SELMA, Ala. _ The Edmund Pettus Bridge, with its imposing gray steel archway, played host to a blood-soaked turning point in the civil rights movement on March 7, 1965. Leading the way was a 25-year-old activist in a tan trenchcoat who nearly died that day from the blow of an Alabama state trooper's billy club.
Sunday that activist, the late Georgia congressman John Lewis, said goodbye to the site for the final time.
At 11:53 a.m., Lewis' body crossed the bridge, which was sprinkled with red rose petals to represent the blood previously spilled there, in a horse-drawn caisson. He was met on the other side by family members and Alabama state troopers, a poignant reminder of just how much America has changed since "Bloody Sunday."
From there, Lewis set out on one last pilgrimage from Selma to Montgomery, where he'll lie in state in the Alabama statehouse.
The vehicle carrying Congressman Lewis followed the route of the famous 1963 march from Selma to Montgomery and arrived at approximately 2:20 p.m. EDT. A private, receiving ceremony with Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey and other state officials took place ahead of a public viewing.
