In many ways, Memphis is a city stuck in the past. There are a lot of years you could say that about, but 1968 would certainly have to be one of those “frozen in time” moments, for the horrific events of the Sanitation Strike and the Assassination of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Nowhere is this more true than at the Lorraine Motel, home to the National Civil Rights Museum, which has not only maintained the look it had on that fateful April 4 day, but even has a classic car outside the balcony to Room 306.
Needless to say, time did move on, even if Memphis didn’t. The Civil Rights Movement absolutely and fundamentally changed on that day — but it didn’t end. And at a recent media update on NCRM’s “Become The Dream” capital campaign, officials explained how new additions to the museum grounds will delve into that under-explored era after 1968.
“This renovation represents the next major chapter for the National Civil Rights Museum, one that will engage visitors in contemporary conversations about justice and equality,” said Tiffany Leggington-Graham, Chief Marketing and Development Officer for the museum. “We’re not just transforming a physical space; we’re expanding the museum’s ability to inspire action and dialogue around the civil rights issues that remain urgent today.”
With a $9.6 million investment from the BlueCross Foundation, the project will create the BlueCross Healthy Place at Founders Park—a space dedicated to reflection, community engagement, and deepening the connection to the museum’s mission. Set to open next summer, the site will include new landscape architecture designed to encourage community interaction.
Features will include water installations, artwork, and expanded seating areas, all intended to transform the space from a simple thoroughfare into a welcoming environment where visitors can gather, reflect and connect.
“This really felt like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to align the purpose of the BlueCross Healthy Place program with something that means so much to so many people here in the Memphis area, across Tennessee, and even around the world,” said John Hawbaker, Managing Director of Corporate Communications and Community Relations for BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee.
“The BlueCross Healthy Place at Founders Park is going to bring people together in a new way, giving them an opportunity to gather and reflect after experiencing this fantastic museum,” Hawbaker added.
The renovation of Founders Park is part of the museum’s broader “Become the Dream” campaign, which also includes the extensive renovation of the Legacy Building, formerly known as the Boarding House. This building, deeply tied to the history of Dr. King’s assassination, will be repurposed to house new exhibitions and programmatic spaces that explore the civil rights narrative beyond 1968.
“The renovation really intends to answer the question of the post-1968 story, with a focus on a major exhibition of the Poor People’s Campaign,” Leggington-Graham said. “There’s also a wonderful Freedom Award gallery celebrating three decades of the Freedom Award and all of its honorees, and the five key pillars of justice. This space will be three stories of new exhibitions, new gathering spaces, and new programmatic areas.
“It truly marks the National Civil Rights Museum’s next major chapter in engaging folks who have not been to the museum and those who return to explore more deeply,” she said.
The Legacy Building renovation, expected to open in early 2026, will delve into critical themes of justice, including housing, gender equity, poverty, mass incarceration, and education. This expansion is designed to provide enriched opportunities for learning, reflection, and dialogue, further cementing the museum’s role as a vital cultural and educational institution.
Reflecting on the overall impact of the project, Dr. Russ Wigginton, President of the National Civil Rights Museum, emphasized the importance of community in this new development.
“The new Founders Park will draw people to be in community with each other,” Wigginton said. “Today, the space is a thoroughfare, but the transformed park will be much more inviting and much more focused on people being in space outside together, whether they know each other or not, and associating the museum as the place that draws them together.”
TSD Photojournalist Gary S. Whitlow provided reporting for this story.
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story inaccurately referenced Tiffany Leggington-Graham’s name. We regret the error.
