FLUSHING, Ohio -- The founder of the Underground Railroad Museum in Flushing reflects on the importance of one woman refusing to give up her seat on a bus.
It happened Dec. 1, 1955.
A black seamstress named Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat to a white man.
Her act of bravery in Birmingham, Alabama, is now recognized as the beginning of the civil rights movement.
Parks was defying local laws, which mandated black people to sit in the back of the bus.
Belmont County historian John Matox says Parks learned about courage from reading the Bible to her grandmother Leona, who had lost her eyesight.
"It was some of the most enjoyable times that she had, reading the Bible to her grandmother," said Mattox. "And so there are many passages that she took from the Bible, which I think most people should do today. If you find a verse in the Bible that meets your purpose, utilize it, and it will make you a stronger person. That's why I call her "Quiet Strength."
Parks was subsequently arrested for her protest on the bus.
It sparked a year-long boycott of the city transit system by blacks.
The U.S. Supreme Court eventually ruled that the law requiring blacks to sit at the back of the bus is unconstitutional.
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