Villa Rica in Carroll County, Georgia — The American South (South Atlantic)

Freedom Riders

Photographed By Ernest Everett Blevins, May 14, 2011

1. Freedom Riders Marker

Inscription. The Villa Rica bus station, formerly located on this site, was on the route of the 1961 Freedom Riders that departed Washington, D.C. on May 4, 1961 with New Orleans, Louisiana, as its final destination.

Freedom riders were civil rights activists who rode public buses on interstate routes through the southeast to test rulings outlawing racial segregation.

While the resolve of the freedom riders was challenged by violence elsewhere, they passed through Villa Rica without serious incident on May 14, 1961.

Erected 2011 by Villa Rica Historic Preservation Commission.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Civil Rights • Roads & Vehicles. A significant historical month for this entry is May 1609.

Location. 33° 43.843′ N, 84° 55.146′ W. Marker is in Villa Rica, Georgia, in Carroll County. Marker is on South Carroll Street near South Carroll Road and Montgomery Street (U.S.78) (U.S. 78), on the left when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 106-108 South Carroll Road, Villa Rica GA 30180, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 4 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Villa Rica Explosion (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); Thomas Andrew Dorsey (about 400 feet away); Bank of Villa Rica

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(about 400 feet away); The Mill (about 400 feet away); Villa Rica's Textile Industry (about 600 feet away); Thomas A. Dorsey (approx. 0.4 miles away); Fullerville Jail (approx. 1.1 miles away); The Grove (approx. 3.4 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Villa Rica.

More about this marker. The location of the bus station is actually at 106 and still stands. The southern building at 108 was a car repair shop which was built after the bus station because the northern building has "bus station" painted on the south side of its interior.

The marker fails to note the significance of the day, for this was one of the few stops that the Freedom Riders bus made on that day before it was attacked and burned outside Anniston, Alabama. The bus is now in the Birmingham Civil Rights Museum.
Photographed on 15 May 2011 on the 50th anniversary, it will be dedicated on 16 May.

Also see . . .
1. Freedom Riders - PBS. (Submitted on May 19, 2011, by Bill Pfingsten of Bel Air, Maryland.)
2. Freedom riders - Wikipedia. (Submitted on May 19, 2011, by Bill Pfingsten of Bel Air, Maryland.)

Freedom Riders Marker in front of 106 South Carroll Road, Villa Rica, Georgia image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Ernest Everett Blevins, May 14, 2011

2. Freedom Riders Marker in front of 106 South Carroll Road, Villa Rica, Georgia

Formally numbered 100 South Carroll Road, the building to the left (north) is the original bus station. The right (south) building was an auto parts and garage in 1961, built in 1938. Inside this building the original exterior "bus depot" sign is still visible above the ceiling line. The former bus station received a new north facade (not visible) and inappropriate window additions a few years ago.

Credits. This page was last revised on May 28, 2023. It was originally submitted on May 14, 2011, by Ernest Everett Blevins of Villa Rica, Georgia. This page has been viewed 1,211 times since then and 40 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on May 17, 2011, by Ernest Everett Blevins of Villa Rica, Georgia. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.