DENVER — Nearly 60 years ago, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. made several stops in Colorado, spreading his message of equality.
On January 26, 1964, Dr. King visited Montview Boulevard Presbyterian Church in Denver's Park Hill neighborhood. He spoke from both the pulpit and the church's front steps.
"We hear that about 3,000 people came out for it," said Co-Pastor Clover Reuter Beal. "It was the largest capacity attendance in Montview's history."
According to The Greater Park Hill Community News, Dr. King discussed racial equality, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and integration.
"It was really challenging the white community, too, about housing — communities of integration and access to housing," said Reuter Beal.
Margaret Wehner, 93, brought her four young children to hear Dr. King speak. Her husband, Russ, was a member of the church's leadership.
Montview had lobbied to be one of the stops on Dr. King's list.
"The church was packed," she recalled. "There were lots of people."
Wehner said she wanted her children to learn Dr. King's message.
"It's still so important to hear what Dr. King had to say that day," she said. "That we are all the same in God's eyes, and we're all God's children."
During his trip, Dr. King also spoke at Macedonia Baptist Church, the University of Denver and Grace Presbyterian Church. According to The Greater Park Hill Community News, the Denver Commission on Human Relations sponsored King's visit.
