Tuttle Courthouse named National Historic Landmark for Civil Rights Contributions

ATLANTA — The Elbert Parr Tuttle U.S. Court of Appeals building is being designated as a National Historic Landmark by the National Park Service for its monumental contributions and role it played during the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s.
The Tuttle building is among three courthouses that played a prominent role in the modern civil rights movement have received the national historic landmarks. The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals courthouses join more than 2,500 other National Historic Landmarks across the country recognized as places that possess exceptional value and quality in illustrating or interpreting the heritage of the United States.
In the 1950’s and 1960’s, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, which had jurisdiction in six southeastern states, contributed to shaping the modern civil rights movement. Its courthouses were involved in rulings of nation-changing events, including the 1955 Montgomery Bus Boycott, 1961 Freedom Rides, the 1965 Selma-to-Montgomery march, and desegregation of southern schools and universities following the Supreme Court’s Brown v. Board of Education decisions in 1954 and 1955.
“In an era of significant resistance to racial equality, these monumental rulings defined civil rights laws, formed the basis of congressional civil rights legislation, and pioneered judicial reform,” said National Park Service Director Jonathan B. Jarvis. “These decisions are relevant to the study of Civil War to Civil Rights as well as modern conversations regarding civil rights, diversity, and inclusiveness.”
The United States General Services Administration (GSA) manages nearly five hundred historic federal buildings and courthouses, including the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals “Civil Rights” courthouses now designated as National Historic Landmarks.
“We at GSA are honored to serve as stewards of some of America’s most treasured resources,” said GSA Public Buildings Service Commissioner Norman Dong. “The historic Fifth Circuit courthouses stand at the cornerstone of change that revolutionized our country. The National Historic Landmark designation provides a unique platform from which these buildings and their sacred stories will inspire the American people for generations to come.”
Under Chief Justice Elbert Parr Tuttle (1960-1967), the Fifth Circuit developed a significant body of civil rights jurisprudence, overcame massive resistance in multiple school desegregation and voting rights cases, and more fairly applied and enforced the right to trial by jury of one’s peers. The greatest period of contribution of the courthouse began in 1960, when Tuttle became chief judge to 1966 when a Fifth Circuit school desegregation ruling (U.S. v. Jefferson) marked a turning point in school desegregation.  One of the “Fifth District Four,” Justice Elbert Parr Tuttle’s administrative leadership, along with his innovative jurisprudence, secured justice without delays and earned him a national reputation as one of the most significant judges of the twentieth century.