picnooga and Chattanooga Historical Society (fair use), February 1960

3. Chattanooga Sit-ins

The sit-ins at Kress and other downtown Chattanooga businesses drew hundreds of police officers, pro- and anti-segregation protesters and curious onlookers.

Picnooga, capture the tense atmosphere as the peaceful protests boil over into chaos on the fourth day, with the police using fire hoses to disperse the crowds — a tactic that had never been used before, but would be repeated by other police forces throughout the country. (Alex Q. Arbuckle, Mashable) (Submitted on June 5, 2025, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)

Credits. This page was last revised on June 5, 2025. It was originally submitted on June 5, 2025, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 148 times since then and 29 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on June 5, 2025, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.