Atlanta (Ga.) – Page 14

Photograph of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., signing copy of his first book, Atlanta, Fulton County, Georgia, 1963 Vanishing Georgia collection, Georgia Archives

Today is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, a federal holiday that honors the memory of the most prominent African American leader of the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s on his birthday (this year, Dr. King would have been 83 years old). The holiday was first observed in 1986, after years of effort led by King’s widow, Coretta Scott King, to establish it. In 1994, Congress designated the federal holiday as a national day of service with a law co-authored by civil rights veteran and U.S. representative from Georgia John Lewis. The Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service is the only federal holiday observed as a national day of service, and celebrates the legacy of Dr. King by encouraging Americans to participate in community service projects that address social problems.

If you would like to learn more about Dr. King, the Civil Rights Digital Library includes primary sources and other reference resources related to his life and work. These materials come from 61 archival collections belonging to libraries, archives, museums and public broadcasters across the country; there is also instructional content available from 10 different educator resources. All of this material is available at http://crdl.usg.edu/people/k/king_martin_luther_jr_1929_1968/.

In the first decade of the twentieth century, Tuberculosis (sometimes referred to as TB or consumption) was the leading cause of death in the United States. Its prevalence led to the nationwide creation of organizations for combating the disease. In Atlanta, the Fulton County Medical Society created the Fulton Sanitary and Tuberculosis Prevention Society in 1907 to fight the spread of TB and care for those whom it afflicted. That same year, social activist and Red Cross volunteer Emily Bissell of Wilmington, Delaware was called upon to help raise three hundred dollars for a local sanitarium struggling with funds. She adopted an idea from Denmark that involved the sale of Christmas-themed seals which could be placed on envelopes during the holidays. She sold them for a penny each, to make them affordable, and by the end of the campaign had raised thousands of dollars.

The National Association for the Study and Prevention of Tuberculosis (now known as the American Lung Association) joined the Christmas Seal campaign in 1911 and continues the practice today. The Atlanta Lung Association sold the Christmas seals featured below during the mid-twentieth century (by nobles at here). These images are part of the Atlanta Historical Society’s Atlanta Lung Association Photograph Collection, 1913-1977 (bulk 1945-1955). The collection also features photographs of medical professionals and volunteers working to fight the disease.

To learn more about the history of the Christmas Seals program, you can visit the American Lung Association’ s Christmas Seals website.