Martin Luther King Jr.'s Papers Will Go to Alma Mater

 

Martin Luther King Jr.'s Papers Will Go to Alma Mater Auction Called Off After Coalition Buys Papers on Behalf of Morehouse College By ERRIN HAINES, AP ATLANTA (June 23) - A collection of Martin Luther King Jr.'s handwritten documents and books won't be sold at auction and instead will be given to his alma mater, officials said Friday.   <IMG height=297 alt="This photo released by Sothebys shows Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s hand-written notes for his remarks on the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, which was later developed into the article " src="http://cdn.news.aol.com/aolnews_photos/09/07/20060609005709990001" width=400 align=left border=0 What Killed John F. Kennedy??.?> Sothebys/AP This photo released by Sothebys shows Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s hand-written notes for his remarks on the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. A coalition of business, individuals and philanthropic leaders led by Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin bought the collection for an undisclosed amount, said Morehouse College President Walter Massey.   The personal papers and books of the civil rights leader were expected to sell for $15 million to $30 million at Sotheby's auction house in New York on June 30. Massey said the Atlanta group offered more than that.   Massey said his historically black college near downtown Atlanta would acquire the collection, which historians had called one of the greatest American archives of the 20th century in private hands.   Sotheby's Vice Chairman David Redden confirmed that the auction would no longer take place, though the public exhibition of the collection would continue through Thursday.   The papers span 1946 to 1968, the year King was assassinated. They include 7,000 handwritten items, including his early Alabama sermons and a draft of his "I Have a Dream" speech, which he delivered Aug. 28, 1963, at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.   Atlanta is King's birthplace and where his wife, Coretta Scott King, raised their four children after his death. It also is where she founded the King Center for Nonviolent Social Change and where King and his wife are entombed.   "I can't imagine a better home than the home of Dr. King for this collection," Redden said. "It was there for years, it's going to be there forever. I think that's a marvelous conclusion to this extraordinary process. It guarantees that it will be looked after properly and made available to the public."   Redden would not disclose the purchase price. The city was the sentimental favorite in the bidding and was rumored to have stiff competition from others across the country, including the Library of Congress, the Smithsonian Institute, Duke University, and the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture at the New York Public Library.   Coretta Scott King's death in January was a catalyst for the sale because her will calls for the liquidation of her estate.   For years, Sotheby's auction house has tried to sell the collection, but previous negotiations with various institutions fell through.   Andrew Young, a lieutenant of King's during the civil rights movement, became overcome with emotion when discussing the deal Friday night.   "People have seen this as an opportunity to step up and lay claim to Martin Luther King's nonviolent heritage as a part of Atlanta's tradition," said Young, a former mayor of the city. "It really didn't belong anywhere else."   Franklin, the current mayor, did not immediately respond to calls seeking comment.   The 139-year-old Morehouse College stands as the largest private, liberal arts college in the country for men with 2,800 students, and one of only four all-male colleges in the U.S. The school's other famous alumni include actor Samuel L. Jackson, former U.S. Surgeon General David Satcher and film director Spike Lee.