The Anniston Civil Rights Trail is a project of the City of Anniston and the Spirit of Anniston Anniston Civil Rights & Heritage Committee (ACRHC). I worked with representatives from these groups as the Creative Director on this project.
The Trail consists of 9 historic plaques sited at locations of significant Civil Rights events in Anniston. The trail also includes a printed map and a digital mobile site.
In January 2017, former U.S. President Obama designated our Greyhound Bus Station, which is included in the Anniston Civil Rights Trail, and the site on Hwy 202 where the bus carrying Freedom Riders was fire bomed, as the Freedom Riders National Monument.
Style guide for logo. Logo design by Jason Wright.
The ARCHTC had decided on the concept for plaque design before I began my role with the project. Committee members requested cast bronze plaques because they held the appearance and veracity of historic roadside plaques.
Plaque layout as sent to production. The scripts on each plaque were edited to fit the space and size requirements.
Image of final plaque on site at public library.
Image: diagram showing suggested location for plaque on the site.
The location of each plaque was sited to ensure that physically-impaired visitors could remain in their vehicles and still see and read the plaques. Type was designed to be visible from 10 to 15 feet. Plaques were also located so as not to impair motorists' line of sight. Property owners were notified of pending placement. Personnel with city public works department inspected each suggested site location to ensure underground utilities were not damaged during installation. These templates were used to help with their inspection.
When I began creative direction on the project, the ACRHT committee had determined the events that they wished to commemorate, and a set of scripts had been drafted. I conducted additional research and fact-checking, script editing, styling (for posterity) and polishing on the scripts. A scholarly review was also done. All research documents and project files are archived in the Public Library of Anniston-Calhoun County.
Digital Content Development and Design
A mobile-optimized site, triggered by scanning a QR code on each plaque, was designed by Michael Moore Design.
Below: Early draft of digital architecture sent to designer.
Print Materials
Inside of printed trail map.
Ceremony program