Photograph of the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr.
date: label: Date
content: April 4, 1968
name: label: Photograph by
content: Joseph Louw, South African, 1945 - 2004
label: Subject of
content: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., American, 1929 - 1968
label: Subject of
content: Andrew Jackson Young, American, born 1932
label: Subject of
content: Rev. Ralph David Abernathy, American, 1926 - 1990
label: Subject of
content: Marrell McCollough, American, born 1944
label: Subject of
content: Rev. Jesse Jackson, American, born 1941
label: Subject of
content: Unidentified Man or Men
label: Subject of
content: Unidentified Woman or Women
notes: label: Description
content: A black and white photograph of the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. taken on April 4, 1968 at the Lorraine Motel, on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel. The walkway outside of room 306, where King was staying, is shown on the right side of the image. Three people are standing and pointing across the street in the direction of the gunshot. Andrew Young is on the left with Jesse Jackson mostly obscured behind him. An unidentified woman is standing to the right in front of Ralph Abernathy, who is partially visible. In front of Young, Martin Luther King Jr. is lying on the ground. Marrell McCollough is kneeling next to King with one hand on the railing. There are people standing in the parking lot below including Memphis police officers. Two cars can be seen parked below the balcony. The reverse of the image is covered in numerous inscriptions from press agencies, in French and English, stamps, and lines.
place: label: Place depicted
content: Memphis, Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, North and Central America
topic: label: Topic
content: African American
label: Topic
content: Activism
label: Topic
content: Civil Rights
label: Topic
content: Hate crimes
label: Topic
content: Photography
label: Topic
content: Race discrimination
label: Topic
content: U.S. History, 1961-1969
label: Topic
content: Violence
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
label: Classification
content: Photographs and Still Images
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gifted by Jeffrey Coopersmith
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture
identifier: label: Object number
content: 2017.73
objectType: label: Type
content: gelatin silver prints
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: © The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: silver and photographic gelatin on photographic paper
label: Dimensions
content: H x W (Image): 9 × 12 1/2 in. (22.7 × 31.6 cm)
label: Dimensions
content: H x W x D (Frame): 18 11/16 × 22 1/16 × 1 in. (47.5 × 56 × 2.5 cm)