The Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. in Decatur

Here at DeKalb's old court and jail, a 1960 traffic-license conviction sent King to hard labor in chains. JFK's intervention to free him swung Black voters and helped decide that year's presidential election.

The Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. in Decatur is a historical marker in Decatur, DeKalb County, erected in 2021. It is one of 98 historical markers documented in DeKalb County, among 143 historic sites cataloged across the county on Georgia Roam.

The site sits at 33.7734, -84.2967 near Decatur. The nearest cataloged historic site is Lynching in America / Lynching in DeKalb County (historical marker), about under a tenth of a mile away. Others within a short drive include DeKalb County Courthouse, Garrard’s Cavalry Raid, and The Stoneman Raid.

This record is drawn from Georgia historical-marker records. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.